Apiwe Nxusani-Mawela, South Africa’s first black female craft brewery owner, is breaking barriers in Mzansi’s brewing industry.
At her microbrewery in Johannesburg known as Brewsters Academy, she is mentoring 13 young black graduates (most of them being female) in the art of beer making.
Eager to get themselves an extra qualification for a possible career in brewing, the graduates carry qualifications which range from chemical engineering to biotechnology, and even analytical chemistry degrees and diplomas.
As reported by AP News, Nxusani-Mawela’s goal is to transform the industry which is currently dominated by men and big corporations, and make it more inclusive. “I wanted to make sure that being the first black female to own a brewery in South Africa, I’m not the first and the last,” she told AP News.
Nxusani-Mawela’s beers incorporate uniquely African flavours, such as marula fruit and rooibos bush. Her Wild African Soul beer won the 2025 African Beer Cup champion title.
As South Africa’s beer industry continues to grow and to contribute extensively to the country’s GDP, Nxusani-Mawela’s efforts are poised to make a lasting impact.
