I thought I’d do a quick update before the inevitable lack of communication that happens over the next couple of weeks as Good Beer Week gets into full swing. I’m slowly working my way through beers from the almost 170 (at the time of writing) Victorian brewers for The Year of Local. We got a number of posts up in April, not quite as many as I’d hoped but we’re still relatively on track.
It’s been a pretty crazy couple of weeks in the Victorian craft beer scene and particularly in the High Country, where there must’ve been something in the water! Firstly we had the sad news that Sweetwater Brewing in Mount Beauty shut its doors for the final time. Wrong Side Brewing shocked the beer community by giving up their Jamieson brewery to become a nationwide gypsy brand, before Bridge Road seceded from Australia to become the first beer micronation; Brewland.
Black Arts Beer, a brewery I’ve been aware of for the past 3 years, finally launched! They’re have been brewing & blending since 2015 and finally have beer that is ready! I can’t wait to check out their stuff! Shepparton Brewery launched in April, joining Nagambie Brewing & Distillery from the previous month, whilst western Victoria also gained another brewery with the opening of Paper Scissors Rock Brew Co in Halls Gap.
I’m currently making up some list and trying to organise a couple of weekends to blow through 10-15 brewery visits. Brewery visits are the main thing holding the venture up at the moment. The next month-6 weeks will be pretty important from a logistical point of view so bear with me as the content may come out in clumps. There’s a number of posts that are mostly written and just need finalizing so I may be able to get some out over the next week or so despite the GBW festivities.
If I’ve missed anything that you wanted to know or if you just want to send me beer related questions/content, please do at gus.norris7@gmail.com and I will endeavour to get back to you as soon as I can. If you are a brewery and haven’t seen your Year of Local post yet, please reach out and we’ll prioritize yours. Cheers guys!
Remember it’s always Beer O’Clock somewhere in the world!
