LOOKING TO GET INTO HOMEBREWING? FOR OUR EXPERT INTRODUCTION see page 56
INCLUDING
ISSUE 52 AUTUMN 2020 PRICE $9.95 (NZ $11.95)
Strawberries, Oatmeal, Gluten-Free THE REINVENTION OF PALE ALE
THE ECO REVOLUTION CAN BREWERIES REALLY BE SUSTAINABLE?
BUILD YOUR OWN BREWPUB! IT’S THE FUTURE OF CRAFT
ISSN 1834-5115
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REVIEWED
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PLUS! CRAFT BEER’S SECOND GENERATION | BUILDING A BRAND | ART VS SCIENCE
CONTENTS
22
inside... Autumn 2020
FEATURES 16 Pale Ale Luke Robertson turns his attention to one of the most popular and adaptable styles in the craft beer stable
22 Art of the Brewpub As breweries turn to in-house hospitality to boost revenue, we investigate what it takes to create a great brewpub
28 Day in the Life Step into the shoes of a venue manager to explore the hospitality side of the brewing business
30 Craft Beer’s Second Generation Charlie Whitting talks to the brewers who took the craft beer torch from the early pioneers and paved the way for our incredible modern scene
38 Sustainable Brewing We take a look at some of the groundbreaking sustainability projects in Australia’s craft brewing industry
62 Media and Brand Identity is important for craft brewers. What does it take to create, maintain and promote a genuine brand?
4 www.beerandbrewer.com
HOMEBREWER 46 Welcome 47 Letters 48 Q&A 50 Jake’s Brewlog Jake Brandish turns his homebrewing powers to the pale ale
52 GABS Beers Homebrewer chats about GABS Festival Beers with Blackman’s Brewery
55 Andrew Childs
“I think it is natural that people will judge a brewery’s beers by the brewpub experience they get.” – Richard Watkins
A brewing recipe from Andrew Childs
56 Introduction to Homebrewing Have you been looking to get into homebrewing? Check out Chris Thomas’ essential tips for homebrew beginners
60 Level Up How do you choose the best yeast for the job?
16
30
REGULARS 6 The Brew All the upcoming events you can’t miss
8 News The biggest stories from the brewing world
10 World News 12 Bits and Bobs 14 New Venues 66 Entertaining Food 70 Tasting Notes It’s autumn so it’s harvest time. What better time, then, for the panel to focus on ciders and perries, along with the usual array of fantastic beers from Australia and New Zealand.
80 Directory 82 A Pint With BrewFest’s headline act Art & Science
“At the time, we really had to explain to the consumer what craft beer is.” – Aaron Heary
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70
Autumn 2020 5
PALE ALES
16  www.beerandbrewer.com
PALE ALES
Beyond the pale AS BEER STYLES STRAY FURTHER FROM THE PALE, THE PALE ALE STILL HAS A LOT OF LIFE IN IT IN AUSTRALIA, AS LUKE ROBERTSON DISCOVERS.
W
hile pale ale
unfiltered batch and I’m really looking
has its roots
forward to seeing how that goes.”
in English
Blasta Brewing in Perth takes a similar
brewing,
approach to its US-style pale called
as malting
Grimster Rocks. Like the Uraidla version,
techniques
it uses Azacca, alongside another US
evolved to allow grain kilning at lower
hop – Mosaic – and the Australian hop
temperatures for lighter coloured malts
Galaxy. It was the first beer that founder
in the 1700s, modern pale ales owe a
Steven Russel made in the brewery,
lot to California, Ken Grossman and
but early signs weren’t great. During
his Sierra Nevada Pale Ale. He took
fermentation he was unhappy with
inspiration from English tradition,
it, leading to some sleepless nights.
combining bitterness with malt flavour
However, once it was conditioned “it
and encouraging aroma by dry hopping,
tasted amazing”, he says. It was so good,
a technique used in cask ales since
he named it after his brother, whose
the 1800s. Sierra Nevada evolved and
nickname was Grimmy or Grimster, who
reinvigorated the style in the most
passed away in 2010.
