#GBW18: Woods of the North @ 3 Ravens Brewery, Sun 13 May 2018

How much wood would six breweries, two cider makers and six distilleries chuck at a Good Beer Week event if they could chuck wood? Answer: Rather a lot, and in a northerly trajectory while they’re at it.

Woods of the North is Good Beer Week’s showpiece event for all things barrel-aged, hosted by Thornbury’s 3 Ravens Brewery.  It is one among a handful of events that showcase the top tier of Australia’s brewing (and burgeoning distilling) industry without the pomp, ceremony and

Campino / strawberry milkshake beers of the big festivals.^

 

Sailors Grave's showcase beers, drawn from 50L casks.

Down Under, looking up.

In 2018 Australia’s brewing profile is looking hotter than ever, along with the nation’s distilling game; with gin, whiskey and artisanal spirit makers making their mark both home and abroad. Starward whiskey can now be found as far away as the USA, while Australian names such as Adelaide Hills Distillery and Manly Spirits Co joined Starward in picking up Gold medals at the San Francisco World Spirits Competition in recent years. Clearly there is plenty of proof in Australia’s boozy pudding.

Starward wasn’t the only distiller represented on the day. Craig Westwood’s Cedar Fox gin, meanwhile, is as gritty as it gets, especially his North Coburg distillery itself, which was entirely built from scratch. One could be forgiven for thinking such an artisanal set-up is indicative of limited pedigree, but in fact Westwood’s CV includes an on-going brewing role with Melbourne’s Mountain Goat Brewery.

The Appalachian Mountains of North America might seem half a world away from South Melbourne, but the indigenous, illegally distilled beverage of the home of morose folk music has made its way down under thanks to Melbourne Moonshine.

The cider and brandy folks from Willie Smith’s, sister brandy distillery Charles Oates; and Co-op Pear Cider Brandy were on hand to showcase the leading edge of Australia’s cider making prowess as well.

On the beer front, Australian breweries and drinkers have taken to sour beer in a big way. This can be attributed as much to the country’s warm climate as its broadening collective palate.

Five Cougars, Thanks!

Moreover, though many breweries are happy to, quite rightly, avoid the very real risk of contaminating the brewhouse with Brettanomyces by sticking to “kettle sour” brewing, a handful have opened or are set to open the doors to their own fully-fledged barrel rooms (whether or not spontaneous fermentation is performed). Boatrocker Brewers & Distillers, La Sirène and Feral Brewing were indeed among the originals.

Sydney’s Wildflower Brewing & Blending has gone one step beyond simply brewing and barrel-ageing sour beer by harnessing native yeasts from rural New South Wales for the purposes of fermenting its beers, though as owner/brewer Topher Boehm will tell you, beers at the Marrickville barrel room are not spontaneously fermented due to the facility’s location directly beneath a busy commercial flight path. Nevertheless, Wildflower stood tall as a truly worthy inclusion among the Woods of the North bill. Expect to see more from this innovative pioneer in years to come.

The Legacy.

Every festival deserves an appearance by a pioneer of legendary status. Glastonbury had Metallica and no Ibiza season would be complete without Sven Vath doing his thing at Cocoon. So it was that Goose Island headed up the monumental Woods of the North festival line-up.

Fact is, Woods of The North; along with the complex, relatively new relationship between beer, wood and spirits as a we know it; might not have come about were it not for the creation of Goose Island’s Bourbon County Bourbon barrel-aged stout.

Prior to the first incarnation of “BCS” in 1995, few beers outside Flanders or the Lambeek regions of Belgium were aged in wood. One must look back to the days before stainless steel to find wood used as a storage vessel, and then the wood underwent rigorous treatment so as to impart as little flavour as possible. Not to mention ridding it of bugs like pediococcus (bacteria known to add to aforementioned sour beer’s tart character). Indeed the advent of wood being used to impart flavour into beer is as recent as the Britpop era, though it remains far more relevant today.

3 Ravens, Boatrocker and Hop Nation are but three Australian breweries who have built upon the Bourbon / whiskey barrel-aged tradition as pioneered by Goose Island’s Bourbon County stout. Only the Mona Centre could fit this many trail blazers under the one roof.

A wonder through the woods.

