Blobfish's debut in 2019 was one of those special occasions for many beer lovers – the sort of festival that's not just good, or even different and good, but means something more.
The fact Hop Nation were able to amass enough local brewers to fill Melbourne's Meat Market showcasing nothing but wild, sour and funky beers – and sell out both sessions – felt like a milestone for the Australian beer industry.
Sadly for all involved, plans for the festival to return in both 2020 and 2021 had to be shelved, but the evolution of the wilder side of Australia's beer industry has only continued apace, which makes the arrival of Blobfish 2022 – back at the Meat Market – rather exciting.
Once again, it runs over two sessions on July 23, giving attendees the chance to sample some of the most fascinating rare and unusual beers from 21 top Australia and New Zealand outfits.
You'll be able to tuck into a diverse range of sours, saisons, barrel-aged blends, fruity concoctions and rare small-batch runs from the likes of NZ’s Garage Project, Sydney’s Wildflower Brewing & Blending, Tasmania’s Van Dieman, and Ballarat-based Dollar Bill. (See full brewer lineup below)
Hop Nation co-founder Duncan Gibson says: “It’s good to be back – the first Blobfish in 2019 was bloody epic – we sold out both sessions entirely, and we’ve been frothing to get back to the iconic Meat Market and see you all in person again.
“There’s a lot of pent-up demand among fellow blobfishes out there to get back to all things dank, unique and left-of-centre in the beer world.”
Tickets cost $85pp plus booking fee, which gets you:
- 60mL tasters of all 42 festival beers from all 21 breweries
- A Blobfish branded Rastal festival glass
- A festival tasting guide
And there's the following to check out too:
- Lager Tinnie Bar – chill out and sip palate cleansers
- Mezcal Bar – curated by Mr West
- Cocktails, natural wines and ciders – thanks to Mr West
- DJs spinning tracks
- Beer and Cheese Theory – providing cheese and beer pairings
- Pie Thief – including vegan and vegetarian options
- Burn City Smokers – the ultimate BBQ experience
- Oyster Bar – two buck shuck
- A Crafty Pint socials takeover
BUY TICKETS HERE
When: July 23, 2022
Session one: 11.30am to 4pm
Session two: 5pm to 9.30pm
Where: Meat Market, 3 Blackwood Street, North Melbourne
Read more about the rise of niche festivals here.
Brewer Lineup
Want to know who's awaiting you on July 23? Here you go...
- 3 Ravens, Thornbury VIC
- Beer Farm, Metricup WA
- Black Arts Brewers and Blenders, Williamstown North VIC
- AWOL, Burleigh Heads QLD
- Bridge Road Brewers, Beechwood VIC
- The Barrel Farm by Blackman's Brewery, Torquay VIC
- Boatrocker Brewing & Distilling Co., Braeside VIC
- Deeds Brewing, Glen Iris VIC
- Dollar Bill Brewing, Ballarat VIC
- Future Mountain, Reservoir VIC
- Garage Project, Wellington NZ
- La Sirène Brewing, Alphington VIC
- Molly Rose Brewing, Collingwood VIC
- Sailors Grave Brewing, Orbost VIC
- Site Fermentation Project, Footscray VIC
- Slow Lane Brewing, Botany NSW
- Sobremesa Fermentary & Blendery, VIC
- Stomping Ground Brewing Co, Collingwood VIC
- Van Dieman Brewing, Evandale TAS
- Wildflower Blending & Brewing, Marrickville NSW
- Lora Brewing, Marrickville NSW
Beer Club Bonus
It wouldn't be a great beer festival if we didn't have something up our sleeves for members of our beer club, The Crafty Cabal. The wonderful folks at Hop Nation have put aside four tickets for Cabalistas.
For your chance to win one, you need to be a member of the club first – sign up or sign in here or via the Crafty app – and then you can enter the competition on the giveaways page.
We'll pick winners on June 22 so there's still a month left to make plans if you miss out.
If you'd like to boost your beer experience with the unique beer club that is The Crafty Cabal, you can read about it here, or check out the deals, giveaways and events currently on offer to members.
