A Milwaukee brewery has apologized for inadvertently promoting rape culture after an online competition to name its next beer went horribly wrong.
Each month, MobCraft Beer crowdsources suggestions from U.S. Citizens for a new brew recipe, with eight of the entries automatically entered into a vote on the company’s website. This month, a beer called Date Grape (a mixture of dates and grapes) appeared on the brewery’s website before it was removed by administrators.
In a statement on the MobCraft Beer Facebook page, company founder Henry Schwartz explained that there was no “process for screening names” before the eight entries appeared on the website. “I feel horrible that this oversight happened,” he added. “The beer name has been changed and we now have a process where our team vets names before they ever appear publicly.” Schwartz said that a percentage of drinks sales on Sat. Dec. 9 would be donated to a rape crisis center in Milwaukee.
The beer name has been changed and we now have a process to vet names before they appear publicly. We would Never promote rape culture!
— MobCraft Beer (@mobcraftbeer) December 6, 2016
The website has been updated so this month has just seven entries, including Hop Dam! (Pineapple and spicy habanero), Drumpf (wheatwine with dried orange peel, fresh orange zest and raw wheat) and a Mayan Mocha Stout (cocoa powder, coffee, cayenne pepper and vanilla).