Bitter sweet.

‘Beer-trail’ blazing in Northeast Victoria.

First published in North by northeast Magazine February 2016

 

 

 

 

Australia has long punched above its weight in beer consumption, but it is only now finding its feet as a beer producer and much of it is taking place in our own back yard.

Between hop production and craft brewing, our local producers are trail blazing and turning heads the world over.

Where local wine producers have been setting standards for generations, our top brewers are now taking it a step further by not only using locally grown ingredients, but primary produce designed by and for Australian condition making their products something very uniquely Australian.

The High Country Brewery Trail is a collaboration of Black Dog Brewery at Taminick, Bridge Road Brewers in Beechworth, Bright Brewery and Sweetwater Brewing company in Mt Beauty and encompasses a 150km trip from the plains to the high country passing right by the Rostrevor hop gardens at Eurobin.

 

The brewers involved in the Brewery trail have joined forces to create The high country hops festival (now in its second year) which is held at Bridge Road Brewers in Beechworth on Saturday 19 March 2016 and will showcase beers from each brewery as well as collaborative brews and many other local artisan products including Milawa cheese and Gundowring ice cream.

The Rostrevor hop gardens at Eurobin on the banks of the Ovens are a spectacular sight. The verdant fingers of the hop plants reach up to the sky like jack’s magical beanstalk, to over 6 meters high.

At this time of year the light green hop flowers emit a strong herbaceous sent adding to the unique spectacle of the hop gardens.

Hop production requires specific growing conditions including a cold winter and plenty of water, conditions first grown in Australia in the Derwent river valley of Tasmania more than 150 years ago.

Without the modern preservation methods used to store hops, a counter-seasonal harvest to the northern hemisphere offered an attractive export market for early Australian hop growers and after being trialled several years, commercial quantities of hops were first planted in Northeast Victoria in 1890’s.

Decedents of Chinese gold traders in the Buckland Valley, Market gardeners the Panlook brothers were the first to grow hops at Rostrevor, planting 50 acres in 1895 along side tobacco.

The new century saw the erection of commercial hop kilns nearby and after a crop failure of Tobacco in the 1930’s; Northeast Victoria became the largest hop-growing region on the mainland.

In 1988, the Rostrevor farm was bought by Hops Products Australia (HPA) a subsidiary of the German, family owned Barth-Haas Group of companies, the world’s oldest and largest hop trader which now owns 80% of Australian hop production and is fast expanding.

With recent acquisition of more land along the Buffalo river, local hop planting is set to double in the coming year from 200 to 300 hectares making it the largest hop growing area in the nation.

Current Farm Manager Allan Monshing knows more about growing hops than most. This year will be his 43^rd hop harvest and with his father and grandfather having managed Rostrevor before him, the Monshing family are now a true hop-farming dynasty.

Despite only contributing 1% to world hop production, Australia has been setting the standard in hop breeding for over 50 years.

The role of hops in beer is twofold; traditionally, hops were used for their antimicrobial properties in brewing but these days they are added primarily for the bitterness and aromatics they impart, a sharp contrast to the sugary sweetness of malted barley.

The bitterness comes predominately from a compound called Alpha acid and the higher the alpha acid content, the smaller the quantity required to achieve the same bitterness.

In the 1950’s Carlton United Breweries produced a world first by creating a hop cultivar with 10% alpha acid known as Pride of Ringwood.

So named for its place of origin, Pride of Ringwood became the synonymous with Lager production around the world and is still the basis of the famous Fosters larger.

With the expansion of Melbourne in the 1960’s and 70’s, the Ringwood hop breeding station began being effected by light pollution from streetlights so the operation was moved to Rostrevor at Eurobin.

In the late 1980’s HPA produced a new cultivar at Rostrevor with even higher alpha acid called Superpride, which remains the basis of large-scale lager production throughout Australia.

Where Pride of Ringwood could be likened to the hop version of the Granny Smith apple, Superpride has become our Pink Lady and much like the apple analogy, there are plenty of hop growers around the world who would like to have it as their own.

