Alcohol is a conduit for a lot of things. It can be a party starter. A truth serum. It could even be the road to a whole new career path. But for people of color, that road hasn’t been so smooth.

Latiesha Cook wants to change this. Along with her husband, Dom, Latiesha runs Beer Kulture. It’s a nonprofit headquartered in St. Petersburg whose mission is to make the craft beverage industry more diverse, equitable and inclusive. Beer Kulture uses scholarships, internship programs, job boards and community partnerships to, as its tagline says, “change the world one beer at a time.” 

And the movement is getting national attention, in articles everywhere from the New York Times to Forbes to the industry website Brewbound. Latiesha recently spoke with The Zest about alcohol as a vehicle for social justice, how white people can be good allies and who she most wants to have a beer with. And of course, we had to ask her for some craft beer recommendations.

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