Author: John Krüger

First published by WBM Magazine in 2014

The rise of Hipster beers.

Beer Radar

By John Krüger

The beverage landscape is continually moving. The cider craze certainly wasn’t the bubble that everyone thought would burst last year. It’s continuing to grow at a steady rate, especially if bottle shop fridge space is any guide. Most bottle shops are either installing extra glass-door fridges or removing stock that doesn’t move as quickly. Beer and white wine ranges seem to have shrunk to accommodate cider and more recently, alcoholic ginger beer. One old Adelaide suburbs bottle shop attendant was horrified at the thought of removing longnecks of beer to replace it with a back sweetened alcoholic pear cider. “Granddad would be rolling in his grave.” he mentioned. Granddad must have hated artificially sweetened sweet fizzy drinks as much as I do. Interestingly at the Adelaide Schützenfest, one of the biggest events involving beer in Adelaide, the line ups at the beer taps are getting shorter and shorter as the younger punters are swarming around the cider taps, pouring red or green cordial into their steins full of cider.

While craft beer is still in growth, huge hoppy beers move units, but not often cartons. They’re also not the kind of beer that many people plow through while watching TV. Australia is a great country to sell cold beer in and you’re about to see the rise of the latest trend, American Hipster beers. Our youth have never been more switched on to American culture and iconic, yet more mainstream American brands are the latest cold beverage that’s a “must be seen drinking” item. It wasn’t that long ago that Budweiser appeared and if you hadn’t noticed the red beer cup craze, have a look at Dan Murphy’s online. They’re selling “the iconic plastic cups that can be seen in many American movies and hit TV show.”

With this huge wave of dude food and food trucks, the ideal accompaniment is a can of iconic American beer. It’s no secret that Press* in Adelaide make a damn fine burger, but the best beverage match in the establishment is a can of Brooklyn Brewery lager.

McLaren Vale Brewing Co have decided to distribute the American Hipster cult classic Pabst Blue Ribbon (473ml cans). A Google image search reveals just how big the Pabst (also referred to as “PBR”) following is in America. Everyone from President Obama to Clint Eastwood is pictured drinking PBR. MVBeer’s sales and marketing manager Josh Stuart is quoted in a press release saying that MVBeer also haven’t ruled out also importing American “non-beer beverages”.

If that’s not a good enough indicator that the American icons are going to invade even more shelf space, CocaCola Amatil are adding to their huge growth range of Rekorderlig ciders with US classic beers Blue Moon, Coors and Sam Adams. At the moment CCA are starting with Sam Adams popular Boston Lager, but Sally Loane, CCA Director of Media and Public Affairs says they’re looking at bringing in the entire Sam Adams range.

Coopers have also forged an alliance with the Anchor brewing company out of San Francisco, but to date there’s no sign of them distributing Anchor’s legendary Steam beer or Liberty Ale.

Which beverages will lose fridge space to this new range of mainstream imports? I doubt it’ll be the ciders.

First published in 2013 by WBM magazine.

Beer Radar

The little Clare Valley and the big beers.

By John Krüger

Hold on to your steins, we’re about to see a wave of new beers form the Clare Valley. It’s been a well known wine region ripe for the beer pickings for years, and there have been some great attempts and successes so far in Clare. I know they weren’t brewed on site, but I could never resist stopping at Neagles Rock for a beer to drink there and a few of their wheat beers to take home. They disappeared a few years ago, but Knappstein’s, smack bang in the middle of Clare have held on firmly with their benchmark lager. Probably the first beer to truly engage the general Aussie drinker with the New Zealand origin Nelsen Sauvin hop. The unique fruity aroma is a great finishing hop for new world beers from lagers to American style pale ales. The Kiwi’s told everyone that their new hops smelled like grapes, or to be more specific, their locally grown and soon to be vastly popular, Sauvignon Blanc. They’ve since dropped the references to that specific variety of grape, which makes sense to me. The hops certainly don’t smell like green capsicum and rubber gloves. Knappstein’s Reserve Lager still remains a great example of a new-age aromatic Aussie lager. Word is, Knappstein’s are keen to introduce some new beers into their range and I’m hoping it’ll be soon. Will they be modern interpretations of classic styles? Hop driven malty masterpieces? Fingers crossed.

Pikes beers have a history which goes back for ages and at times is a bit hard to follow. If you’ve ever driven around Oakbank looking for a brewery with some cold beers, you’ll realise, like me, that you’re about 42 years too late. Thankfully the beers have made a resurgence after Neil and Andrew Pike relaunched the beer in 1996. Their stout was certainly a welcome sight at the most recent chilly Clare Gourmet Weekend. Pikes have recently added a Stout and Sparkling Ale to their original Pilsener and there’s word of changing seasonal beers as well. Adelaide based Black Squid design have rejigged their labels to reflect on the history of the original brewery in Oakbank which started in 1886. I absolutely love them and told Peter Bentley from Pikes that if they don’t bring out some beer t-shirts they’d be mad. Peter replied “We’re definitely looking at t-shirts. I think they’d look great.”

