Getting paid to drink beer - that's the dream, right? "It can be very tough, I tell you, to do beer evaluation in a cage for one hour..." See what sensory analysis is really like with Gabriela Montandon, head of sensory at Fermentis.
Terpenes are hot property in the brewing world right now, providing brewers with another tool as they set about creating new beers. But what are they, where do they come from, and why the excitement around them?
While spending time as a stay-at-home dad, medical researcher Derek Lacey had a "Eureka!" moment that inspired him to launch Bluestone Yeast. As he puts finishing touches to his new yeast production facility, we invited him for a chat.
Innovation within the world of hops has been in hyperdrive *checks that's not a trademarked term* with heaps of advanced hop products with funky names firing up your beers. So let's attempt to demystify this fragrant new world.
Breweries love to collaborate and many are putting greater focus on brewing more sustainably. Now a new project in SA is exploring just how green brewing can be.
In June, brewers given a new yeast to play with called LalBrew Pomona. To find out how new yeasts like this hybrid come to life, we chatted to one of its creators at Escarpment Laboratories in Canada.
Winter's chill makes it a perfect time to enjoy barrel-aged beers. Ahead of Fox Friday releasing beers from their first ever foray into this field, we spoke to the team – no strangers to working with oak – about their approach.
After a lengthy career in beer writing – publishing books as well as a regular column in the Sydney Morning Herald – Willie Simpson swapped pen for mash paddle. Here, he returns to his former profession to look back at his time growing hops.
Ahead of this year's hop harvest, we paid a visit to Ryefield Hops, the family-run hop farm in the south of New South Wales, to see firsthand how they're putting sustainable practices at the heart of everything they do.
Hops are loaded with terpenes: aromatic compounds that drive much of what appeals to beer drinkers. As brewers look to use them to enhance aromas in their beers, we chatted to some of those exploring this new territory.
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AMSAT Character Malts is a new malting company based in South Australia which has just launched a range of specialty malts for craft brewers and distillers. But it's also steeped in malting history.
Some of Australia and New Zealand's top brewers have been in the US, touring hop regions and selecting the hops they reckon will work best in their upcoming beers. We chatted to two of them on their return.
Having looked at the world of common brewer's yeasts and what they do to beer in Part I of this Beer Basics feature, here Nic Sandery of Molly Rose helps us get funky.
The rise of craft beer has changed the landscape in many ways, and the launch of Dexter Malt today highlights many of those. It's a project involving collaboration, innovation, sustainability, provenance and, of course, beer.
As they release their 2023 crop report, we spoke to Australia's largest hop grower, Hop Products Australia, about their faith in their latest commercial variety, Eclipse, what's on the horizon, and the wider world of hops.
The South West might be best known for wine and beaches, but now it's not just the brewing community that's growing fast: these days the region has multiple small-scale hop growers making an impact on the local beer industry.
Ahead of the 2023 High Country Hop festival, Bridge Road Brewers put on a Technical Symposium sponsored by the Independent Brewers Association. We MC'd and recorded the day, and you can listen to all of the sessions here.
A new Sunshine Coast-based brewing company showcasing native ingredients is set to launch later this month. Jarrah Boy is the latest venture from Dale Vocale, an Indigenous chef, entrepreneur and proud Monero Ngarigo man.
It's not just the brewing scene that's expanding apace in WA's South West – there's a growing number of local producers supplying brewers too. Among them is South West Hops, who significantly stepped up their output in 2022.
The country's largest hop grower is investing in a major pelleting plant in Victoria which will allow them to keep up with their expanding farm capacity. Hop Products Australia also believe it will provide more consistent hops for brewers.
If you love limited release hazy beers, you might have spotted the name Freestyle Hops on a can from your favourite brewery. We caught up with the managing director of the NZ grower to find out what the Freestyle life is all about.
Wollongong and surrounds already have a vibrant local beer scene; now adding to its crafty credentials is a new liquid yeast manufacturer, Mogwai Labs. We spoke to founder Josh Allen about foraging yeast and his plans for the business.
After studying brewing at ECU and gaining brewing experience at Little Creatures, Rex Rowles moved back to the family farm to combine his love of brewing with his experience growing barley to create Mortlock Malt.
AC Hops was launched late in 2019 by a couple with little experience in growing hops but a lot of ideas about farming and passion for craft beer. Following their latest harvest, we caught up with Victorian growers.
Spinifex Brewing Co is an Aboriginal- and veteran-owned brewing company aiming to showcase native flavours to the world, all while supporting military mental health services.