A veritable mecca of barrels greeted guests upon alighting the shuttle bus from Thornbury train station. They were not there for show either, for each 50L cask contained an individual beer, ageing and conditioning in what had previously provided Starward whiskey with its much needed beauty sleep. Guests were provided with a helpful list of the beers on show, which would later become especially useful when checking in as yet unheard of beers into Untappd.

It seemed fitting the beer that started it all should be the first pour for yours truly, and so it was Bourbon County Stout got the day underway. This legendary beer, known for its deep roast, dark fruit and luscious, almost spirituous character first landed in Australia in 2017 - scarcely six months prior. Regardless of who owns who, a chance to sample such a landmark beer should not be passed up, especially when no such opportunity has ever arrived at Australia’s doorstep.

3 Ravens Whiskey Barrel-aged Imperial stout, building on the legacy of Bourbon County Stout.

Also not to be missed, even if it was a revisitation, was Goose Island and Boatrocker’s October Beer collaboration, a Bourbon barrel-aged modern take on a long forgotten historic beer style. With its parallels to barleywine, October beer is so named for being brewed prior to the onset of winter, a specialist brew of historic estates and much lauded for its incredible depth of flavour. Needless to say Boatrocker X Goose Island’s interpretation went down a treat.

Orbost-based sour beer specialists Sailors Grave provided much needed refreshment with their carrot-infused Queen Anne’s Lace, while much needed sustenance came by way of smoked barbecue meat rolls. The collision of aromatics wafting around 3 Ravens’ shed-like abode was enough to send many into a shuddering state of wanderlust.

The wondrous walk through the woods whisked me to Wildflower, whose Table beer I had never previously sampled. Was I being seduced by the Wicked Witch of the West (Sydney suburb of Marrickville)? Best sample an Amber blend, whose nuanced flavour screamed of sub tropical forest terroir, just to be sure.

3 Ravens’ own magical mystical potions were not to be missed either. Australian readers may remember the “Five Cougars, Thanks!” ad campaign (brilliant advertisement, unspeakably horrible drink). The Bourbon and Cola RTD was resurrected, incongruously and deliciously, in beer form as a sour cola ale. A sample of the host’s 12% whisky barrel-aged imperial stout seemed like a good idea too, not least because its bold coffee and whiskey flavours brought proceedings full circle prior to hitting up the distillers’ table.

Admittedly I do not like most wine or sherry cask whiskies but I could not help but warm to Starward’s balanced offering. Solera too was nuanced; the 10th Anniversary an amazing showpiece of just how far Australian spirits have come in a relatively short period of time; and the Old Fashioned bottled cocktail was, predictably, a thing of beauty.

Things get a touch blufry from here. I remember sampling Cedar Fox’s flagship gin, its oaked and navy-strength brethren; and I was assured later these would be mighty fine in a classic G&T. Hippocampus’s The Spirit Soon to be Known as Rum very nearly saw my ship and crew go down in a fiery blaze of glory, before Hop Nation’s superbly well balanced oatmeal brown ale arrived once more to steady proceedings.

Boatrocker's amazing bottled Old Fashioned 

cocktail

I must confess time did not permit me to sample the wares of Melbourne Moonshine, Charles Oates, Co-Op Cider or Willie Smith’s (the latter whose products for whom I have recently acquired a real taste), but the five hours were well spent enjoying some of the best fermented goodness this great country has to offer. Suffice it to say the company and chatting to the makers was equally great.

A massive thanks must go out to 3 Ravens Brewery; the participating breweries, distilleries and cideries; and Good Beer Week for staging such an epic showcase event. Blind Taste Test is counting down the days until the next one.

3 Ravens X Boatrocker X Hop Nation X Wildflower X Sailors Grave: Woods of the North: The Collaboration Sour Ale.

Who would have thunk it? One of suburban  Melbourne’s oldest craft breweries 3 Ravens was once known for its solid range of European-inspired beers, including Dark (raiuchbier-style lager), White (Belgian wit) and English (ESB) among others, previously brewed solely for nearby pubs. But magic started happening when Brendan O’Sullivan took over as head brewer and WA’s Mash Brewing joined forces to brew its specialty beers for the Melbourne market. In so doing 3 Ravens was saved from financial oblivion.

