Capital Brewing Co Quality Manager and Technical Brewer, Julia Santos Muriel, is one of a growing number of women in key technical roles across brewery operations. Photo: Capital Brewing Co.
Before a single drop of beer leaves Capital Brewing Co, it passes a gauntlet of DNA testing, sensory evaluation and a tight 0.3 mm margin of error.
Guiding that precision is a growing cadre of women in key technical roles from the lab to the canning line.
At the helm of quality management and technical brewing is Julia Santos Muriel. A decade ago, she was a Spanish chemistry graduate behind a Sydney bar, trying her first IPA and encountering English brewing terminology for the first time.
Today, she scientifically screens for beer-spoiling organisms and uses her finely tuned palate to help keep one of Australia’s top craft breweries at the top of its game.
Her love for the drink is rooted in her native Spanish culture.
“Beer has been in my life forever,” she says. “Spain is a really social drinking country. Any occasion is a reason to meet with friends over a beer. You go to the beach, you have a beer; you have a bad day, you catch up for a beer; you have a good day, you celebrate with a beer.”
Yet her brewing career began primarily as a path to a sponsorship visa through Goulburn’s Tribe Brewing.
“Starting was really hard; I didn’t know anything about brewing whatsoever,” she says. “It was long hours, everything was in English, and I had to learn a lot of new vocabulary. But I loved it from day one.”
After mastering large-scale production, she took up a standing invitation at Capital to cut her teeth on the more manual processes of boutique brewing. She stepped into quality management, helped build out the lab capabilities and systematically raised efficiency, cutting a path to quality manager and technical brewer.
Now, her days take her from the microbiology lab to test samples for beer-spoiling organisms, alcohol levels and density, to the taproom to run sensory sessions with the team to ensure product consistency, and to the brewing floor to help with production.
“I’m also a bit of a nerd for data, so I love analysing the numbers to identify problems or opportunities for efficiency or improvement — the little things that can make a big impact,” she says.
Her swift rise is no surprise to Capital co-founder Laurence Kain.
“Julia is really the full package: she has amazing sensory skills, an incredible understanding of beer judging guidelines and sensory profiles, and she’s a scientist with strong laboratory and analytical skills,” he says.
Julia isn’t alone at the top — female leadership spans Capital’s entire operation.
Packing manager Lucy Shorrock oversees the entire packaging process at Capital’s warehouse, putting some 3 million cans through the canning line every year, and thousands of kegs.
“There is a lot of technical expertise involved,” Laurence explains.
“It’s millions of units with a 0.3 mm tolerance on the seal of each can regarding whether it is adequately sealed or going to leak in your fridge. It takes a real blend of analytical quality analysis and knowing how to relate quality back to a machine.”
Similarly, Capital sponsored Sherri Dill through training at the Institute of Brewing & Distilling (IBD), helping her transition from a casual bartender to a brewing team leader.
Behind the scenes, the brewery’s HR manager actively monitors gender equity, closing pay gaps and investing in skill development.
It’s not only the right thing to do; it’s just good business sense, Laurence says.
“Having better diversity in the workplace leads to better outcomes, because you get differing points of view and approaches,” he says.
“Qualitatively, it creates a more enjoyable workplace where the team is engaged, passionate and likes coming to work. Quantitatively, our staff retention averages around five years, which is quite a long time in the modern workplace.”
For Julia, who also serves as a board member for the Pink Boots Society — a global group empowering women and non-binary individuals in the fermented beverage industry — the key issue is visibility.
Seeing women thrive in technical roles proves what is possible for the next generation.
“You can’t let stereotypes get in your way of achieving what you want,” she says.
To learn more, visit Capital Brewing Co.
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