American of ways: lots of strong,
“When I was tasting it, I thought it
high-alpha hops, in the form of
was really good, and it would be a fitting
Cascade, a US-bred hop released in
tribute because I knew people would like
1971. Nine years later came Sierra
it,” Russell says.
Nevada Pale Ale, showcasing its spicy pine and citrus flavours. Its influence is still found around the
The first batch went on to win Best Pale Ale at the Perth Royal Beer Awards in 2018 and picked up gold the following
world. Oscar Matthews, head brewer
year at the same event and at the
at Uraidla Brewery outside of Adelaide,
Australian International Beer Awards.
describes his Third Eye Pale Ale as having roots in ‘Californian pale ales’. “I started off using some old school
COUNTRY OF ORIGIN - KIND OF
American hops and newer German
If Sierra Nevada is the forefather of
varieties, but it’s since morphed into just
American pales, the same could be
a straight American pale, with classic
said of Stone & Wood’s Pacific Ale for
varieties like Cascade and Chinook, plus
Australia. Known as Draught when it was
newer stuff like Equanot and Azacca,”
first released in 2009, its approach to a
Matthews says. “We’re just about to put
slightly hazy, tropical fruit-forward sub-
out a new batch and this will be the first
5% pale ale has inspired a number of
Food Pairing While a strawberry, vanilla lactose beer might sound perfect for dessert, Blasta has had success pairing The Cats Whiskers with Cambodian-style curries to give a fruity counterbalance to the spice. At Brouhaha, the New Zealand Pale Ale finds a great match with the peppery spice of wagyu pastrami, which is a go-to pairing for them at festivals. At Uraidla, they take a more classic approach when matching the US Pale. “It’s good with any pub food,” Matthews tells us. For its Gluten-Free Pale Ale, Wild Polly recommends anything spicy, but it’s just as good with a packet of peanuts and a sunset, they say.
Autumn 2020 17
BREWPUBS
Top 50 Brewpubs When Beer & Brewer rejigged our Top 50 Brewpubs last year, we did so for a variety of reasons. But chief among these was our desire to illustrate to our readers the varied roles that brewpubs can and do play, and the many different things that breweries do to make their brewpubs inviting places to visit. Community: The local community is as much a part of a brewery’s identity as its logo and its signature pale ale. A brewery should endeavour to embed itself into and to support its local community – after all, they’ll have supported you as you were starting out. Sponsoring local teams and hosting local societies and events are just some of the ways you can get involved.
Pouring a beer at BentSpoke
The Art of the Brewpub BREWING GREAT BEER IS NO LONGER THE SOLE HALLMARK OF A GREAT CRAFT BREWERY. PROVIDING A GREAT HOSPITALITY EXPERIENCE ON TOP OF THAT HAS BECOME AN INCREASINGLY ESSENTIAL TASK FOR A CRAFT BREWERY TO PERFECT.
M
ost people start a
It remains a critical part of establishing
brewery because
yourself within people’s perceptions and
they enjoy brewing,
directing what kind of company you want to
whether it’s
be. But in the last five to 10 years, something
perfecting a recipe
that had previously been a bit of an add-on
or experimenting
has become an essential part of a brewery’s
and pushing yourself beyond existing
offer. Indeed, it has become a considerable
limits. But in the modern world, a brewery
opportunity for growth and profit.
is not just a brewer’s playground. With so much competition for space – both in the
WE’LL KEEP A WELCOME
literal sense but also in people’s minds and
As well as visiting every pub, bar and
memories – breweries need to do more to
bottleshop within a 100km radius and trying
keep up and maintain profitability.
to get their beers put on the lists, breweries
Creating a brand that is true to your
have also created a space for themselves and
brewery and that resonates with your target
invited people to visit them instead. The
drinkers is something that breweries were
brewpub model has become so ubiquitous
mastering 20 years and more ago (page 62).
