Tag: the high country

After a good nights rest, we were back on the Brewery Trail the next morning. Our plan was to visit the two northernmost breweries on trail before coming back to Beechworth for a hike.

But before we sampled some beer, we had the one more piece of Hume Highway kitsch to see, the giant Ned Kelly in Glenrowan.

Now, Ned Kelly is not kitsch. He was a real person. To the authorities, he was a bandit, thief, outlaw and murderer. To the local population, he was a hero; a sort of Robin Hood protecting them from oppressive Colonial rule. He was captured in June 188o during a gun battle in Glenrowan, famously wearing body armor which included a helmet. He would be executed later that year in Melbourne Gaol. [If you want to read more about Ned Kelly, his definitive biography is Ned Kelly: A  Short Life by Ian Jones]

The kitschy part of the story is the Ned Kelly industry that has sprung up. Besides the giant Ned Kelly that dominates the town, the store/museum was full of Ned Kelly trinkets to buy; T-shirts, plush toys, a metal helmet mailbox, statues… too many things to name. There was even a Ned Kelly stubby holder (koozy) that said “Ned Kelly says drink a beer”. You couldn’t help chuckling at all the stuff.

With our niece and nephew Christmas shopping done, it was time to get back to the Brewery Trail. Driving down the country roads on our way to Buffalo Brewery in Boorhaman, we  couldn’t help feel that we were going back in time. While not that far from the highway, the sparseness of countryside harked back to an earlier era. Located at the Boorhaman Hotel, Buffalo Brewery brewed its first beer in 1902. After a long dormant period, brewing resumed in the 1990s.

Buffalo Brewery even has a connection to Ned Kelly. Their label is a portrait of  Lily Arabella Cherry, purported mistress of Kelly gang member, Steve Hart.

The first customers of the day, we enjoyed our samples out in beer garden. We tried five brews. The Wheat, Lager, Stout, and Dark Ale were all nice beers. But the star of the show was a Ginger Ale. I am a huge fan of real Ginger Ale (not Schweppes) and am always excited to try alcohol versions. Buffalo Brewery’s Ginger Ale is the closest thing to the soda version that I have ever tasted. It was excellent!

Six pack of Ginger Ale in hand, it was time to move on to the next brewery.

Rutherglen is a well known Australian wine producing town and on its outskirts is Vintara Winery. Visible from the road, their winery, restaurant and tasting room sits majestically on a hilltop. The building also houses Bintara Brewery. Coinciding our arrival with what seemed to be a work holiday party enjoying the Vintara wine, we pondered the consequences world’s colliding. Beer meets wine in a no holds barred showdown.

Being lowly beer people, we grabbed the furthest table from the holiday party to sample of our beer. Actually, I think it was the only other table outside. Joined by the ever present flies, we settled down for some lunch and beer.

There were two beers to try, the required Wheat and a Pale Ale. [Before I comment on the beer, I just want to say that some of my best friends are winemakers.] The brews were of the ‘don’t offend anyone’ school. There was nothing wrong with beer, it just didn’t do anything for either of us. However, the beer proves our point of context. On a nice, warm December afternoon as part of a holiday party or gathered with friends, either beer would have been a perfect sipper.

After completing our lunch, it was time to head back to Beechworth for our hike and post hike beer at Bridge Road. It was a memorable two days on the Brewery Trail.

Postscript: We would visit one more ‘brewery’ on the trail the following day, Boyton’s. Another winery, I don’t go in depth about Boyton’s as they don’t brew on site at the present time (thus, they don’t count on “the List”). They have plans for a brewery in the future and we look forward to visiting again when the onsite brewery is established. We missed only one brewery on the trail, Jamieson. Their remote location didn’t fit into our schedule.

 

We left ‘bustling’ Canberra early Sunday morning for what I thought was going to be a three to three and a half hour drive to the Victoria High Country, the northeastern part of the Australian state. We were headed to the self-proclaimed “premier craft brewing region in Australia” and their seven stop Brewery Trail. The drive turned out to be be closer to five hours but as they say, good things are well worth the wait.

