Good Land Brewing Co opened to the public in July 2021, marking the culmination of one journey & the beginning of a new one for Jimmy Krekelberg & wife Layla Brock. Their story is a fascinating one starting in the Latrobe Valley, before taking in the United Kingdom, one of the most prestigious brewery’s in The Netherlands before ending up back where it all began; Traralgon.
For many years Traralgon marked the end of good beer in Victoria, very little was brewed anywhere beyond it – even near it for that matter. Anything further East would be a craft beer wasteland until you start working up the coast into New South Wales. The mining town of almost 30,000 was big enough that you could find the odd craft offering if you went looking, but they certainly weren’t plentiful. As this project has shown, that is changing & changing rapidly at that!
Brewery Type
Physical
Region
Gippsland
Tasting Room
12 Standing Dr, Traralgon
In 2010 Jimmy Krekelberg was a mechanical engineer & passionate homebrewer. He was seriously looking at switching careers & toyed with the idea of purchasing some stainless & giving it a crack. The analytical side of Jimmy’s brain kicked in & he decided to gain experience before jumping into his own venture. At that time there weren’t as many opportunities to gain that experience in Australia, which forced Jimmy overseas. He spent time at Stewart Brewery in Edinburgh in 2012, before finding himself working for world reknowned brewer De Molen about 30km from Amsterdam.
Fastforward to 2017; Jimmy & Layla returned to the Latrobe Valley to make that dream a reality. Like all new breweries they had issues to deal with, although you could argue they had to jump through more hoops than most – including going through 3 names (One Brewing, Festival Brewing, Lokaal Brewing) before settling on Good Land due to a range of IP/trademark issues.
The usual council issues cropped up, they were their council’s first brewery application afterall. After eventually finding similarities with an Abattoir permit (relating to noise, goods coming & going, odour etc.) they made headway although, as always, it was a slow process. Last but not least the COVID-19 pandemic, which delayed the brewery’s opening by about a year!
Good Land Brewing is found in an industrial pocket on the Eastern side of Traralgon. Housed in a white, old steel industrial building. It’s a welcoming space, with friendly bar staff still seating punters due to COVID restrictions. This belies the thought that hospitality was potentially an afterthought for Good Land, with the focus being more on the production side of things. The stainless is on proud display at the back of the building, tucked behind only a safety rope so as not to detract from the view.
The coolroom & bar are in the middle with about 10 taps pouring their own beers as well as a couple of other local(ish) brewers to make up the numbers. There’s a number of small tables inside, and plenty of large outdoor seating outside under umbrellas in a concrete paved area next to the brewery – with Good Land cans splashed artistically across nearby shipping containers. Like most brewers they’re producing pizzas, although doing so with their own spent grain & loads of toppings.
As tempted as I was to write about a Stout from an ex-De Molen brewer, one of their beers really grabbed me. Something Something Citra Citra is a classic American IPA. It’s packed with Centennial, Citra & Citra LUPOMAX. It’s got this slightly sweet malt base which allows the pine, citrus & stonefruit to shine through. Thankfully there’s a good whack of bitterness accompanying it. The resulting beer is wonderfully dry & at 7.2% dangerously drinkable! Do not miss it if they release it again!
Remember it’s always Beer O’Clock somewhere in the world!