Though the Mash / 3 Ravens partnership is no more, the pairing helped kick off Australia’s sour beer love affair with Wizz Fizz Berliner-weisse. (Australian readers may already know the playful reference to another lolly-themed sour beer in Feral’s Watermelon Warhead which preceded it). There has been no looking back for O’Sullivan and the 3 Ravens team. The brewery has since launched a well regarded Wild Ravens sour beer series, including a take on the Flanders red style and an Industrial Farmhouse Ale, to name but two.

In the spirit of the occasion and the collaborative creative engine that is beer brewing, attendees took home with them a commemorative bottle of Woods of the North beer. All five Australian brewers who made the Woods of the North event the wonderful event it was all lent a hand in its creation, and my what an amazing concoction it was.

Pouring an attractive (more-so than the photo I took - sorry!) pale orange-amber with an at first firm white head that left behind fine lacing, Woods of the North could be mistaken for an unblended lambic were not for its carbonation. (Certainly its head was too subtle to resemble that of a blended gueuze).

On the nose, perfumed nuance, apricot and springtime garden aromas leapt from the glass. The ensuing flavour one could imagine being equally assertive, however it was anything but. Delicate, complex, floral, beautiful - with more than a touch of apricot and tropical fruit flavours.

One might be forgiven for thinking the yeast used came by way of Wildflower, for there was more than a hint of the brewery’s house character on display here. And although the beer was more than a sum of its parts, each brewery’s own single creative influence within the blend was in there somewhere.

Indeed blending is often an overlooked aspect of brewing. It takes place not only in Belgium’s lambic brewhouses, but in many major commercial breweries too. It is a practice that ensures beer tastes as wonderful and consistent as can be: Edges are smoothed out, imperfections masked and flavour harmonies created. The end result of this five-way collaboration was in the end sensational to say the least.

Watch this space for an updated tasting of the same beer following one year’s worth of ageing!

Woods of the North: The beer!

*Don’t get me wrong, I loe the pomp, ceremony and especially Campino flavoured beers of the big festivals!

The full list of Woods of the North breweries, cideries and distilleries:

3 Ravens

Boatrocker Brewers & Distillers

Goose Island

Hop Nation

Sailors Grave

Wildflower

Willie Smith’s

Melbourne Moonshine

Starward

Hippocampus

Charles Oates

Cedar Fox

Co-Op Pear Cider Brandy

Graham Frizzell was a guest at Woods of the North 2018.

The BTT's Ultimate Paddle of Good Beer Week Experiences: Round Two!

With so many events to choose from it simply wouldn't be right picking just five... To that end, let us go back to the main bar for a second round of five more! Naturally as the theme for GBW18 is The Ultimate Mix, an at times “tongue so firmly implanted in cheek I can taste my own capillaries” selection of songs has been chosen for each event.*

Disclaimer: Though this is the second round, none of these events are second rate when compared to the five as mentioned in the original Ultimate Paddle post!

That's a paddlin'!

The Cicerone’s Table
Stomping Ground Brewery & Beer Hall
Weds 16 May 2018 (Several sessions).
Transport: Collingwood station is 200m away.
Anything you like, except Tim Hicks’ “Stompin’ Ground”!
Guy Greenstone and Steve Jeffares are two of the most seminal figures in Melbourne’s beer scene. The two are the guys behind one of the city’s finest craft beer bars: The Local Taphouse, and they even spearheaded The Great Australasian Beer SpecTAPular. You could be forgiven for thinking that these would be satisfactory accomplishments, but oh no. Certainly not when the world of beer is the ever evolving, ever exciting beast it is. For them, the next logical step was to start their own brewery.

Moreover you don’t rise to the top of your game without the intent of staying there. In order to do that you must capture the now, the new, the cutting edge. To that end Greenstone and Jeffares have embraced the Cicerone Certification Program wholeheartedly.

Stomping Ground Brewery & Beer Hall, located in the inner northern suburb of Collingwood whose boundary once habituated 40 breweries until 1900, is staffed by five Certified Cicerones alone. One Cicerone (who has yet to be announced) will take you on a guided tour of the brewing facility before a sit-down session featuring a selection of Stomping Ground beers. You will have the opportunity to explore beer ingredients (literally at your fingertips) while also learning what being a Certified Cicerone is all about. (Hint: They probably won’t disclose much about the exam I recently took!)

