Interesting stuff regarding the gender issue - my wife and I were just talking about this the other day. She's been a beer hater for pretty much her whole life - until I started getting into craft brews. As she started trying some of the Belgian styled Ales, she realized it wasn't the beer itself that was the issue, it was the bitterness that commonly comes along with it.

I'm wondering now if craft brews simply make it easier for some women to begin to build an appreciation for great beer.

I'm inclined to agree with Jason. My mother (age 69) always hated beer. Couldn't stand it. Last year I started introducing her to some unfiltered hefeweizens and other interesting beer (such as pumpkin ales, etc.). She likes it and when she visits, she usually asks for a bottle. Perhaps the bitterness thing is key. Hmm...

I agree with Jason and Bolt. Being a woman myself, I tend to like beers that are a little more sweet than one that is bitter. Maybe that is why a lot of women tend to stick to those super sweet mixed drinks? If all they have experienced in beer is the big mainstream beers, they might not realize there are other beers out there. My husband is a huge hop head. Don't know many women that are... I WILL try anything though!

Very few people love beer the first time they taste it, and I think a lot of women just move on to other things because of the stereotype that beer is a man's drink. And maybe because they think they can avoid a few calories?

I for one love beer, and actually prefer dark or heavily-hopped brews!

The GABF was male-heavy on Thursday night, but it did even out to more of a 60/40 split on Friday & Saturday.
I think that the flavored beers are bringing women into the beer market, and that they are then finding themselves to be more open to trying other, more traditional, brews.

For years I drank beer because it was cheap, though I didn't like the taste. I discovered weizen in Germany and fell in love, and bought it whenever I could afford it. For years it's been the celebration beverage of choice among a small group of us, even though it costs $3-$4 per half liter for German weizens. Now there are some good American-made weizens out there that cost far less than German ones. Best of both worlds...good beer at reasonable cost- YAY!

When I was in college, I spent a semester in Brussels, and it was common for the bartenders to put a splash of soda (usually coke or sprite equivalent) into Steela Artois for the college girls at the bars. He explained that the sweetness cut the bitterness.
Other girls would drink the beer from a straw - which I guess either helped to keep it from touching the part of the tongue that tastes bitter, or they drank it faster so they didnt care.
Dont know if this would help a bud light, but as you know, Belgian beers are in a slightly different category...