On Sunday the 1st of October I visited the Hope Brewhouse in Pokolbin, New South Wales. This is a brewery that has been in operation for three years at the regions premier concert destination. The venue was established with major entertainment events in mind and has the area for these. In the past they have been host to many international and Australian entertainers including the Rolling Stones. The next big one on their calendar is Midnight Oil on the 21st of October.
As well as being an entertainment site the venue has a great winery as well as the most important brewery. This was set up, by owner Michael Hope, so that at concerts the audience would be able to partake of decent beers. The head brewer is Matt Hogan, he comes from the wine industry and has bought with him a wealth of experience from wine making that he has translated to brewing great craft beers.
The brewery consists of a 12 hectolitre brewer and has a fermentation capacity of 26000 litres. They have recently brewed their first draught style beer so that they can get their beers on tap in other venues such as RSL clubs. The brewery also runs a beer club with members receiving delivery to their door of beers at discount prices and free delivery for orders of $90 and over.
The brewery won the 2016 Small Brewery Champion at the AIBA. This year it moved up a category but was still able to collect 2 gold medals, 3 silver medals and 3 bronze medals for its beers. At the brewhouse they have twelve taps with eleven different beers and one cider available at any time, these rotate through their range on a regular basis. They also have some of their beers available in cans and this selection is due to increase in the near future when they take delivery of their own canning line.
The beers that I sampled were:
Lager, 3.5% abv, this is a European style Lager that was created for the concerts where only mid-strength beers can be sold. It has straw colour and a subtle malt aroma. The flavour is malty with a crisp dry finish.
Tower Estate Cider, 5.0% abv, this is a clear sparkling cider that is made with Pink Lady and Granny Smith apples. It is aged in Chardonnay barrels on Chardonnay leaves. It has a sweet apple aroma and taste with a gentle tartness on the finish.
Munich Lager, 4.5% abv, this is a Helles style lager with a golden colour and a malt aroma. It has a nice malty flavour then a gentle bitterness on a crisp dry finish.
Australian Pale Ale, 4.5% abv, this ale has a light straw colour and a tropical fruit aroma from the Galaxy hops used. It has a light, sweet fruity taste and then a mild bitter finish.
XPA, 4.7% abv, this Extra Pale Ale is of the West Coast American style and has a golden colour and an aroma of citrus fruit. It has a sweet malt flavour with hints of toffee and then a fruity mild bitterness on the finish.
American Wheat, 4.2% abv, this beer is made with 70% malted barley and 30% wheat. It has a straw colour and a subtle sweet stone fruit aroma. It has a malt flavour and then a fruitiness on a crisp dry finish.
Hefeweizen, 4.7% abv, this wheat beer has a hazy straw colour and a strong banana and malt aroma. It has great banana flavour from the banana peel that is added to the fermentation. Lovely!
Blood Orange Sour, ( Berliner Weisse), 3.8% abv, this is a pink colour with a sour citrus aroma. It has a nice, gentle citrus sour taste. Very refreshing.
Chocolate Milk Porter, 5.0% abv, this black Porter is served on Nitro so it has a wonderful smooth mouth feel. It has a strong chocolate and coffee aroma and lovely malt flavour with strong chocolate hints.
Robust Porter, 4.8% abv, this is an English style black Porter with a roasted coffee malt aroma. It has a strong malt flavour of espresso. Nice!
Smoked Porter, 5.2% abv, this is a collaboration brew with Hopnation. It has a smoky malt aroma and a strong smoked malt flavour with hints of chocolate and espresso.
Barrel Aged Extra Stout, 6.2% abv, this beer is aged in Shiraz barrels and is black with a dark creamy head. It has a roasted malt aroma and a nice strong malt flavour with a slightly sour taste and good hints of coffee. Excellent!
Hope Black IPA, 6.8% abv, this is a dark brown colour with a malty fruit aroma. It has rich malt initial flavour and then a fruitiness before a generous hop bitter finish.
Hope IPA, 6.0% abv, this is a hazy golden coloured India Pale Ale with a citrus fruit and cut grass aroma. It has a nice sweet fruity flavour and then a pleasant resinous hop bitterness on the finish.
Hope Double IPA, 9.0% abv, this is a cloudy golden straw colour with a strong fruity pine aroma. It has an initial taste of sweet malt and fruit before transitioning into a huge resinous hop bitter finish. Big flavours and all about the hops.
The beers that I sampled were all delicious. I would like to thank Matt and Michael for taking the time to talk to me and show me through their magnificent brewery. I would also like to thank Joel for his time, enthusiasm and hospitality while I was there. The passion for producing great craft beers was very evident in all of the staff at the Hope Brewhouse and I recommend a visit if you are in the area.