There are several sessions to choose from that day, with each running for 45-50 minutes. When you’re all done why not stop in at the beer hall for a Gipps St pale ale or two? Stomping Ground is a destination in and of itself.

A Certified Cicerone has a strong baseline knowledge of all things malt.

Pint of Origin: USA @ Carwyn Cellars
Weeklong
Transport: Tram route 86 (stop 41) or Thornbury station.
Jakatta: “American Dream.”
In my previous Ultimate #GBW18 Paddle post I featured destination craft beer bar Carwyn Cellars’ Good Beer Week flagship Garage Project event. It could therefore be stated I am a little biased, but the heck with it! Any bias in this case is well deserved. The team at Carwyn Cellars has once again gone above and beyond in bringing the USA to those of us for whom a trip to the States is, for now in my case at least, merely a pipe dream.

The full itinerary of events at Carwyn Cellars’ Good Beer Week Pint of Origin: USA was released on social media on Friday 27 April, and it reads like a who’s who, and refreshingly “who’s that?” of American craft beer royalty. Luminaries including Steve Wagner of Stone Brewing Co (Monday May 14), Weihenstephaner’s Marcus Englet (as part of the Sierra Nevada X Weihenstephaner collab launch - Sat 12 May) the crew from (estranged from Aussie shelves but recently returned again) Sixpoint (Weds 16 May) and Adrian Walker of Firestone Walker (Fri 18 May) head up the list of familiar breweries. Naturally they will be bringing with them a selection of beers you won’t want to miss, with exclusive, elusive beers from Stone’s Liberty Station being a notable highlight.

Less familiar names on the bill include Abnormal Beer Co. (also from San Diego), Anchorage Brewing Co (Alaska), Three Wavers (LA), Against the Grain and Stillwater Artisanal.

Abnormal Beer Co. is best known for its range of hazy IPAs produced at a brewhouse/winery/restaurant situated in an unassuming business park to the north of San Diego. Anchorage is a small operation based in the Alaskan town by the same name. Brewer Gabe Fletcher recently relocated Anchorage across town where his beer undergo oak fermentation. Los Angeles’ Three Weavers has bolstered the city’s young commercial craft beer scene with its range of hop-forward ales. If your curiosity is equal to your thirst you’d do well to visit Carwyn Cellars while these fine producers’ brews are flowing.

Against the Grain by name and against the grain by nature: This Louisville brewery has been pushing brewing boundaries and displaying an unhealthy obsession with Rick Astley and big beer pisstaking (where its beer naming flair is concerned) since 2011. Meanwhile Stillwater Artisanal is a brewery familiar to the most geeky of beer geeks but may be relatively unknown to the casual observer. The Baltimore brewery established in 2010 and backed by founder Brian Strumke’s strong homebrewing background is well regarded for its unconventional, eccentric beers brewed with all manner of herbs, spices and more.

Throughout the week it is likely a great deal of craft beer’s full stylistic spectrum will be covered. Beer writer Michael Jackson once said words to the effect that the range and depth of beer being produced in North America far outweighed his wildest imaginings - and that was quite a few years ago. Things only keep getting better, reaching fever dream proportions, and thanks to this year’s Pint of Origin and Carwyn Cellars, there is a real opportunity to sample a sizeable chunk of the USA’s hefty craft beer output.

Oh, and mustn’t forget the American-style barbecue to help soak up all that beery goodness, courtesy of Bluebonnet BBQ. Franklin’s eat your heart out!

I will be covering appearances by Steve Wagner, Three Weavers, Sixpoint and Adrian Walker as well as the Garage Project masterclass, in later posts.

Firestone Walker's Adrian Walker will be making an appearance at Carwyn Cellars on Friday 18 May.

Good Beer Mates
The Catfish
Weeklong
Transport: Tram routes 86, 96 (stop 12: Melbourne museum).
Lowkey & DJ B Roc: “London” (Key to the Game vol. 1).
It could be said Good Beer Week 2018 has a Trans-Atlantic thing going on. The Catfish is set to host some of the best brewers and names in craft beer from across the pond - London to be exact. The only thing growing faster than Melbourne’s population is London’s beer scene. It has exploded to life in recent years and some of the best brewers from The Capital are headed to Melbourne. And why not when English craft beer is not as omnipresent on Melbourne’s taps and shelves as that from the US, Scandinavia or New Zealand?

