During American Beer Month 2002, four members of the majority gender in the country shared some of their beer knowledge with Real Beer. We concluded with a roundtable discussion led by Daria Labinsky.

Daria Labinsky: Is there a reason to distinguish "women" beer drinkers from beer drinkers in general? With women drinking 25 percent of the beer sold in the United States, does it still make sense to discuss beer in terms of what appeals to them as a separate group?

Lisa Morrison: If beer companies want to actually attract that 25 percent of the beer-drinking population, than, yes, they should pay attention to them. They should be concerned with what appeals to women.

Here are some hints: Focus on THE BEER. If you have a good product, you don't need a bikini to sell it. Women are pretty savvy consumers. We do the majority of the shopping in the majority of households. We seek value, quality and consistency.

Cornelia Corey: I don't think you need to appeal to women as a separate group. I do think that better marketing could be done to portray beer as a beverage for every adult. The macrobrewers' rarely mention the beer - it's all about what other wonderful things can happen to you if you drink that particular beer. Seldom is the message simply drink this because it's good.

Lucy Saunders: Only from a marketing standpoint. The brand builders target malternatives to women more than men, for example. It's difficult to recall an ad that shows women enjoying glasses of oatmeal stout in a relaxed, low key environment. But this weekend, I saw three women doing just that in the ale house beer garden at the Norwich Inn in Vermont.