in Australia and around the world that
22 www.beerandbrewer.com
Food: The pairing of food and beer is a phenomenon that continues to grow and is a great starting reason for brewpubs to bring a food offer into the mix. But this is also an opportunity to encourage customers to stay for longer at your venue, to support other local businesses and make the place a friendlier place to a wider variety of people. Beer: This seems like rather an obvious one, but brewing good beer isn’t the same as keeping good beer, and customers will be coming to your brewpub to taste the ‘freshest beer direct from the source’. Running a cellar means understanding temperatures, throughput and stock rotation. How are you going to maintain the quality of your beer? Are you going to just offer your own beers or are there other breweries (local or exotic) that you’d like to support? Staff: An absolutely critical part of any brewpub. People are the face of your brand, creating as powerful an impact on beer drinkers as your branding and advertising. A friendly welcome and impeccable service can leave positive and long-lasting memories of your brewery and its beers. Outdoor area: Australians are an outdoor people and there are few better experiences than enjoying a cold one out in the sunshine. If you can incorporate an outdoor space, it adds another dimension to your brewpub, allowing for different eating and drinking experiences and attracting different kinds of customers – like those with kids, for example. Décor: The space in which people drink your beers is an opportunity like no other to imprint your brand’s personality onto their consciousness. Want to highlight your rural vibes? Maybe opt for more wood and leather rather than marble and steel… Want to think outside the box? Try checking out junk stores as well as Ikea.
BREWPUBS
many pubs and bars have begun to bemoan their infringement onto their hospitality turf. Selling your beer a few yards from where it’s been brewed cuts out lots of expensive added costs such as transportation, refrigeration and sales forces, which can make a huge difference in a business of fine margins like brewing. It also represents the shortest link between beer maker and beer drinker and is therefore the surest way to connect with potential fans, tell a coherent story and garner feedback. “The brewshed communicates our values, sets the scene for what we are about and, with a continuous stream of new beers, superfresh from the brewery, it gives punters the best experience of our beers,” says Corinna Steeb, CEO of Prancing Pony Brewery in Adelaide Hills. “We can chat about the beer creation, foods that we may match with a beer and, in our case, punters can directly interact with the brewers.” Last year, Ballistic Beer Co. opened a brewpub in Springfield to take its tally to three in total, and cofounder David Kitchen was clear that more openings are planned as part of the brewery’s strategy for growth. After all, it guarantees sales, boosts margins, introduces the beer to new people and, most importantly, provides an experience that can work as a marketing tool. Margaret River Brewhouse recently underwent a major refurbishment of its brewpub with exactly this principle in mind. “Experience - full stop - is the reason that people go to brewpubs,” says Margaret River Brewhouse cofounder Iliya Hastings. “Making them feel welcome, giving them a nice natural setting, respecting everyone that walks in your door. If you have those key factors in place, a good beer becomes a great beer, a great beer
“THE BREWSHED COMMUNICATES OUR VALUES, SETS THE SCENE FOR WHAT WE ARE ABOUT AND WITH A CONTINUOUS STREAM OF NEW BEERS, SUPERFRESH FROM THE BREWERY, IT GIVES PUNTERS THE BEST EXPERIENCE OF OUR BEERS.” - CORINNA STEEB, CEO OF PRANCING PONY BREWERY, ADELAIDE HILLS
blows their head off.”
BUILDING A BREWPUB In previous issues, we have detailed the steps involved in building your own brewery and when it comes to the hospitality side of things, there are certainly similar lessons to be learned. Ease of access is critical, whether that’s for customers getting to the bar and their tables or staff members moving through the venue. But one also needs to consider other parts of the customer experience that make things more pleasant for everyone. “Acoustics. How hard is it to have a relaxing evening in most venues given the painful noise level and echo noise surfaces?” says Julian Sanders, director of Spark Breweries and Distilleries. “Don’t tell me that at 42, this issue is actually about my age. It is about sound deadening - under tables, on wall hangings, acoustic ceiling tiles.” Beyond this, thought needs to be given to furniture and furnishing. Like its branding, its website and its social media presence, the décor of a brewpub reflects (or should reflect) the values of that brewery,
Autumn 2020 23
CRAFT BEER’S SECOND GENERATION
Stone & Wood’s Byron Bay brewery
Carrying the torch CHARLIE WHITTING TALKS TO THE BREWERS WHO TOOK THE FLAME FOSTERED BY THE FOUNDERS OF AUSTRALIAN CRAFT BEER AND RAN WITH IT, LAYING THE GROUNDWORK FOR THE EXPLOSIVE GROWTH THAT FOLLOWED.