On Saturday 12 May the brewers who made The Bermondsey Beer Mile famous will take over the Fish showcasing their wares. The Bermondsey Beer Mile is to London what the Route 86 Tram Crafty Crawl is to Melbourne, although instead of tram tracks there are historic rail arches. The string of brewpubs now spans more than its original mile too. Expect the likes of Wild Card Beer Co, Fourpure Brewing Co and more!

The following Monday sees highly esteemed London beer writer Melissa Cole join Luke Robertson for a recorded episode of Ale of a Time. This one is not to be missed, for Cole has done it all within and beyond the world of beer writing. Her book Let Me Tell You About Beer is an engaging, informative, fun and easy to comprehend introduction to beer styles and food matching; and she has even had a hand in brew days at Fuller’s, Goose Island and Odell. A Certified Cicerone, Melissa Cole has even helped curate the beer list at Fergus Henderson’s St. John restaurant (one Anthony Bourdain’s sentimental favourite). This is an event not to be missed.

Throw in chances to meet the brewers of Fourpure (Sun 13 May), Affinity Brew Co (Tue 15 May) and Wildcard Brewing Co (16 May) plus loads of London beers across The Catfish’s taps and you have yourself a loaded up Oyster Card’s worth of Cockney inflected Good Beer Week goodness. Innit blud...

For Good Beer Week The Catfish might as well temporarily call itself The Perch given the number of beers and breweries it will be showcasing from London.

Mikkeller Pop Up Bar
Dr Morse
Thurs 17 May 2018 (12noon-11pm)
Transport: Victoria Park station. South Morang / Hurstbridge line services will get you there.
ABBA: “When I Kissed the Teacher.”
From London Good Beer Week heads across the North Sea to Denmark, via Abbotsford’s Dr. Morse Bar & Eatery.  For one night only one of the global craft beer scene’s most creative and eccentric brewers comes to town: the one and only Mikkeller.*

Seasoned beer geeks mahy already know Mikkel Borg Bjergsø was a high school maths and physics teacher. His already sound knowledge of all things Plato served him well as he rose from humble homebrewer in 2006 to the craft beer stalwart he is today. Mikkeller has also started brewing out of San Diego in recent years and Mikkeller bars can be found all over the world - even in Singapore.

Dr. Morse is the perfect venue for such a brewer’s showcase, for much like Mikkeller it is eccentric (a café, bar, eatery and pumping night spot all rolled into one) and creative (the Asian-inflected food here is top notch). The program entry promises cult classics and a few limited releases on draught and from tinnies, so you might find any one of the beers in Mikkeller’s Spontan, Beer Geek or Berliner-weisse range. Hopefully I’ve not said too much!

And don’t miss out on getting involved with the Can Art Auction while you’re there.

*Well not quite the only Mikkeller... Mikkel Borg Bjergsø’s brother Jeppe Jarnit Bjergsø is the man behind Evil Twin Brewing. Fun fact: The two are indeed identical twins!

A particular favourite Mikkeller beer of mine: Spontanraspberry.

Bodriggy X The Old Bar Collaboration Release Party
The Old Bar
Fri 18 May 2018 (4pm-late).
Transport: Tram route 11 (stop 16) or tram route 86 (stop 19).
Mike Brady: “Up There, Cazaly.”
What do muddy football boots, unicorns and sticky carpets have in common? Well not a lot frankly, unless a pub famously devoted to original live music has a colourfully characterful footy team playing in a local pub league. When the good folks at The Old Bar aren’t doing what makes this place special, they’re up there like Cazaly on the footy field, playing against other pub squads based in and around inner-suburban Melbourne.

Because the odds of a great grab being captured on video are Shane Buckley’s and none (not due to lack of talent, not even, but because sod’s law dictates the video recorder will die three femtoseconds prior to that Almost Football Legends-submission worthy screamer being taken...), Bodriggy Brewing Co and The Old Bar have teamed up to immortalise every Unicorns speccy ever. In beer form.

