Brewdog backlash over ‘transgender’ beer

Craft beer brand Brewdog has been criticised by activists and Twitter users over the launch of its new “transgender” beer No Label.

Critics have attacked Brewdog’s “transgender” No Label beer (Photo: Brewdog)

The No Label beer, described by the brand as a “non-binary, transgender beer”, is made using hops that change sex from female to male flowers before they harvest.

“We have used these to emphasise that, just like humans, beer can be whatever the hell it wants to be, and proud of it,” Brewdog said as it unveiled the beer, which goes on sale on Friday (6 November).

But gay rights campaign Stonewall has slammed the beer as pedalling language that would “undermine” transsexual people.

“The trans community is diverse – many trans people do not transition, or identify with binary genders, and BrewDog’s language undermines that,” the campaign said in a statement.

Commentators on social media have also laid in to the new brew, with some branding it as an empty marketing gimmick.

One user, King Kourtney, said, “Trans people have to work so hard already to have our identities respected. To slap our identity onto your product is insulting.”

The Brewdog founders were recently criticised for dressing as prostitutes in a promotional video (Photo: Brewdog)

Some are claiming that the beer is an attempt by Brewdog to appease critics of the company who accused the founders James Watt and Martin Dickie of mocking transgender people during their latest crowdfunding campaign.

In September, the pair featured in a Brewdog video encouraging people to invest in the company, with one scene seeing them dressed as prostitutes telling viewers “don’t make us do this”.

A petition calling for the video to be removed has received over 25,000 signatures.

However, Watt told Business Insider that the new beer is not in response to the provocative video, saying: “It was already in the works.”

He also said that Brewdog worked with events organiser and charity Queerest of the Queer in the creation of the beer, and that proceeds from the sale of No Label will be donated to it.

“”People have got to look at what we’ve done here. We’ve worked with the charity Queerest of the Queer to put this together. They co-designed the packaging, they worked with us on the project, we’re donating all the proceeds of sales of this beer to charity,” he said.