On Sunday the 15th of October I visited the Akasha Brewing Company in Five Dock, New South Wales. This brewery was started almost three years ago by two mates. One was a great home brewer and the other was his drunk mate that didn’t even like beer at that time. Dave had the brewing knowledge and Wesley had the belief in Dave’s ability and the money to invest. They are a great partnership as Dave is cautious and thinks things through while Wesley is full on and pushes Dave to the limits. Wesley has also developed a taste for good beers since they have started making them.
They took the lease for their building in January of 2015 and started contract brewing while they waited for their equipment to arrive. It was delivered in July and they made their first beers in September. They have had to expand the operation since then and are planning a further expansion. At present they can ferment 20000 litres at a time but this will grow to 40000 litres in the near future. All coming out of a 12 hectolitre brewhouse. They only recently put in a small pilot system to give the brewers something to experiment with.
The name Akasha comes from Sanskrit meaning the fifth element or the perfect environment. This is carried through with their beers with the core range representing the other four elements; Air, Water, Earth and Fire.
The beers that I sampled were:
Tradewind Lager, 4.4% abv, this has a golden colour and a citrus aroma. It has a sweet malt flavour and then a mild fruity, crisp finish.
Freshwater Pale Ale, 5.2% abv, this has a golden colour and a sweet fruity aroma. It has a well balanced flavour of sweet malt and then a generous fruity taste on a gentle bitter finish.
Hopsmith IPA, 7.2% abv, this has a golden colour and a strong fruity hop aroma. It has a wonderful sweet fruity flavour and then a generous hop taste on a mild bitterness. Very well balanced and easy drinking.
Fire Within Amber Ale, 5.8% abv, this has an amber colour and a sweet malt and citrus aroma. It has a nice malty initial taste and then a mild bitter finish.
Cranky Son Of Pale Ale, 5.8% abv, this has a hazy golden colour and a citrus fruit aroma. It has a great fruity taste and then a big hop bitter finish.
Korben D. Double IPA, 8.5% abv, this has a golden colour and a strong fruity aroma of citrus and tropical fruit. It has a very well balanced flavour of sweet malt and then transitions into a fruitiness before a big, resinous hop bitter finish. Dangerously drinkable.
American Stout ( Vetala’s Blood), 6.0% abv, this is a black Stout with a thick, dark head and an aroma of roasted malt. It has a nice full mouth feel and a strong malt flavour of coffee on a gentle bitter finish. Nice!
I had a great time chatting with Wesley at Akasha Brewing Company and would have loved to have spent a lot longer there. Their beers are all fantastic and the venue is great, they even had food available. This is a brewery that is definitely worth visiting. I would like to thank Wesley and Bryce for their hospitality when I visited.
Awaken The Soul!!