November 2009

Cheers!

Beer has come of age in Australia with awards raining down on these innovative brewers

Cheers!

WORDS CHRIS CANTY

From major Australian cities, to quaint country towns, devoted brewers are churning out some of the best craft beers in the world. We scour the country to find the pioneers, the new upstarts and the recent award-winners at the 2009 Australian International Beer Awards (AIBA) where Aussies took 10 out of the 15 trophies, in a field of 1,140 entries from across 39 countries.

Mudgee Brewery

In the small country town of Mudgee, three hours from Sydney, you’ll find a 100-year-old wool store that has been lovingly converted into a brewery by Mudgee local, Gary Leonard. For him, beer is something more than a career.

“Identifying and producing different beer tastes obviously requires a lot of beer tasting, one of the more enjoyable jobs that a brewer must do,” he says. “The variety of grains, hops and other flavour ingredients gives an unlimited scope to producing different tastes and aromas. Beer is not just about the taste but about the whole drinking experience.”

RECENT AWARDS: 2009 AIBA, Bronze Medal – Mudgee Porter.
CHECK OUT: Their great menu and variety of brews in their own restaurant-bar. Tasting and informal chats with the brewer are always available and there’s live acoustic music on Thursday nights.

Flying Horse Brewery

This little gem only opened last year, but is already making waves, ironically in the surfing town of Warrnambool at the tail end of Victoria’s Great Ocean Road. Brewer Matt Doswell says it isn’t hard to find inspiration.

“Brewing beer on a micro brewing scale is a very hands-on process so everything that happens from grain to glass is in the brewers’ control. Knowing this gives me the desire to create something great. If it’s a case of creating something new, we listen to the drinkers and experiment with what they want, or we use our own imagination.”

RECENT AWARDS: 2009 AIBA, Champion Porter – Dirty Angel.
CHECK OUT: Their brewery doubles as a 100-seat restaurant with outdoor terrace and courtyard. Brewery tours every Friday at 5pm or by appointment. Live music most weekends.

Colonial Brewing

Margaret River might be one of Australia’s most famous wine regions, but that didn’t stop Richard Moroney from opening a brewery, smack bang in the middle of it. Now some tourists come to the area just to sample his brews. When asked about his inspiration he answers philosophically.

“Handcrafted beers reflect what it means to be human. Good beers tend to brew you, just as much as you brew them. We focus on attention to detail and careful selection of raw materials, ensuring we deliver a superior beer experience.”

RECENT AWARDS: 2009 AIBA, Best WA Beer – Colonial Kolsch Ale.
CHECK OUT: The views of the Bramly National Park forest, while sampling a few brews straight from the tap. If you’re hungry, try out the pizza or tapas from 11am–4pm daily.

Mountain Goat Brewery

It’s hard to believe that this multi-award winning Melbourne brewery has been operating for the last 13 years, making it one of the pioneers of Victoria’s craft beer industry. But as brewer Dave Bonighton attests, there are no signs of complacency.

“I get easily inspired when it comes to beer. When it came to brewing Rapunzel, our Belgian Blonde, I’d just come back from Belgium and my taste buds were alive with Belgian-style ales. It’s a style that not many brewers in Australia attempt. We brew beers that we like to drink, and where we think there’s a gap in the bottle shop shelf.”

RECENT AWARDS: 2009 AIBA, Best Victorian Beer – Rapunzel.
CHECK OUT: Their trendy inner city pad on Fridays 5pm–midnight where a range of beers and pizzas are available. Free brewery tours on Wednesdays at 6.30pm.

Two Metre Tall Company

Deep in Tasmania’s Derwent Valley, Jane and Ashley Huntington are doing everything from scratch. Growing their own barley, wheat and hops, their farm-based brewery is rare in Australia.

“Growing our own ingredients inspires us to brew fully flavoured real ales,” says Jane. “As a trained winemaker now brewing ale, Ashley can’t believe that no other breweries are growing their own ingredients like wineries grow their grapes.”