I
n the Winter issue of 2017, Beer & Brewer looked back at those pioneering souls considered to be the founders of the craft beer movement in Australia. From Chuck Hahn and Blair Nelson in Sydney, Cam Hines and David Bonighton in Victoria, Willie Simpson in Tasmania and Phil Sexton in Western Australia, it seems that each state had at least one plucky brewer trying to do something different to the brewing behemoths that dominated
Australian drinking culture. So how did we get from a handful of craft brewers scattered across the country
in the 80s and 90s to the cornucopia of breweries that Australia now enjoys, to the point where it competes with New Zealand and the USA to have the most breweries per capita in the world? We are calling that link between those early pioneers and the subsequent explosion in breweries Craft Beer’s Second Generation, those who took the brewing baton and took it forward once more.
WHAT WAS IT LIKE? For our younger readers, it might be hard to imagine a world before craft beer, when the offer available wasn’t even a quarter as varied as today. For aspiring craft brewers in the late 90s and early 00s, accessibility to these exciting new beers, not to mention the people who made them, was a considerable challenge. The internet was in its
30 www.beerandbrewer.com
Ben Summons from Stone & Wood
Stone & Wood’s brewery bar
CRAFT BEER’S SECOND GENERATION
infancy. It was hard to find out about the craft brewing scene, hard to find places that were selling craft beers and harder still to find brewing equipment to set up one’s own brewery. However, what they did have, thanks to those handful of pioneers that had come before them, were a few craft breweries (and, of course, the big boys at CUB and Lion) where they could learn the art of brewing from genuine masters. Ash Hazell, head brewer at 16-year-old Colonial Brewing Co, was one of the many second generation brewers to learn his trade at Little Creatures. “Looking around the industry now, a lot of the people in roles like mine have come from that first wave,” he says. “There’s a lot of brewers who have gone on from Mountain Goat to found other businesses. Stone & Wood have created a lot of great brewers and facilitated the growth of a lot of breweries. Little
Ashley Hazell from Colonial Brewing Co
Creatures and Gage Roads – I swear, they must have trained half the industry’s current head brewers!”
Inspirations
While online access might have been limited, global travel was booming and the world’s beers provided enormous inspiration for many of the second
The people and beers who taught and inspired the Second Generation
generation. The founders of Holgate, Good Drinks
Boatrocker: “The famous beer writer, Michael Jackson, was a huge inspiration. Matilda Bay, Little Creatures and Mountain Goat were also huge inspirations for me. Sierra Nevada were and are legendary.”
and Bridge Road Brewers were inspired by their travels overseas. Visiting America and Europe opened completely new worlds of beer to would-be brewers, worlds that they wanted to bring home and emulate, all the while bringing their own Australian spin into play. Brewing their versions of existing styles – or even specific beers – was the starting point for many of the second wave. “We have always tried to brew our own version of classic styles,” says Dave Macgill, head brewer at Moo Brew. “Sometimes that means taking the piss by using non-traditional hop varieties to mimic a classic style. Other times that’s not messing with tradition at all and trying to recreate the ultimate stylistic beer.”
Gage Roads: “Janice McDonald at Matilda Bay. Roger Bussell was another brewer who took me under his wing.” Bridge Road: “Mountain Goat was leading the way in Melbourne, Holgate and Grand Ridge too.” Moo Brew: “Phil Sexton and Brad Rogers out of Matilda Bay, along with Dave Bonighton from Mountain Goat.” Nail Brewing: “Jan Brukner from Last Drop and Chuck Hahn from Malt Shovel and are legendary pioneers I highly respect.” Colonial: “Brendan Varis from Feral, Jan Brukner from Lask Drop, John Stallwood from Nail, Russell Gosling from Little Creatures.” Bright: “The guys at Mountain Goat and Little Creatures. We popped over to WA to visit and Howard Cearns gave us a few tips on getting things moving.”
