Late last year On Point Brewery in Alexandra became latest brewery to join the burgeoning stocks of High Country brewers. The venture started the same way many others did; with two mates talking about opening their own brewery, normally after a few beers late at night! The difference about this story is that these mates followed through, buying the towns Old Butter Factory!
Chris Turner & James Smith had been talking about starting a beer for years. The start of 2020 saw these talks progress from mates mucking around to seriously looking into it. The duo settled on Alexandra as they both had connections to the area & saw the positives of it being a popular tourist area and thoroughfare to the snowfields. Whilst browsing commercial real estate in Alexandra one day James came across the listing for the Old Butter Factory, a quick email to Chris & their dream was suddenly becoming a reality.
Brewery Type
Physical
Region
High Country
Tasting Room
Coming Summer 20/21
The duo took the slightly unusual approach of purchasing the Old Butter Factory rather than leasing it. Whilst an obvious risk from a financial point of view, they did so in the knowledge that it would allow them full control over renovations to the property & so they wouldn’t be concerned about their lease not being renewed. This speaks to what they’re aiming to build On Point to be; a major tourist attraction that becomes what Alexandra is known for. They’re looking to lay down roots in the community; already their artwork is done locally & they intend to use as much local produce as possible in their beer & hopefully food down the track.
Not only have they joined the ever growing number of Victorian brewers in the High Country region, but they joined the list of brewers operating in the Old Butter Factory of the town they call home. I count at least 3 others off the top of my head. They’re currently working through licensing issues & getting the venue up to scratch; whilst still hoping to have their on site taproom & beer garden open to the public in December this year, almost exactly a year after their first beer – a Cherry Porter using locally grown cherries – hit the taps.
Now this story is all well & good, but what of their brewing credentials? Like many who’ve trod this path before them they started out brewing beer as poor uni students & developed a passion that was only ever going to be satiated by going pro. James has previous pro-brewing experience at 2 Brothers in Moorabbin, having brewed there for 3 years. Currently the duo are developing beers on their 100L pilot system & having them scaled at Social Bandit in Mansfield, about 70km away around Lake Eildon, whilst awaiting their own 10hL Brewtique kit.
Long time readers would be aware of my fondness for Red IPA’s, the best can strike that perfect balance between malt & hops. This particular one from On Point is at the lower end of the ABV scale for the style & it shows a little in the malt bill. There’s plenty of caramel but it feels just a tiny bit lacking in body. This in turn makes the citrus characters from the hops stick out just a touch more than I’d like. By no means is this a bad beer, it’s actually quite good, it’s just a style I’m overly picky about! A really impressive first up effort from these guys, I’m looking forward to trying their Cherry Porter in the, hopefully, not too distant future!
Remember it’s always Beer O’Clock somewhere in the world!