Speccy Juice is set to be a tribute to the on-field heroics of the Unicorns, while also being the perfect post-match session refresher hoppy IPA. It’s rather sweet to see a Good Beer Week event co-hosted by a celebrated local iconic music venue and equally characterful local brewery, and in so doing really embracing the flavour and culture of the Fitzroy neighbourhood. Naturally the party will get going good and proper from 8pm when the bands hit The Old Bar’s hallowed stage.

* I should have included a song by The Clash in there somewhere, not for cliché value but because, like any festival in the history of ever, there are clashes - and lots of them!

The Blind Taste Test’s Ultimate Paddle of Good Beer Week 2018 Experiences

First things first, yes things have been a little quiet around here lately. That’s because I had been studying for the Certified Cicerone exam which took place on April 10. I am now awaiting on the results. Wish me luck, although I am hopeful I did everything possible to remove that hopelessly unreliable element out of the equation...

Anyhoo, someone has certainly cut the brake cords from 2018’s wheels because we now find ourselves at Melbourne Good Beer Week’s doorstep once more.

Local readers: Doubtless you have already browsed through this year’s program (in paper, PDF or app form), circling with intent, fervour and excitement your preferred events. Many of you perhaps don’t need any further unsolicited advice from the likes of me. Nevertheless, I feel compelled to highlight five must-do #GBW18 experiences - in case the red pen (real or imaginary) is hovering over the page with the sort of indecision one encounters when ordering at the bar when the choice is delightfully overwhelming. Said indecision can of course be resolved with… a paddle.

International readers meanwhile may be curious as to what Good Beer Week has to offer. Let me tell you the organisers weren’t fibbing with their 2016 tagline: “Bigger than Xmas!”*  With over 300 events and an anticipated 75,000 attendees Good Beer Week 2018 is set to be nothing short of a colossus. Indeed, there are many paddles one could sample during the course of the festival’s 10 day calendar.

So without any further messing about, here is the Blind Taste Test’s Ultimate Paddle of Good Beer Week Experiences for 2018 - in chronological order.

* Good Beer Week 2018’s theme is The Ultimate Mix. To that end I’ll even suggest some accompanying music to amp you up for the highlighted events.

The Good Beer Week Festival Hub @ Beer DeLuxe

1. Pint of Origin
Weeklong
Various venues.
Daft Punk: “One More Time.”
Pint of Origin… Now that’s definitely a paddlin’! Get yourself sorted with membership to The Crafty Cabal and have Untappd as well as Uber at the ready, because you’ll be needing all three to make the most of this weeklong showcase of Australian and international craft beer.

As the name suggests, the breweries from one single region are set to descend upon the hallowed lines of one designated venue. Visitors to Melbourne would do well to head to The Terminus Hotel Fitzroy North for a chance to sample everything Melbourne metro’s breweries hve to offer. Meanwhile over at the Royston Hotel, Richmond, the pub that ignited Melbourne’s craft beer obsession hosts the state that is said to be the birthplace of Australian craft beer: Western Australia. Every state and some regions within Australia are represented across the city and beyond.

International breweries also get a look in. At Melbourne’s late night Forester’s Pub & Dining (open until 4am Fridays and Saturdays) the taps will be dedicated to New Zealand’s finest ales. Just up the road (or a few tram stops) Beermash will be showcasing brews from Scandinavia (did someone say Omnipollo?) And quite a few more tram stops away is Carwyn Cellars, who for the second year running is hosting Pint of Origin USA.

There will be ample chances to meet the faces behind the fermentation tanks at Crafty Pint brewers shouts throughout the week, as well as the opportunity to check out pubs you might not ordinarily visit week to week. In fact, this year event organisers have even made a point of highlighting venues south of the Yarra river. If you really want to sample BrewDog and other British rarities - and lord knows you do - you need no other excuse than to hop on the 96 tram and head for Freddie Wimpoles in St. Kilda.

So gather up your friends, devise a game plan and get those beery Spotify playlists ready to sing along to while annoying your Uber driver. Insert joke about not being stuck up PoO creek without a paddle here...

More info here.

Join the Crafty Cabal here (psst! - it soon pays for itself!)

2. Woods of the North
3 Ravens Brewery
Sunday 13 May 2018
1 Theobold St, Thornbury
Public transport: Train to Thornbury or route 86 tram to stop 40 and walk to station entrance 
where there will be a shuttle service to the brewery.
John Lee Hooker: “One Bourbon, One Scotch and One Beer.”
What happens when six of Australia’s most creative breweries go head to head with six Australian pioneering artisanal distilleries, with a cider producer or two thrown in for good measure? Woods of the North, that’s what happens.