HPA CEO Tim Lord is constantly receiving calls from international hop growers wanting a piece of the action but he is quick to make clear “that’s not one we’re ever going to share”.

The Rostrevor breeding program has continued to produce record-breaking hops with new cultivars bred specifically for Northern Victorian conditions containing up to 16.8% alpha acid.

Having led the way in hop breeding for half a century, HPA has a strong reputation for innovation and Tim stresses the role of quality and originality in the company’s future.

“The rich alluvial river plains, high altitude and cold winters provide the perfect conditions for producing exceptional quality hops and we’re keen to help foster the craft beer industry,” says Tim.

 

HPA emphasis is now aimed squarely at craft beer production.

The exceptional terrior enjoyed by Rostrevor and surrounding areas produces hops with unique aromatic qualities, attributes highly prized by boutique producers.

HPA currently exports hops to over 2000 craft brewers in over 25 countries yet only a handful have the opportunity to use them in their fresh green state.

Being highly perishable, hops are dried, pelletised and packaged to maintain freshness but using hops picked straight from the vines creates a very different beer.

Known as Wet-hopped beers fresh hop brewing requires (much like tea or dried herbs) a higher percentage of hops and creates a more subtle result. The bitterness is replaced by mild and more aromatic flavours.

As well as wet-hopped beers, the high country hops festival will showcase single origin hop beers much like single origin coffee or chocolate.

Each year Bridge Road Brewers make a series of single origin hop Indian Pale Ales (IPA’s) utilising locally grown (and bred) cultivars that create a boxed set called ‘Beer School – Hops 101’.

Where the heavy resin flavours of Pride of Ringwood and Superpride have put Australian hops (and lagers) on the map, Bridge Road Brewers are helping showcase some of HPA’s new varieties concentrating on other parts of the beer flavour spectrum including floral, spice and fruit notes.

At the IV International Humulus (or hop) Symposium in the USA last year, HPA took out highest score for ‘overall liking’ along with 2 other HPA bred cultivars ranking in the top 8.

Considering the long wine traditions in Northeast Victoria, it is not surprising much of the craft beer production has segwayed from wine making.

Ben Kraus of Bridge Road Brewers grew up in the Northeast and studied viticulture at Dookie before taking off to see the world and find his calling.

After working in wineries in Italy and France lost his heart to his now fiancé Maria in Austria and found his passion for beer in his father’s homeland.

Ben returned home with Maria and started brewing beer in his parents shed in Bridge Road in Beechworth.

Within a year Ben’s beers (coupled with Maria’s fresh Baked Pretzels) had outgrown the shed and they moved to their current location, the former stables at the back of the historical Tanswell Hotel in Ford Street Beechworth.

The brewery produces 22 standard brews with many other speciality brews for specific events or collaborations.

What started in the family shed has become a true family collaboration. While Maria oversees the kitchen, Ben’s mother Liz has become brand ambassador at many local events and Ben’s Dad Josef Provides carpentry skills and advice feedback “be it wanted or not” Liz clarifies.

Bridge Road Brewers has been wholesaling bottled beer through major supermarkets since 2010 and is well known not only for its exceptional quality but its eye-catching packaging. Much of the packaging as well as the design featured throughout the brewery were created by another member of the Kraus family, Ben’s sister, the very talented Korrine Arblaster of Kore graphics also in Beechworth.

Last year the High Country Hop festival attracted over 300 people to the Bridge Road Brewery and this year Ben and the other Brewers involved are hoping to double the numbers.

Owen Johnston of HPA will be there to answer questions about the Australian hop industry and whilst the event is designed to provide an opportunity for locals to sample beers from all 4 breweries in 1 location, it is also an opportunity for the businesses involved to showcase their products to customers from all 4 corners of the globe.

Accompanied by local entertainers for both the young and old, the High Country Hops Festival is sure to only get bigger and better and become a major feature in Northern Victorian Calender.