Despite the unexpected long drive, we still found a few minutes to stop for some more Australian kitsch. Located right off the Hume Highway, the “Dog on the Tucker Box” is a small statue of a dog sitting on a box. A piece of folklore that dates from the 1850s, the dog is said to be protecting his master’s possessions. The statue on the highway was unveiled in 1932.

After the Big Merino, I expected something BIGGER…a giant dog on top of a giant tucker box. The little statue was a bit underwhelming. I guess in the 1930s, people just weren’t into bigger is better. And the requisite gift shop wasn’t even open, as it was undergoing remodeling.

After our quick stop, we were back on the road headed to the High Country.

Our first stop on the Brewery Trail was Sweetwater Brewing in Mt. Beauty. Located on Annapurna Estate, a vineyard and winery, the idyllic and tranquil setting was the perfect cure for a long drive.

Owner Peter Hull, a former Melbourne-ite (or is it Melbournian?), is living the dream of many beer geeks: he got away from it all and opened a brewery. The brewery is located in a building on the Annapurna property and has a small bar with outdoor seating at the winery’s tasting room.

The beers tasted really good after the long drive. There were five to choose from, ranging from a Weissbier to a Porter. Besides an IPA, my other benchmark beer is a Hefeweizen; good breweries know how to do it right. Though slightly under-carbonated for my tastes, it had all the flavors of the good Hefe.

The other stand out beer was the Summer Ale, a 4.5% ABV brew using local hop varieties. It was the perfect beer for the 80-some degree late spring day.

Our next brewery was up the road in the town of Bright. The aptly named Bright Brewery is located on the main road that goes through town. A modernish-looking building comprises the brewery and tasting room with ample outdoor seating out front. Actually, it seemed to be the only seating which left us wondering where people sit in winter. The breeders are even accommodated as the brewery is located next to a playground so the kids can be ‘unleashed’, as their brochure says. On this early Sunday evening, a good-sized crowd enjoyed their beers while listening to a music duo. With sample paddles in hand, we joined the them.

Bright had six beers to try, including an Amber and a Pale Ale. Their Witbier was really nice; another perfect brew for the hot day. The other favorite (oddly the beer not suited for the day’s weather) was the 8.5% ABV Abbey-style Dubbel. While more apropos after a day on the nearby ski slopes, it was a nice Dubbel, something I never expected to find Down Under. The sixth beer on the paddle, the “Brewer’s Choice” was an Australian Light Lager. While not a fan of the style, I mention it here because it was made from all Australian ingredients.

We were then off to our final destination of the day: Beechworth. Our base for the next few days in the High Country, Beechworth is a historic gold mining town from the 1850s. [As an aside, we highly recommend our hotel in Beechworth, the Latrobe… a former lunatic asylum.]

Beechworth is also home to Bridge Road Brewery. The brewery, tasting room and beer garden is located on Beechworth’s main street behind Tanswell’s Hotel in the old coach house. Entering through a covered lane off Ford Street, the beer garden is an oasis from the town’s busy shopping area.

We even got to try a beer out of the fermenter. A person, who I assume was brewer/owner Ben Kraus noticed that we had gravitated towards the hoppy beers and gave us a sample of the not-yet-released brew. It was a single hop Ale made with local Galaxy hops… a brew that instantly went on my potential ‘best of the trip’ list.

Like many of their American counterparts, Bridge Road has created a high end line of beers, the first time we saw this in Australia. The Chevalier series is comprised of three beers: Saison, Bière de Garde and Dunkelweizen. All three are available in 750ml bottles and we tried all but the latter on draft. While I didn’t like them as much as some of the brews in the regular lineup, Bridge Road gets props for pushing the envelope in the Australian beer scene.

A great first day on the Brewery Trail.. Part II is next.