Bow & Arrow Brewing Co.

Native-Owned Brewery Bow & Arrow Wants to Be Heard | Eater

"In a two-story beer hall where ambiance is curated down to a faux white buffalo sculpture and carefully arranged flowers on long communal benches, the flagship taproom foregrounds both place and story. Founded in 2016 by two Native women leaders, the operation transitioned from straightforward IPAs, lagers, and stouts to a signature focus on wild and sour beers that use locally cultivated yeasts (from an estate peach tree and a nearby lavender farm) and Indigenous ingredients such as blue corn, three-leaf sumac, prickly pear, juniper, and foraged neomexicanus hops. Specific beers and experiments—like the Denim Tux American pilsner made with blue corn from the Pueblo of Santa Ana, a Foeder-Aged Farmhouse Ale featuring three-leaf sumac, the Curio (influenced by early-hop harvest herbal/onion notes), and a wet-hopped Italian pilsner showing fruitier melon notes—illustrate how flavor, terroir, and tradition are woven together. Leadership combines culinary creativity and Indigenous medicinal knowledge (including use of Navajo tea/greenthread and Diné uses of hops) to reclaim foodways and foster sovereignty, while activism projects such as the Native Land collaboration beer pair land acknowledgements with donations to Native-led nonprofits. The project has earned critical recognition (Hop Culture’s Best Breweries list, Brewbound’s Rising Star) and broader visibility (pouring at Coachella), positioning the taproom as both an innovative craft-brewing destination and a platform for Indigenous storytelling and advocacy." - Ashley M. Biggers