The lineup reads like a boutique metal or techno festival. 3 Ravens and Boatrocker have already garnered repute for their respective barrel-aged ales, while Sailors Grave and Hop Nation are up and coming new bloods in the field. Wildflower has meanwhile taken the scene by storm with its masterful creations using yeast sourced from NSW native plants. The list of breweries is headed up by the mighty Goose Island, the brewery that it could be said started it all (in modern craft beer aged on second-use wood terms) with its Bourbon County bourbon barrel-aged imperial stout. For those who missed the bottle release late in 2017 this may be incentive enough to buy tickets alone, but let it not be forgotten our local breweries have built upon this legacy in a very big way. In so doing they have created marvellous concoctions including The Druid (3 Ravens), Roger Ramjet (Boatrocker) and St. Florence (Wildflower) to name but a few.

Each of these breweries will be pouring a beer each from their own cellar, and another fermented in, poured from an ex-Starward whiskey cask. And as if that’s not enough, Melbourne Moonshine, Starward, Hippocampus, Charles Oates, Cedar Fox and Co-op Pear Cider Brandy will also be in the house to showcase their wares for the perfect boilermaker.

Boilermakers have in recent years taken off in a big way in Melbourne. When the right whiskey is paired with the right beer hidden elements within each are revealed or certain elements are harmonised. For example, a saison matched to a rye whiskey is a spice-on-spice delight, with rye’s natural spicy character playing off the peppery phenols of saison in blissful harmony. Indeed, dark beers and dark spirits aren’t the only partners one could explore. At Woods of the North you are likely to encounter sour beers featured in any number of equations.

With a chance to meet and greet the craftsmen behind these wonderfully woody beverages, wood-fired barbecued delights and take home goodies, what more could you want?

Tickets.

Boatrocker's Ramjet Srarward BA imperial stout is perhaps Australia's most famous barrel-aged beer. Will it be among 3 Ravens' and Woods of the North's featured beers?

3. Garage Project & Friends Masterclass “Afterparty”
Carwyn Cellars
Saturday 19 May 2018
877 High St, Thornbury
Public transport: Route 86 tram: Stop 41, or take the train to Thornbury station.
Nina Simone: “Lilac Wine.”
Okay, the masterclass is sold out but the Carwyn Cellars’ Backroom Bar will reopen for 3:30pm for the remainder of the day.

“Afterparty” is my word, not theirs. And you might have missed the opportunity to sample five Garage Project beers matched to five mystery beers from the USA (Carywn Cellars being the official USA Pint of Origin venue) with amazing cheese and charcuterie; plus the Garage Project brewers themselves taking you through the session… But the shenanigans that ensue following the masterclass are every bit as worthwhile as the event itself.

The Backroom Bar’s 18 taps will of course be pouring some of the best beers to be had all week (which is saying something) and on no other day is the atmosphere more electric, both inside and out (which is also saying something). The welcoming atmosphere and super knowledgeable staff are as much reasons for loving this place as the beers on offer themselves.

In the past Melbourne’s Boatrocker Brewers & Distillers has hosted similar events. This year Wellington NZ’s kings of all things experimental brewing Garage Project steps up to the crease to showcase five of its finest beers alongside five more inspirational beers from US brewers. I was fortunate enough to be a guest at both the 2016 and 2017 masterclasses (as linked). If you are lucky enough to have your ticket for this year’s, have a gander at my reviews to get a feel for what to expect. If you haven’t, read both and you will see why you need to get your ticket for next year’s!

It is worth noting that throughout the year Carwyn Cellars hosts a number of intimate masterclasses, with opportunities to meet the brewer or esteemed representatives thereof;  featuring rare, sometimes exclusive beers. Keep your eyes peeled to the Carwyn Cellars Facebook page for more info.

More info here.

Boatrocker's Jabber jaw Double IPA alongside Russian River's Pliny the Elder. There probably won't be much of that hanging around the GP & Friends afterparty, but that's not to say there won't be other special beers on show throughout the afternoon!

