Slake your thirst for a crafty coldie and discover the best places to down a boutique brew with 'The Craft Beer Guide To Queensland'.
It's like a tour guide, for beer. It provides a comprehensive list of almost 70 craft breweries in Queensland as well as the best bottle shops at which their wares can be found.
With the guide's official release and launch happening in November at the Queensland Beer Festival, Mark Midro of Barrel Media answers some questions about the tome of foam.
Can you tell us more about 'The Craft Beer Guide To Queensland'?
[Mark] Often, the best place to try a beer, at least for the first time, is at the brewery itself, where you can see it being made, talk to the brewer and taste it as it should be tasted: fresh and in perfect condition.
This experience is similar to the cellar door concept of winemakers. This guide is your key to discovering the growing craft beer industry in Queensland, allowing you to choose the breweries you want to visit and discovering local brews you might like to try along with the bars and bottle shops to try their beers.
What has it taken (and how long) to put together this impressive volume?
Almost seven years! In 2010 we released the first edition of 'The Beer Lovers Guide To Australia'. It included approximately 70 breweries from all over the country. There were around ten in Queensland at that time.
Seven years later and there are just over five hundred breweries across Australia with almost seventy in Queensland; in fact, by the time you read this there will probably be over seventy. This is the first release in our state series of craft beer guides. The NSW edition is next.
The guide features a comprehensive listing of 70+ craft breweries in Queensland; what else is in the guide?
Did you know we have three brewery tour operators in Queensland? Did you know there have been craft beer breweries in Queensland since 1988? Did you know the four ingredients used to make craft beer are: water, malt, hops and yeast. We think we have covered many topics that make interesting reading for all levels of beer knowledge.
Why has this guide been created?
The huge resurgence in opening of new breweries since 2014, highlighted by the fact there is a new brewery opening in Queensland every four weeks highlights the interest and growth in craft beer.
It is no longer the preserve of hipsters and it has become mainstream. This guide will help you on the wonderful journey of craft beer and make it easy for you to discover better brews and where to enjoy them.
Where can we get a copy?
Not until 16 November. Available through breweries, bars, bottle shops and online. Or you can pre-order your copy now.
What do you attribute the current popularity of craft beer to?
Our thirst for a more interesting and flavoursome beer that's brewed locally has seen a rapid increase in the number of new bars that focus solely on selling craft beer. We are all looking to make better choices in our beer selection.
A trip to the brewery or a read through this guide will help create some understanding on how the beer you are enjoying has ended up in your hand and you can easily become a fan. There are some great stories behind the beers you drink.
Is craft beer another foodie fad that will dissipate once the hype peters out?
Did you know there are more styles of beer than wine with wider variety of tastes. Where there was once just an ocean of single choice, mass-produced beers, bars, hotels and restaurants are now offering a much wider choice of craft beer to consumers with craft beer increasingly appearing on more and more taps and menus. This clearly shows growth in consumer interest.
Do you have a favourite craft beer/ brewery you prefer?
Such a difficult question to answer. On a hot day I would prefer something different to that of a cool evening. But remember always pour your beer into a glass to appreciate the full flavour experience of the brew.
The guide is being launched at the Queensland Beer Festival; what do you have planned for the event?
It's never been done before. A true, craft beer event dedicated to Queensland beer. We wanted to showcase the huge variety of craft beer that this wonderful State has on offer.
We will have beers from the FNQ, all the way down to the border. Make sure you come on down and try a few brews and support your local brewer. There will even be a few brewers on hand for you to ask question.
We aim to make this an annual event as we join forces with Queensland Beer Week (16-25 November). Check in with your local brewery or bar and see how they will be celebrating during Queensland Beer Week.
What else will be on offer at Queensland Beer Festival?
We have got tasting paddles, food specials and of course you can grab a copy of the guide. But be quick as once the beer is sold out it is gone. Best of all you will get a chance to enjoy beers that you never even knew existed in your own backyard.
Want to go for a beer after this?
Is is after Midday? Of course! And finally, we'd like to thank all those breweries listed in this book for their continued hard work in bringing craft beer back to Queensland, and for the ever increasing number of bars that are selling craft beer. Long may it continue.