Pikes beers are being brewed by well known Victorian brewers Hargreaves Hill which explains why the stout in particular is so good. Keep an eye out for the new beers around May/June and meanwhile you can check out the original Pilsener on tap at the Sevenhill pub.

The Clare Valley Brewing Company has also appeared recently and there’s certainly some stainless steel being installed somewhere, but it’s all still a bit hush hush. No beers have been seen by me yet, but I hear there’s a lot of activity going on in the background. Business partners Craig Harnett and Ben Jeanneret have also been planting some hops in the Clare Valley and plan to use locally grown barley for a truly regional beer. They were enjoying a few cleansing ales when I spoke to them at the Clare Wine Awards and they’re keen as mustard.

It’s looking like the next visit to the Clare Valley might involve a sleep over. The Riesling is so good it deserves at least a taste and a few bottles to take home, but with so much new fresh beer about to pop up, a stay at one of the pubs will be unavoidable.

First published by WBM magazine in 2012

Beer Radar

By John Krüger

Coopers and Craft

If you haven’t noticed the neck tags on the Coopers stubbies by now, you probably never will. They’re spruiking the fact that Coopers Brewery has turned 150 years old. The neck tags seem to be a little unpopular as it turns out, but when you play with the classics, people get toey. When you find something you like, you tend to hang onto it tightly with both hands and get shitty when anyone tries to change even the slightest detail. That’s how precious some people are about their locally made classic beers. As much as I’m a huge fan of the latest technology, I’m a bit of a stick in the mud when it comes to food and beverages. I love a few fresh Coopers Pale Ales in summer. I also love grabbing a few longnecks of Coopers Sparkling Ale and Best Extra Stout on a cold night. I love that Coopers longnecks went from screw tops back to crown seals; that need a bottle opener or the seatbelt buckle of a Holden WB ute to open. I love the fact that the bloke in the bottle shop still wraps them in brown paper bags before I leave. If I had my way, Coopers labels would de-evolve. Have a look at the classic old Coopers India Pale Ale or Sparkling Ale labels. They’re proud solid labels that don’t playfully tempt with stars and gold leaf embossing, just the basics. No gimmicks needed. I’d buy a black t-shirt with that label on it any day.

With the revelation that Coopers made India Pale Ale in the long gone past, would Coopers reintroduce a challenging hoppy beer and shut the beer nerds up? Will we see challenging beers coming from Coopers in the near future? From the little I can glean from them after constant questioning, it’s seriously doubtful. But in the long term I can see a well thought out, surreptitious and safe move further into the “craft beer” market.

What is craft beer? The definition is a little grey. It used to be the small run hoppy beers that only small breweries would dare to make. Small brew length so smaller risk of being stuck with a beer that doesn’t sell. But then a few big multinational brewers started putting out a few  hoppy beers and muddied the waters. Some conservative beer nerds think of Coopers as craft beer because a big multinational company doesn’t own them. According to the Craft Beer Industry Association of Australia’s website, Coopers doesn’t fit into their craft beer definition because they produce over 25 million litres of beer per annum. With another industry body, the Australian Real Craft Brewers Association, there’s more an emphasis on Australian ownership but no mention of annual production limits so you’d think Coopers could possibly get a look in, but I doubt it. To myself and another group of beer nerds, craft beer means a brewery that produces different, usually hoppy beers. The opposite of the general draught beer options pouring in most hotels. Risky sour beer producers get an extra star in my definition of craft. My definition also includes the extra human factor. Through the many different facets of my work as well as beer judging, I’ve dealt with many of the people who work at Coopers Brewery; from Dr Tim and Glenn, marketing, behind the scenes brewers, truck drivers and beyond. I’ve enjoyed talking to all of them. A mate of mine Simon Fahey is the guy you usually see at a function in a hotel launching the new Vintage Ale or the like. He’s not just a happy, grey haired Coopers PR guy, he’s Manager of Technical Systems at the brewery. His family comes from a few paddocks over from my family. He’s a good bloke to have a beer with. Jon Meneses spoke at the latest Adelaide Vintage Ale launch. He’s not really that keen on the public speaking because he’s a brewer not a lunch speaker, but he’s happy to inform the crowd about all facets of the latest beer with fascinating honesty and openness. While this brewery may not fit into some definitions of craft beer, these traits fit perfectly with mine.

Whatever category you put them in, happy birthday Coopers Brewery and many thanks to long gone Thomas Cooper for starting it all in the first place. Keep up the good work. I’ll keep buying your fine ales and secretly, I’ll keep my fingers crossed for your India Pale Ale revisited. Hopefully with that beauty of a classic label stuck to a crown sealed longneck, marvelled at for a moment before being efficiently wrapped in a brown paper bag by the friendly bloke at my local bottle shop.