Blasta Collective

Brewer

Name
Blasta Collective
Address

102 Goodwood Parade
Burswood
WA 6100

Phone
0428 291 562
Open Hours

Seven days: 7am to midnight

Steve Russell's journey from a FIFO homebrewer to opening Blasta Brewing then Blasta Collective has been one of incredible speed and determination - not unlike the brewery’s unicorn logo. And that's without mentioning the construction one of Western Australia’s largest production facilities plus the country's first gastrobrewery – it’s been dizzying ride for all involved.

Following some initial brewing success - best packaged IPA at the Perth Beer Awards 2017 for MyWay IPA was just the first of many accolades - the thought of scaling up his beer aspirations in 2016 took flight in a light industrial section of the Perth suburb of Burswood.

Steve had lived in the suburb since arriving from Scotland in 2007, and it’s this heritage that informed the brewery’s name – it’s Gaelic for delicious – as well as the unicorn logo, inspired by Scotland’s national animal. Completing the references is the logo's geometric rendering: an echo of his former career in engineering.

The first site opened in early 2018, bringing Blasta’s vision for a brewery venue acting as community hub to life, serving coffee and breakfast early, then lunch, before moving on to the harder stuff provided by the onsite 20 hectolitre brewery. However, its proximity to the Perth Stadium delivered fans beyond the local neighbourhood – a one-minute train ride will do that for a brewery.

It was here that Blasta’s core range offering was honed: Grimster Mosaic Pale Ale, Blastaweizen hefeweizen, Steady Head Session Pale, Chainbreaker IPA and others, such as Where the Helles Burrswood Lager, which plays on a missing "r" typo made by a couple of 1890s' painters at the local train station.

The homebrewer to successful brewery owner dream achieved, followed by a trophy cabinet soon stuffed with many a shiny accolade – back-to-back Perth Royal Champion Beer and Brewery gongs in 2020-21 no less, a 40 Under 40 business award too – you might think that it was time to sit back and enjoy a cold MyWay Grapefruit IPA. But if you think that, you obviously haven’t met Steve, because what happens next features some of the most ambitious scaling the Western Australian beer industry has ever seen, all achieved at a rate that seemed to bend time itself.

The day after Blasta Burswood’s fifth birthday, the team farewelled their original home and moved everything 80 metres down the road to a new venue, one which also heralded a transition to the name Blasta Collective: a multi-disciplinary, and highly-detailed venture encompassing beer, pub fare, a gastropub and florist (yes, you read that right, a florist). The charming Blasta café alone appears to have been teleported from Saint-Germain-des-Près.

The new site initially opened just three months later, and while works continued at 102 Goodwood Parade, something else was also fermenting 20 minutes away: a production facility. And, not just any production facility (this is Blasta, after all), the Perth Airport site is one of the largest in WA, just behind Little Creatures and Gage Roads in capacity. Capable of producing 15 million litres per year, the site is staggering, even making its owner-designer’s head spin.

“I designed the thing, and it blows me away now!” Steve admits.

The accompanying upstairs "Departure Lounge" bar is just a five-minute, Blasta-scheduled ridesharing drive from Perth Airport, and there are showers plus transiting facilities like secure lockers available onsite.

Meanwhile, back in Burswood, February 2024 saw the launch of the next stage in the project: Blasta Collective’s Gastrobrewery. The former windowless warehouse has been transformed with a new roof, two kitchens, expansive seating, atrium – yes, you read that correctly too – and its own bar.

This addition to the 1,400 capacity venue is focused on modern Australian and British dishes led by award-winning executive chef Jay Tesorero. Although a local and seasonal bent guides the menu, langoustines have been imported from Scotland as a hero dish paired with black truffle and leek. Beef Wellington, Pork Tomahawk steaks and a Sunday-only roast with all the trimmings only add to the theme.

Naturally, Blasta beers feature prominently, however this elevated concept offers a broader scope for natural and premium wines plus other niche libations to become part of the offering: look out for four-year-old Blasta Hefeweizen whisky and gin, not to mention "branded" Blasta ice cubes... Masterclasses are planned for this part of the venue, and private dining rooms are also available.