RECENT AWARDS: The brewers choose not to enter competitions.
CHECK OUT: Their brewery is a converted shearing shed on a 600ha farm with stunning views of Mount Field National Park and beyond. Call ahead for tastings, tours of the farm and brewery, and direct sales.

Sunshine Coast Brewery

Situated just outside of Maroochydore, around 15 minutes from the Sunshine Coast’s famous beaches, brewer Ian Watson offers holidaymakers and beer lovers an ideal respite from the sun. He says it’s best for a brewer to follow their heart.

“There’s no such thing as a new taste, it has all been done before but perhaps not done quite the way that each individual brewer does it. Trends are something that most craft brewers avoid, preferring to concentrate on making a quality beer and letting the consumer discover it themselves.”

RECENT AWARDS: 2009 AIBA, Champion Reduced and Low Alcohol Beer – Sunshine Coast Summer Ale.
CHECK OUT: Their Brewery Bar is open Mon–Tue 11am–2pm, and Wed–Sat 11am– 6pm, providing a selection of craft beers on tap and good value lunches.

Blue Sky Brewing

Opened late last year, there’s something a little over the top about building a brewery in what is already paradise – Cairns being a launching point for the Great Barrier Reef, rainforests and picturesque islands. Australia’s most northern brewery hasn’t wasted any time making an impact, already creating nine award-winning beers.

Like the local weather, Adam Smith says making beer is all about adapting.

“Blue Sky holds a brewer’s reserve which is a seasonal beer changing every three months to coincide with warming or cooling weather patterns and subsequent changes in diet. We’ve just released a honey-laden Blue Sky pale ale with a crisp yet malty finish – a perfect spring edition.”

RECENT AWARDS: 2009 AIBA, 4 silver and 5 bronze medals.
CHECK OUT: Their daily beer tours and tastings at 11am, 4pm and 6pm (AU$16) and their nightly food and drink specials that attract hundreds each day.

Feral Brewing

When Feral Brewing dominated the 2009 Australian International Beer Awards, beer lovers from outside of Western Australia asked in unison… who are these guys? Brewer Brendan Varis says getting inspiration is all about living in WA.

“Often I will become aware of a historical beer style that may suit our climate or way of life here. There are many historical beer styles that the public know nothing about that have a heap of interesting flavours. That being said, when doing new product development, there are no boundaries.”

RECENT AWARDS: 2009 AIBA, Champion Exhibitor Trophy; Champion Small Brewery Champion Ale – Feral Hop Hog; Champion Scotch & Barley Wines – Razorback; Champion Hybrid Beer – Feral White.
CHECK OUT: Their restaurant-brewery which Varis says offers “slightly offbeat beer food for slightly offbeat people”. Open Mon–Thu 11am–5pm. Fri–Sun 11 to late.

FIND IT

Mudgee Brewing Company
4 Church St, Mudgee, New South Wales, tel: +61 (2) 6372 6726

Flying Horse Brewery
Cnr Princes Hwy and Mahoneys Rd, Warrnambool, Victoria, tel: +61 (3) 5562 2254

Colonial Brewing Company
Osmington Rd, Margaret River, Western Australia, tel: +61 (8) 9758 8177

Mountain Goat Brewery
Cnr North and Clark Sts, Richmond, Victoria, tel: +61 (3) 9428 1180

Two Metre Tall Company
2862 Lyell Hwy, Hayes, Tasmania, tel: +61 (3) 6261 1930

Sunshine Coast Brewery
13 Endeavour Dve, Kunda Park, Queensland, tel: +61 (7) 5476 6666

Blue Sky Brewery
34-42 Lake St, Cairns, Queensland, tel: +61 (7) 4057 0500

Feral Brewing
152 Haddrill Rd, Baskerville, Western Australia, tel: +61 (8) 9296 4657






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