Sassify Zine - May 2020
We are more than our trauma. I think it would also be rad for people to see the beauty and the complexity of who we are as a community…’’
Fox Fisher
Queer Beer- Redefining queerness one sip at a time.
‘The Queer Club’, is launching in October 2018 their first product called ‘Queer Beer’.
Queer Beer is reshaping queer culture one sip at a time. Lovingly created by Bhavini Patadia and Saskia Ullman, this golden duo announced the beer online a day after pride. The beer itself is an easy-drinking, Pale Ale with hints of grapefruit and lime, with an ABV of 4.3%.
We caught up with Bhavini who is gearing up for the launch to discuss beer, queerness and queertopia.
Why Beer?
I’m Indian, a butch lesbian, a survivor of rape and generally just a badass woman. Saskia is a DJ and originally from Stockholm, where she performed and became a part of the nightlife scene. She essentially opened up this queer world, introduced intersectional feminism to me and taught me how to love myself in my weakest moments. We noticed how there are hardly any casual lesbian bars and essentially no spaces for the LGBTQ+ community, without it feeling like a hyped up or over priced event, and we noticed the lack of people of colour being represented.
For tickets to the launch party click here!
We wanted to revive the London LGBTQ+ nightlife while simultaneously reclaiming and reinventing the term “queer”. Destroying any negative connotations that circle around the word. We want people to say the word “queer” openly, loudly, and proudly.
We created this high quality product with the aim to give as much of the profits as possible to various charities, working alongside Stonewall for advice on how we can support our community. The goal is to give back to the community that has accepted us fully since the beginning. We wanted to join the fight for everyone’s right to live and love, not just survive.
How would you define sassiness?
Self-respect and self-love
How sassy are you both?
We're both equally as sassy, perhaps not outwardly but more internally. We're constantly sticking up and speaking out for what needs to be heard. We're brave and I guess sassier than expected.
How have you seen the queer landscape evolve since you have been 'out?'
It's changed and evolved massively. I came out when I was 14 so a lot has happened in 6 years. It feels that for the first time, being gay is being seen as a less shameful quality but a celebration. With the help of social media, everyday people are sharing their stories of being queer and it's a beautiful thing. It seems that being queer is on the road to being normalised. I feel less lonely, I've experienced the most self-love in the past year than ever before and I'm so excited to continue to see the world evolve into an even stronger and more open place to live and love in.
What would a queer utopia (queertopia) look like and do you see Queer Beer at the forefront of it?
A Queer Utopia would be seeing many more queer spaces, clubs, cafes, film nights and dinner parties. Queer people being able to feel safe and surround themselves with other queer people without fear, to love whomever without judgement. We hope that Queer Beer is the start of more queer friendly businesses, made from within the community itself, that dedicate themselves to bringing together this evergreen and just astonishing community. We want to celebrate the magic that it means to be queer and to show how far we have evolved. We owe it to the queer individuals that came before us, that lost their lives fighting for ours, to have a great fucking life.