This Milwaukee woman has been christened as Wisconsin's first-ever female beer knight

It's not often someone becomes a knight in the 21st century, especially a beer knight.

But Milwaukee restaurateur and chief operating officer of the European-inspired Lowlands restaurant group Ileana Rivera did just that on Sept. 2 in Brussels, Belgium.

In a ceremony at the historic Brewer’s House at La Grand-Place, Rivera was inducted into the Knighthood of the Brewers’ Paddle as an honorary knight in recognition of her efforts to spread authentic Belgian bier culture in Wisconsin at Lowlands' restaurants. Like all Belgian Brewers Guild knights, Rivera was also recognized for her role as a "true Belgian bier ambassador."

Rivera, who is of Puerto Rican descent, was the only American-born restaurateur honored this year, as well as the first Wisconsin woman and first Latina to be knighted by the organization, which dates back centuries. Rivera is the second honorary knight at Lowlands, following in the footsteps of the restaurant group's chief executive officer Eric Wagner, who was knighted in 2012.

"This is quite the honor for Ileana, and everyone at Lowlands Group could not be more excited," Wagner said in a statement. "She earned this over 15 years of working directly with our brewing partners, importers and distributors and introducing not just Lowlanders to the world’s greatest biers but also thousands upon thousands of customers and other bier enthusiasts and aficionados."

For the past 15 years, Rivera has led the development of the beer and beverage program at Lowlands. According to a release by Lowlands, Rivera has helped the restaurant group establish "one of the largest Belgian bier programs by scale and sales in the country."

Before moving through the ranks and becoming beverage manager at Café Hollander on Downer and later Lowlands COO in January 2020, Rivera began her career with Lowlands as a bartender at Centraal Grand Café and Tappery. There, she said she "immediately fell in love" with the taste of Belgian beer.

"It was like way different!" she recalled. "Growing up in Wisconsin, we're used to Pilsners and lagers; there's nothing wrong with that, but I found with Belgian biers, there's just more to it."

How does Lowlands Group celebrate Belgian bier culture?

Alongside Wagner, Rivera has worked with world-renowned Belgian brewers ― including a sixth-generation brewing family ― to create new beers only available at Lowlands restaurants. Rivera said her team works to emphasize and educate others on the stories and tradition behind each beer.

Over her career, Rivera estimates she's traveled to Belgium at least eight times, where she's met with Belgian brewery owners and collaborated on beers.

"I've been able to go there, and there I am networking with all of these brewery owners, tasting all their biers, figuring out how we can carry their biers and (telling them) that I'm going to take care of their biers," she said. "I'm going to continue their stories. I'm going to make sure it's getting carried in the right glasses, and, hopefully, teaching our staff and our guests the importance of Belgian bier culture."

She said, thankfully, it hasn't been too hard to get Wisconsinites on board with Belgian beer.

"We love beer in general here," she said. "So, it wasn't like it was this hard thing for me to kind of capture an audience. ... There's such a variety that there's a bier for everyone."

How does Belgian Brewers Guild knighthood work?

Rivera's knighthood ceremony was part of the Belgian Brewers Guild's 23rd annual Belgian Beer Weekend, a three-day festival in Brussels that honors St. Arnould, the 11th-century patron saint of brewers.

Instead of the typical sword, new Knights of the Brewers' Paddle are "tapped on each shoulder with a mash paddle, an integral tool of the brewing process."

As the direct descendant of the secular Guild of Brewers, the Knighthood of the Brewers’ Paddle and the Belgian Brewers Guild have roots dating back to the 13th century.

According to a news release from Lowlands, the guild is one of the oldest professional organizations in the world and is "dedicated to preserving and honoring the traditions and nobility of the brewer’s trade and those who have rendered loyal services to the brewing profession."

Rivera said it was an honor to be inducted into such a storied organization alongside 17 people "from all walks of life" who are each doing "special things to show why beer is important."

"This year means so much to me because we've also just started rebuilding (due to the pandemic) ... which means emphasizing, reteaching and reinvigorating what we represent, which has such a strong emphasis on Belgian bier," she said.

Additionally, with September marking Rivera's 15th anniversary with Lowlands, she said being knighted represents an extra special "double blessing."

At the end of the day, she said, the success she, Wagner and the rest of the Lowlands team have had with Belgian bier comes down to their authentic relationships with Belgian brewers.

"Eric has taught me about building relationships, and that's the most important thing if you really want to ensure that you're selling properly, is to get involved with them," Rivera said. "(The brewers) aren't just partners; they're our friends."

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This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Milwaukee woman named Wisconsin's first-ever female beer knight