Setting up a brewery was an expensive business back then – the equipment was expensive and hard to find, and the influx of American hops was in its infancy. With no guarantee that there would even be a market for their beers once they’d brewed them, the second generation brewers constantly battled to stay open. They worked extraordinary hours with limited teams, calling in favours from friends and family, as they bid to support themselves through the business of brewing. “When the three of us founded Stone & Wood, we really just wanted to ensure we could put food on the table for our families, who believed in what we we’re embarking on,” says Brad Rogers, co-founder of Stone & Wood. “It really was that simple. We wanted to ensure we had fun along the way, but we also needed a size to feed the three families. We started with Draught Ale, which quickly became Pacific Ale.” The need to stay afloat meant that while the early brewers were keen and excited to innovate and
Bridge Road Brewers’ brewery
Autumn 2020 31
JAKE’S BREW LOG
And now for something completely different! HOMEBREWER TECHNICAL EDITOR JAKE BRANDISH LOOKS AT PALE ALES.
PALE ALES
take out the gold medal! They both have
your boat. Water, grain and hop bill, yeast
Pale ales go right back in brewing history,
the words ‘pale ale’ littered all over the
strain, etc. Water, and the area in which
and most likely were brewed before the
place which tells you it is a fantastic style
the pale ale was brewed, were the primary
term ‘Pale Ale’ was coined. In the UK in
to play with. There is plenty of reading up
features of early pales, with the Burton-on-
the 1800s, most ales were darker with
to do on pale ales, so head to your favourite
Trent areas making them famous, as the
a degree and variety of specialty malts
book depository to find some reading
water was rich in Calcium Sulfate due to the
and ingredients used which were readily
material. A good place to start is ‘Pale Ale’
water being drawn up from underground
available. At around the time porters
by Terry Foster. This is one of the ‘Classic
aquifers. These underground pockets in
and the like were popular, a lighter
beer style series’ published by ‘Brewers
the mineral rich ground, contained water
coloured beer was being brewed due to the
Publications’ (www.brewerspublications.
which had collected there , and therefore
availability and cost of ingredients, and the
com), and you should have a few of these in
emparting the mineral salts of the stone
term ‘Pale Ale’ was used to differentiate
your library already! Another good book is
into the water giving it its mineral rich
them from their dark half cousins in-law!
the ‘IPA’ book by Mitch Steele. This takes
properties. Get some brown malt in there
you through the origins of pale ales and the
and you have an amber or brown ale, or hop
metamorphosis of IPA.
it up to Americanise it. traditionalist, and love the original styles.
etc. you get the picture. Jump on www.
AND NOW FOR SOMETHING COMPLETELY DIFFERENT
bjco.org to check out the style guidelines
A pale ale is a pretty good platform to
earshot of some young dudes in a bar,
according to our US cousins, or even better
experiment with all aspects of brewing.
criticising the pale ale they are so very
still go to www.aabc.org.au to check out the
The simple grain, hop bill and yeast profile
professionally assessing, saying it is not
Australian Amateur Brewing Championship,
make it a great place to start when looking at
a true pale ale as it is not hoppy forward
as that is what you will probably be entering
changing things up, and experimenting with
enough. I refrain (mostly) from letting
your award winning ale under when you
different ingredients if that is what floats
them know where pale ales came from, and
Over the years, there have been many variations of the pale ale, actually the most variations of any style. IPAs, red pales, black IPAs, Belgian IPAs, session pales,
50 Home Brewer
Most of you would know by now I am a Far too many times I have been within
Bottler Ozzy Pale (Australian Pale Ale) Expected brew figures (all grain) OG: 1.044 FG: 1.010 ABV: 4.4% IBU: 40 Volume: 23 litres
Ingredients
Ingredients 3kg Pale liquid extract
200g Crystal (med) malt
500g Flaked wheat
35g Pride of Ringwood (POR) hop pellets
200g Crystal (med) malt
40g Galaxy hop pellets BLUE PILL ONLY
went. I have brewed many variations of this, and one of
some as it will only get better.
