On Friday the 29th of September I visited the Tinshed Brewery in the town of Dungog, New South Wales. This brewery is operated by David Cox and Hayley Collis and is a great brewery and bar that has been in operation for eleven months. They sell 95% of the beers that they produce in the brewpub with the remaining 5% being sold locally within 50 km.
They have a 600 litre brew system and have a 3600 litre fermentation capacity. They have an ever changing list of beers and have developed a great local following. The place was very busy while I was there even though the nearby pubs were offering cheap beers to try to compete. This alone shows that they are making wonderful beers and that the locals appreciate their quality. They also have food available.
The beers that I sampled were:
Wiener Brau, 5.0% abv, this is a golden coloured Vienna style Lager with a subtle malt aroma. It has a nice malty flavour and then a gentle bitterness on a dry finish.
Pale Ale, 4.8% abv, this is a golden coloured ale with a subtle fruit aroma. It has a good sweet fruity flavour and then a nice hop bitter finish.
Summer Blonde, 4.4% abv, this is a golden colour and has a nice clean, malt taste on a crisp dry finish. Refreshing.
Dixie Dark Ale, 4.4% abv, this Ale has a dark amber brown colour and a roasted malt aroma. It has a wonderful full malt flavour and then a gentle bitterness on the finish.
I enjoyed all of the beers that I tried and would like to thank David and Hayley for their hospitality. They are very enthusiastic about what they do and about the craft beer industry in the area. The Tinshed Brewery is a great, relaxed venue serving very approachable beers that are definitely worth trying. Come in to the brewery and try for yourselves Thursday thru to Sunday.