Seven years after the launch of Enigma, Hop Products Australia today unveil the latest` hop variety to graduate from their breeding program. Eclipse is a sibling of star pupil Galaxy set to bring a hit of mandarin to an IPA near you soon.
Sailors Grave are among the country's most avid and adventurous collaborators and harvesters of all things local to East Gippsland. But the Orbost brewery's latest collab really gets to the heart of the brewery.
Hops are the star in many of the big hits of the modern beer world. In the second of his Beer Basics articles giving readers an introduction to beer and brewing, Molly Rose founder Nic Sandery moves from malt to hops.
As they prepare to launch their seventh collaborative Native Series beer together, Jono Outred spoke to the people at Beerfarm and Fervor driving these unique beers and the educational aspect that surrounds them.
A couple of years back, we launched a new series aiming to teach people about the basics of beer and brewing. It slipped through the cracks but is now back, ready to boost your beer knowledge and enjoyment.
Few things in the world of beer excite people as much as hops. So we got in touch with a bunch of growers, sellers and hop-lovin' brewers to find out which varieties they love the most and whose mastery of hops impresses them most.
Chris White is a hero among brewers worldwide. His White Labs operation has been supplying a growing number of yeasts to brewers (and winemakers) for decades. We caught up with him when he was speaking at BrewCon.
They've been mates since they were 12 and have brewed together for years. Now Simon Cooke and Ryan Carville are looking to change the NZ brewing industry via Froth Technologies.
Dr Tom Shellhammer is a world-leading expert in hop chemistry helping brewers understand how better to use hops. We caught up with him in Tasmania as he gives a series of talks in Australia.
For the past century, you were only ever likely to find lactose – AKA milk sugar – in the occasional sweet stout. These days, it's cropping up everywhere. Brewer and beer scholar Chris Brady examines why.
The rise of craft brewers and distillers is creating ever more chances for cross-pollination. As Wolf of the Willows launches its Barrel Exchange Program with Lark, we speak to them as well as the small Gippsland operation blending boozes in house.
The rise of craft beer continues to have an affect on the industries surrounding it, with large scale malt producers Joe White and Barrett Burston both introducing new lines designed with small breweries in mind.
There will be many new beers launched at Good Beer Week and GABS next week, but none quite like Woods Of The North: it's a blend of barrel aged beers from five Australian brewers. We chatted to two of the brewers involved about the art of blending.
Hop harvest has started across Australia, with the first fresh or wet hop beers already hitting taps and fridges. But what are they and why are more and more brewers looking to brew them every year?
Hops tend to grab most of the craft beer world's attention when it comes to beer's core ingredients, but as more maltings – big and small – open across Australia, giving brewers new malt varieties to play with, the much-loved flowers may soon be sharing a little of the limelight.
The New Zealand hop industry produces some of the most sought after varieties in the world. Jono Galuszka spent time with NZ Hops and one of the lead scientists behind the development of new hops to find out more.
It's hop harvest time across Australia. And this year's offers more chances than ever to get up close and personal with the little green flowers, not least thanks to a pair of festivals celebrating the harvest and fresh hops beers.
The rise of craft beer has spawned all manner of related businesses. Among them are small malting operations dedicated to providing malt for microbreweries. They include Not For Horses. Bert Spinks caught up with the man behind the Launceston business.
With the Southern Hemisphere hop harvest coming to a close and fresh hop beers on their way, we chat to the man heading up NZ Hops.
If you had the last keg of a limited release baltic porter, what would you do? Most of us would grab an empty glass and start pouring but Justin Fox, head brewer at Colonial Brewery, instead saw an opportunity…
In their increasingly challenging battle to meet the world’s insatiable desire, hop producers the world over are constantly looking to produce more hops. Not just more in terms of volume, but more in…
It started as a bit of fun. Challenged with brewing an unusual beer for the Media Brew beer competition at Beervana, The Crafty Pint approached Murray’s to be its partner. They agreed and were soon afterwards…
Big brewer: bad; craft brewer: good. It's a hoary old perception and one to which no thoughtful beer drinker would give any credence. Just because beer brand X is ultimately owned by brewing giant Y, it…
This week sees the launch of the eighth edition of James Halliday’s Wine Companion Magazine, in which we have an article looking at the Australian craft beer industry’s position in the wider world.…
The year was 1824. Beethoven was still alive and composing his symphonies, though you'd need to hear them live because radio wouldn't be invented for about another eight decades. In that year, the MCG…