Boss (Ale) Bitches Killin’ It.
HER NAME
CHRISSY
MAKES SIPS AT
SAUSAGE QUEEN BREWING
Chrissy is one of those people that as soon as you meet her, you just want to be friends with her. We chatted to Chrissy about SIP’ER when it was just a spark of an idea, and her unapologetic views on the lack of female recognition in the alcohol industry are both quotable, and quite frankly, fucking accurate.
Chrissy opened her Sydney inner-west venue, The Sausage Factory, in 2017 with her partner Jim (don’t call him her husband), where they create a changing menu of fun sausage combos paired with a *damn* good drinks list. After years of stocking local Sydney beers, Chrissy (a.k.a The Sausage Queen) noticed there were a few things missing from the scene. In Chrissy’s words: “A lot of beers are all so dude-y and trucker-cap adjacent. Dudes aren’t the only people that drink beer.” And so she decided to give brewing a crack. Six months later, her cans were stocked in major bottle shops all over the city.
It only felt right to have Chrissy be the first (in her words) “boss bitch” we spoke to; she’s full of beer knowledge, wisdom and hilarious stories, so we hope you enjoy reading this chat as much as we enjoyed having it.
“The Boss Ale is just about bad bitches killing it, so that’s my whole sort of ‘strong, unapologetic women’ thing, that’s my vibe. I also think it’s very inclusive, where it’s not like anything you’ve had before, it’s something eccentric and that can be a boss thing too.”
SIP’ER: What’s the best way to consume Sausage Queen? What is your ideal set up?
CHRISSY: In a bath. Is top notch. After a long day of sausage making I will also often crack one open for the 30 second walk home. Post-sausage making for me personally is the spot. But otherwise, for people who don’t have to wrangle meats and aren’t antisocial... then over a plate of sausages.
SIP’ER: Something we love about Sausage Queen is the branding. It’s just so fun and every time we say the name to someone they immediately laugh because it’s so playful.
CHRISSY: The name is very nicely confusing. Like what does it have to do with beer? People are like what? “Oh it’s just this sausage lady” and they’re like “okay, my question still stands”. I like that element of confusion. It makes it less serious as well because beer is just taken so seriously, and I find that unnecessary. As much as I know and obsess about beer, it can still be fun and playful.
SIP’ER: What has been your career highlight so far?
CHRISSY: We’d just done our first big brew in February (2020) in kegs, to roll out into bars. But the pandemic hit and we were looking at 30 kegs of beer just like “well, fuck”. No one knew how long it was going to last so we sent it all back and got it canned. The first time getting the beer into a can was so stunning to me. There’s nothing quite as thrilling as holding your own packaged retail product in your hands, at least for me.
SIP’ER: What was the first Sausage Queen beer that you held?
CHRISSY: The Boss Ale…
SIP’ER: That’s so fitting!
CHRISSY: The Boss Ale is just about bad bitches killing it, so that’s my whole sort of “strong, unapologetic women” thing. That’s my vibe.
SIP’ER: That’s the tagline right there.
CHRISSY: I also think it’s very inclusive, where it’s not like anything you’ve had before. It’s something eccentric and that can be a boss thing too.
SIP’ER: When we tried your beers we thought, “This is scarily smashable”. Just so easy to drink but also interesting flavours.
CHRISSY: Yeah good, that was basically the brief – write that!
SIP’ER: What is your favourite beverage you produce and why is it your favourite? (You can say Boss Ale again)
CHRISSY: I’m gonna say Boss Ale, cos that’s my desert island beer, that’s sort of our… what is the ship thing? Not signature…
SIP’ER: Flagship!
CHRISSY: Flagship beer, yes! The Boss Ale is the quintessential every-day beer, easy drinking but interesting and delicious. I think there is just always a place for a slab of Boss Ale in every fridge.
SIP’ER: What do you want people to take away from the experience after drinking Sausage Queen?
CHRISSY: I want them to feel more confident about trying lots of different types of beers. Beer can be so intimidating, so just some sort of fearlessness in giving things a crack. Some are going to be easy drinking and delicious and some are just going to be too much or not really up your alley, but that’s cool. I want to foster an air of reckless experimentation.