3.
Once boiling add all the POR hops for a 60 minute boil
4.
With 10 minutes left on the boil, add 10g Vic Secret hops
5.
BLUE PILL ONLY add 40g Galaxy hops and whirlpool for 10 mins at flameout
BLUE PILL ONLY add 40g Galaxy hops and whirlpool for 10 mins at flameout
6.
6.
Transfer to the fermenter and cool to 18°C, then pitch yeast
Transfer to the fermenter and top up with fresh cold water to 23 litres
7.
7.
Maintain ferment temp at 18 to 20°C
When wort is stable at 18°C, pitch yeast
8.
8.
BLUE PILL ONLY Once initial phase of fermentation slows down, add 30g Victoria Secret hops to fermenter
Maintain ferment temp at 18 to 20°C
9.
BLUE PILL ONLY Once initial phase of fermentation slows down, add 30g Victoria Secret hops to fermenter
Hi Stefi!! (I’ll save that for another article!).
This beer will be ready to drink relatively quickly but save
Slowly dissolve the extract in 8 litres of water along with the 2 litres of wort from mini mash (step 1) and bring to the boil
5.
which I brewed for my cousin who was visiting from UK –
It will give you a lovely crisp beer. If not, crack on any way.
2.
With 10 minutes left on the boil, add 10g Vic Secret hops
my favourites was an Aussie dark ale called Dark & Stormy
If you want to ‘Burtonise’ your brewing liquor go ahead.
Steep cracked grains in 2 litres of 67°C water for 60 mins, then drain
4.
if brewed and conditioned well should be one of your house
version. Play with the recipe and let us know how you
1.
Once boiling add all the POR hops for a 60 minute boil
Today you can either brew a bog standard Aussie pale
base and build on it as we have done here with the hoppier
Mash all grains at 66°C for 60 minutes Sparge and transfer to kettle and bring to boil. Adjust sparge liquor to pH 5.4 if possible
3.
and drink.
beers. The beauty of this style is that you can use it as a
40g Galaxy hop pellets BLUE PILL ONLY
Method
variations of the original. After all, that is what home
follow the steps for blue pill. This is a good solid beer, that
30g Extra Victoria Secret hop pellets BLUE PILL ONLY
Method
what exact type of pale ale they are referring to. Respect
ale (red pill), or crank up the hops to US this mofo. If so,
10g Victoria Secret hop pellets
Whitelabs WLP009 – Australian Ale Yeast or similar.
2.
BLUE PILL OR RED PILL
35g Pride of Ringwood (POR) hop pellets
Whitelabs WLP009 – Australian Ale Yeast or similar.
1.
brewing is all about, making the beer YOU want to brew
OG: 1.044 FG: 1.010 ABV: 4.4% IBU: 40 Volume: 23 litres
500g Flaked wheat
30g Extra Victoria Secret hop pellets BLUE PILL ONLY
are far too many awesome pale ales to list here that are
Expected brew figures (extract with specialty grains)
3.75kg Pale malt
10g Victoria Secret hop pellets
must be given to the original. Having said that, there
Bottler Ozzy Pale (Australian Pale Ale)
9.
Once FG stabilises, keg or bottle conditioning for 4 weeks minimum
Cheers!
10. Once FG stabilises keg or bottle, conditioning for 4 weeks minimum Cheers!
Will you take the blue pill or the red pill?
Autumn 2020 51
ENTERTAINING – FOOD
The Barbecue Guide SUMMER MIGHT BE COMING TO AN END, BUT THAT’S NO REASON TO PACK AWAY THE BARBIE, NOT WHEN THERE ARE SO MANY RECIPES TO GET YOUR TEETH INTO HERE.