4. Volunteering for The Great Australasian Beer SpecTAPular (GABS)
Various roles and shifts are available - click here to find out more.
Royal Exhibition Building
9 Nicholson St, Carlton
Public transport: Tram routes 86, 96: Stop 12)
The Beatles: “With A Little Help From My Friends” .
A Good Beer Week experience that doesn’t involve the drinking of beer? Whaaaaa…? 

In actual fact, that isn’t quite true. You get to drink beer that no one else (who isn’t volunteering) gets to drink. More on that later.

I have volunteered for GABS twice now - in 2015 and 2017. It has to be said that even without the perks the experience is its own reward. In 2015 following what had been an epic Good Beer Week spent with friends visiting from Perth I volunteered to assist with the Sunday "Silly Hat" session. Pouring beer from growlers into small sample sized cups was the order of the first part of the day, while the second half I found myseelf on general duties - helping set up for a cooking with beer demonstration and a meet the brewer talk with Colonial in one of the exhibition rooms. The buzz around me was nothing short of electric and it felt great to be a moving part (so to speak) of an event that had risen to become a landmark occasion in Australian craft beer culture.

Last year meanwhile I helped with venue set up, which involved unpacking and sorting a large number of paddles, followed by the setting up of tables throughout the venue. My vision impairment didn’t really prove much a factor while volunteering in 2015, however as tables needed to be configured properly in the open downstairs area, things were a little tricky. Thankfully help was at hand from team-mates. Admittedly I felt more comfortable lifting and shifting upstairs as the balcony provided a guide in terms of where tables were to be placed. Once again I felt a great sense of fulfilment upon being a part of something great - while also overcoming the sense of doubt (relative to vision impairment). I’ve said it before but I’ll say it again - I heartedly recommend volunteering for GABS to one and all.

In no way is this thankless work. For taking time out from the Good Beer Week festivities you will receive two tickets to your preferred GABS session(s), a GABS glass and of course a GABS Crew T-shirt. But the best bit? The volunteer’s afterparty (their words, not mine), held at neighbouring The Catfish bar, following the traditional Sunday “Silly Hat” Session - the last GABS session for the year in Melbourne. Head upstairs and mingle with friends and fellow volunteers while enjoying complimentary beer. Don’t forget to keep your T-shirt on or pack it if you’re not volunteering on the Sunday!

Sign up to volunteer here.

Setting up for GABS is its own reward!

5. The Great Australasian Beer SpecTAPular (GABS)
Five sessions: Friday 18-Sunday 20 May 2018
Royal Exhibition Building
9 Nicholson St, Carlton
Public transport: Tram routes 86 and 96 (stop 12).
Cream: “I Feel Free.”
A fair and a convention, a feast and a celebration; GABS Melbourne is perhaps the single greatest day of the year (or days - if you have multiple passes) for anyone who loves beer, cider and food.

It is not too dissimilar to the Great American Beer Festival and it has its parallels in its format to the Great British Ale Festival. But instead of cask conditioned British ales, here you’ll find weird and wonderful beers, including a laksa beer from Brothers Brewing (NZ), a lager inspired by margaritas (hola Grand Ridge’s tequila, lime zest and citrus infused creation), a 4.2% ABV durian infused saison fromForeigner Brewing, plus a heap of ramped up sweet stouts.

Indeed, darker beers appear to be somewhat thematic for GABS 2018. But there is no shortage of NEIPAs, funky sours and bourbon barrel-aged ales as well. Paddles and Untappd at the ready!

When you’re done at the shipping containers, there is plenty more to explore, with festival breweries setting up their own stalls both upstairs and down. You could also check out the Brick Lane Co Craft Beer College or Little Creatures Live performance space. There are even games for kids and adults alike throughout the venue. And it has to be said the atmosphere at GABS is a spectacle in itself too!

Pro tips: Don’t forget to load up on food! It helps, trust me. There are plenty of vendors slinging beer friendly nosh including fried chicken, American BBQ, pizza and more. Always take the time to chat to the brewers present on the day. The insight you get is awesome and it makes what they do totally worthwhile. And above all else don’t forget to drink plenty of water - your body will thank you the next day.
 
Tickets.

Festival info.

The Good Beer Week 2018 homepage.

All the fun of the fair at GABS 2017