Articles by Judd Owen
Judd Owen is a two-time game show winner, homebrewing tragic and the only person to have successfully mentioned the Oriental Rat Flea in an article about craft beer. You can find him on Instagram and Twitter.
The beer(s) or moment(s) that turned you on to good beer:
A million pints of Erdinger Weissbier at the Brisbane German Club followed years later by a fundamentally life-changing Pacific Ale. Not long after this moment I started homebrewing and spending all available disposable income at The Scratch and Tippler's Tap.
You've got three beers to turn someone else on to good beer; what are they and why?
- Wildflower Gold - I think this beer more than any other perfectly encapsulates what beer can be and is excellent for reintroducing people who gave up on beer when the only thing available were industrial lagers. It's unique and more importantly, there's an excellent story behind it. They may not love the beer but they'll remember it.
- KAIJU! Krush - An-easy drinking tropical pale ale in a wonderfully designed can, that can be purchased almost anywhere. It definitely helps to give people something they can reasonably be able to purchase for themselves without much drama.
- Big Shed Golden Stout Time - I don't I've ever been as impressed with a dessert beer as much as I was the first time I tried this. So many Australians have a deep-rooted nostalgia for a Golden Gaytime and this beer is an almost perfect recreation of that. Everyone I've ever given this to has been blown away. For the first 150ml at least.
The last beer I enjoyed:
I had a tinny of Grifter Big Sur IPA while cooking up a big old Sunday night curry. West Coast IPAs are still the best kind of IPA and it's not particularly close. I will die on this hill.
Three things that represent me:
- I haven't listened to new music since I left high school so the 2003 Frenzal Rhomb album Sans Souci probably sums me up musically.
- I make sure to attend at least one day of test cricket every year.
- Recently, I saw a photo of a cockatoo holding a piece of pizza on twitter so I had it tattooed onto my person.
Brew & A: Frenchies' Vince de Soyres
Vince de Soyres is one half of the team behind Frenchies Bistro & Brewery in Sydney. Ahead of their fifth birthday (and Bastille Day) we invited him to tell us about the unique path that brought him to Australia.
Brew & A: Luigi Mensi
From mead-making in Italy via sweet potato-picking in Bundaberg to trialling souring bacteria in Marrickville, motorcycling metalhead Luigi Mensi has enjoyed a colourful path in life. We caught up with Batch's head brewer to find out more.
Who Brews As Lora?
Wild ales featuring ingredients foraged in inner Sydney with individually hand-painted labels? As he prepares to return to the US after COVID saw him become Wildflower's head brewer for two years, we catch up with the man behind Lora.
Best New NSW Beers Of 2021
If you ignore the 107 day lockdown â or even if you can't â there's been much to enjoy and embrace in the NSW beer scene in 2021. Here, Judd Owen looks at the standout beers and highlight moments from the past 12 months.
Oztoberfest
Across Australia right now, you can hardly move for German beers, pretzels, bratwurst and lederhosen. Yet our love for the wonders of traditional German styles fades through the rest of the year. Judd Owen tries to rectify matters.
Going Green: Trash To Treasure
Each year, Australia wastes a gargantuan amount of food. But breweries across the country are finding ways to try reduce this waste and, in the process, are building further value into our agricultural system.
Who Brews Working Title Beers?
As they complete their four-day, four-venue launch party, we caught up with the best mates behind Brisbane's Working Title Brewing Co for our Who Brews...? series.
The Story Of: Korben
For many people, Riverside's 777 was their first taste of a quality â and fresh â West Coast style double IPA in Australia. Its successor is Akasha's Korben (nÊe D), which keeps growing in popularity. We traced its history with the man behind it.
Brew & A: Chase Saraiva â Wildflower
COVID-19 hit during American brewer Chase Saraiva's two-month working holiday in Australia. He's turned the situation into a good one, however, now installed as head brewer at Wildflower working with fellow expat Topher Boehm.
2020: The Year In Beer â NSW
Great beers, standout moments and horrific, unnecessary analogies... Judd Owen casts an eye over the year in beer in New South Wales.
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