T
he barbecue is perhaps one of Australia’s most beloved cooking utensil. But it is not just Aussies who love a good ‘barbie’, cooking with fire in the great outdoors is a global phenomenon that has imparted a host of amazing recipes to try out on a
sunny afternoon. The Barbecue Guide is a celebration of the humble
barbecue, taking readers through a host of different barbecue options. There are sections dedicated to all the great barbecue meats – beef, lamb, chicken, pork and seafood – not to mention amazing vegetable and salad options, and those all-important marinades and sauces. The Barbecue Guide is not just a collection of tempting barbecue meals for you to make and share with your friends and family. It’s also chock full of information about the equipment itself, taking readers through all the tools of the barbecuing trade to ensure that your cooking is flawless every time. So what are you waiting for? The weather’s still good. Get out there and get cooking!
This is an edited extract from The Barbecue Guide, published by New Holland Publishers. It is available from all good book retailers or online (RRP $24.99).
www.beerandbrewer.com 66 www.beerandbrewer.com
ENTERTAINING – FOOD
Sticky Beer Can Chicken Serves 6 Ingredients 1 large whole chicken 1 teaspoon vegetable oil 1⁄4 teaspoon pepper 1⁄2 teaspoon sea salt 1⁄2 teaspoon chicken spice rub 1 can of beer (or soda can may also be used) 45 ml (1 1/2 oz) barbecue sauce
Recipe 1. Pat down the chicken with a paper towel to absorb any moisture. 2. Rub the chicken inside and out with vegetable oil. Season with salt, pepper and spice rub.
3. Open the beer can and pour out 1⁄2 of the liquid. Place the can on a cutting board and lower the chicken on to the can so it looks like it is sitting on it. 4. Position the legs like a tripod so the chicken sits upright. 5. Prepare the barbecue for indirect cooking. Place the chicken in the middle of the barbecue and close lid. Cook the chicken for about a 1 hour or until golden brown. 6. The chicken is done when the juices run clear when skewer is pushed into thickest part of the thigh. Brush the chicken with barbecue sauce and cook for a further 10 minutes until dark and sticky.
Autumn 2020 67
MEDIA AND BRAND
MEDIA AND BRAND Design Energy’s work with wine applies to beers too fridge full of beers weeks later. But a brewpub is just one example of the ways that people will interact with a brewery and its beers. And every time they do so, that
Breweries doing a good job
brewery is making an impression, good or bad. “Every time someone in the market encounters your business is an opportunity for their opinion of it to increase, decrease or remain the same, which totals up to their opinion of your business,” says Callum Reeves, co-founder of Kaiju. “How the business acts to maximise these interactions is the brand and results
Consistency “I have talked a lot about consistency, point of difference and brand personality. If I were to pick a few that do this well – Two Birds, Deeds Brewing, Stone & Wood, Bentspoke and North Brewing Co (UK). They are all very clear in who they are and how they want to be seen.”
in brand equity. If you distill it down, it’s depressingly mathematical really! Given my all-encapsulating view it’s about the most important thing you have as a brewery.” This means that, while it is important to identify and create your own brand, maintaining it in a consistent and considerate way is arguably more important. Coming up with what your brewery is about – what its values are, what its personality is like, how it brews and how it does other things – should be an enjoyable brainstorm over a couple of beers where the founders come together to discover and express shared ideals. The next step, though, is to infuse all of that into as many aspects of the business as possible, never letting standards slip.
Premium “I’m a fan of Stomping Ground’s ‘Into the Woods’ range. It has taken cues from old style labelling, but with a new modern premium look, and dare I say reminiscent of a premium wine brand, which is clearly the sophisticated market they are going for.”
“Everything you do around your brand should be consistent and authentic, that way the consumer gets to know your brand personality and you build trust,” advises Trish Dunstone, owner of Design Energy. “Creating your own point of difference from your competitors is a great start, but the growth doesn’t happen overnight. You can’t expect to engage millions
LOOKING TO GET INTO HOMEBREWING? FOR OUR EXPERT INTRODUCTION see page 56
of consumers with one press ad, one post, one promo,
Setting your stall
one editorial, one retailer. It’s an ongoing job. Establish a community that consumers want to be part of.