For those wondering what exactly "gastrobrewery" means, here's Steve: “A gastrobrewery is a more refined experience compared to eating out at a brewpub. Expect modern casual dining with full table service, and a side serve of style.”

Unicorn Alley’s floral arch connects both buildings with the Beer Hall, affording a more relaxed mix of spaces. The alfresco area is shaded by a 100-year-old Moreton Bay tree, while inside nooks and different levels bring an intimate warmth in contrast to the former site’s vast beer hall. The Beer Hall’s causal brewpub dining features a signature haggis spring roll on the one hand and a kids play area designed to keep younger visitors entertained on the other.

The beer faithful will be pleased the original brew kit has made the move here, which means more limited releases – many of which will feature in the Saturday-only Bottomless Beers & Eats, for which the kitchen provides a curated selection of plates.

With so much invested, not including an eye-watering dollar figure, there’s still good reason to pose the question: "Why?" – not least when the original site was working so well.

“We loved the old place, really loved it," Steve says. "But we’ve evolved, and this Blasta Collective venue really let’s us fully share the Blasta experience with our customers.”

Guy Southern

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Stories featuring Blasta Collective

Core Range

Blasta Brewing Summer Lager
Aussie Lager
4.3%
Blasta Brewing Rampant Raspberry
Fruited Kettle Sour Wild Ale
4.7%
Blasta Unleash The Beast NEIPA
NEIPA
7.4%
Blasta Where The Helles Burrswood?
Munich Helles
4.7%
Blasta Blastaweizen
Hefeweizen
5.3%
Blasta Grimster Rocks Pale Ale
American Pale Ale
5.4%
Blasta Chainbreaker IPA
American IPA
5.9%
Blasta Myway Grapefruit IPA
Grapefruit IPA
5.9%

Limited Releases

Blasta Superdelic Hazy IPA
Hazy IPA
6.0%
Blasta Brewing Over The Way NZ IPA
NZ IPA
5.4%
Blasta Brewing Black Swan Spontan Kriek
Spontan Kriek
7.2%
Blasta Brewing 4th Birthday QIPA
Quadruple IPA
11.4%
Rocky Ridge's February Fivesome
Various Styles As Indicated
As indicated
Blasta Brewing Raspcherry Cheesecake
Pastry Sour
6.0%
Blasta Brewing White Jeans & Blue Jeans & Poppa Don't Peach
Cold IPA & Hazy IPA
5.4% & 6.0%
Blasta Brewing First Port Of Call
Imperial Stout
7.0%
DTC & Friends Dankfest 2021 Quartet
Various IPAs
9.0% & 8.5% & 7.0% & 7.0%
Bad Shepherd Poseidon 2021 & Flower Power ft Blasta
IIIPA & Spiced Session Ale
10.0% & 3.3%
Blasta Brewing The Beast Unleashed
Hazy IPA
7.1%
Blasta Brewing Sour Mama Pepa
Fruit Cream Sour
5.1%
Blasta Brewing Unbridled Unicorn Double IPA
Double IPA
8.8%
Blasta Brewing Big Brekkie Of Champs
Imperial Coffee Stout
7.3%
Blasta Brewing Exploratory Oat Cream Beast
DDH Oat Cream IPA
6.5%
Blasta Brewing Ya Wee Blasta Wee Heavy
Oak-Aged Wee Heavy with Heather Honey
8.8%
Blasta Brewing Grimster Double G
IPA
7.3%
Blasta Brewing Cherry Bomb Blasta
Cherry Sour
4.5%
Blasta & Stone LIST.LOUD.REACT.
Double IPA
8.488%
Blasta & Rocky Ridge Incan Saison
Berry Saison
5.0%
Blasta Brewing Son Of A Beast NEIPA
NEIPA
6.5%
Blasta Brewing MyWay Amplified
Grapefruit DIPA
6.7%
Blasta Brewing I Am The 1
Fruit Sour
3.8%
Blasta Brewing Cat's Whiskers
Fruit Cream Pale Ale
4.8%
Blasta Tangerine Dreams
Fruit Hefeweizen
5.3%