INCLUDING
Think about how you position your brand ethically and environmentally. Inconsistency or confused personality can confuse your audience.”
Shelf impact “Balter Brewers is a great example of shelf impact. With its overall white look and very minimalist design it’s unexpected and stands out amongst its competition. I think some producers fall into the trap of wanting to look like a reputable ISSUEbrand 52 AUTUMN 2020 this and think PRICEmeans $9.95looking (NZ $11.95)like everyone else. What’s the point?”
GETTING OUT THERE Interest in craft products, local businesses and
IN A MARKETPLACE WITH SO MANY VOICES TELLING THEIR STORIES AND SELLING THEIR BEERS, THE MANAGEMENT OF A BREWERY’S BRAND CAN MAKE ALL THE DIFFERENCE.
I
ISSUE 52 AUTUMN 2020 PRICE $9.95 (NZ $11.95)
values of the people who drank it. Those stories
and their regional connections, or to just get their beers
also has an impact. We talk these days about
are still important, perhaps even more so, in
out there for local people to try and taste. Breweries
finished product. For all the tasting
the intrinsic importance of a beer – that it’s
the craft beer world, as breweries seek to stand
named for the town or suburb where they were founded can forge strong local links.
notes that appear at the back of
what’s on the inside that counts – as opposed
out from the crowd and fashion appealing and
this fine magazine, there are other
to more extrinsic properties – the old beer
memorable identities.
In recent years, we have also seen many breweries get more and more involved in initiatives in their area
advertisements that amused generations,
drinking experience. The obvious ones are
captured imaginations and were perhaps more
BUILDING THE BRAND
– Beer & Brewer’s Regional Breweries Series in 2019
the company and the location – a beer with
talked about than the taste profiles of the
As we’ve seen in the Art of the Brewpub
highlighted the tireless work that regional breweries
mates on a sunny day will taste different and
actual beers. But those old beer advertisements
feature (page 22), many breweries showcase
do in their areas. By sponsoring and supporting local
elicit a different response and memory to one
told people an important story. They explained
their identity in the form of hospitality,
teams, charities, societies and tourism projects, a craft
sipped after a meal while it’s howling a gale a
what that beer said and thought about itself
creating experiences that people will
brewery’s brand can become indelibly associated with
outside the window.
and, by extension, they implied the shared
remember fondly as they stand in front of a
positive stories and with local people.
62
Strawberries, Oatmeal, Gluten-Free THE REINVENTION OF PALE ALE
anywhere in the rest of the world. It is, therefore, not surprising that so many breweries have sought to
However, the branding behind the beer
but beer is about more than the
that participate LOOKING TO GET INTO HOMEBREWING? FOR OUR EXPERTfactors INTRODUCTION see page 56 in any
INCLUDING
community enterprises is as high in Australia as
highlight their craft credentials, their independence t might not always feel like it,
www.beerandbrewer.com
THE ECO REVOLUTION
(Provided by Design Energy)
Wayward underwent a brand refresh last year
Strawberries, Oatmeal, Gluten-Free Autumn 2020
63
THE REINVENTION OF PALE ALE
THE ECO REVOLUTION CAN BREWERIES REALLY BE SUSTAINABLE?
CAN BREWERIES REALLY BE SUSTAINABLE?
BUILD YOUR OWN BREWPUB!
BUILD YOUR OWN BREWPUB!
IT’S THE FUTURE OF CRAFT
IT’S THE FUTURE OF CRAFT
ISSN 1834-5115
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BEERS & CIDERS
REVIEWED
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ISSN 1834-5115
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PLUS! CRAFT BEER’S SECOND GENERATION | BUILDING A BRAND | ART VS SCIENCE
BEERS & CIDERS
REVIEWED
9
771834 511017
WWW.BEERANDBREWER.COM
PLUS! CRAFT BEER’S SECOND GENERATION | BUILDING A BRAND | ART VS SCIENCE
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