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Brewery Radar • Brewery Radar: April 2022
The Bintani Brewery Radar keeps the brewing industry up to date with the progress of planned breweries and brewpubs in Australia, where they are in their development process, the installation of brewhouses and proposed opening dates. This month, many breweries have opened across the country, while others continue to finalise approvals.Additional reporting by Clare Burnett.
Find out where new breweries are opening in your state:
If you haven’t seen your brewery on recent editions of the Brewery Radar, get in touch with us –vivien@brewnews.com.au.
Eclipse Brewing is currently brewing at Shizuku Brewing in Wangara, but it has secured a property in Northam alongside the Avon River. It is setting up a pilot brewery south of the Margaret River, where its brewers are based, set to open very soon with a cellar door alongside a boutique winery.
That site will focus on recipe development and seasonal release beers, but the team will also be setting up its brewhouse in the next year.
According to local news, Spinifex Brewing is set to start its lease at theWA Food Innovation Precinct on 1st July.
Froth Craft Brewing in Bunbury is currently having its brewery installed with a trial batch aiming to take place at the end of the month.
Dandanning Brewery in Mukinbudin is slowly progressing with its nanobrewery but it has faced some issues at the beginning of March with its producer’s licence initially being rejected.
Moore River Brewing was fully approved last year. It has been relatively quiet of late on updates to its development process, but it was set to start building earlier this year.
The Bob Hawke Beer & Leisure Centre, now open in Marrickville. Doors opened on the Hawke’s Brewing Co. at the end of March.
The development application for Beerfarm’s new site on the Central Coast at 92 Mountain Road in Halloran is still under assessment by the council.
The Social Brewers opened last month in Sydney.
Good Folk Brewing in Newcastle is progressing with its brewery and is close to receiving its building certificate to start work on site.
Glen Samson has been employed as head brewer and has started working on creating new recipes.
Spangled Drongo Brewing Co. in the Northern Rivers has pivoted to becoming a flood crisis response centre for the Tweed and the team have been working on flood relief.
Thirsty Messiah Brewery has been celebrating this month after obtaining its excise approval from the ATO, its canning machine is nearly ready and it is piloting beers with new recipes and ingredients. The team, led by Thomas Delgatto, is looking to a June opening for the Broadmeadow brewery.
Yard Kings Brewing in Morisset, NSW is opening in May 2022 at space at 32 Accolade Avenue, and is on the hunt for hospitality staff. The brewery is all set up with a 20hL brewhouse and 120 PAX brewery. Yard Kings’ head brewer is Adam Wolfe, who worked in Sydney for five years in the local craft scene, after relocating to Australia from the U.S. with his fiancé in 2016, where he worked at Harpoon Brewery in Boston.
The brewery was founded by five families (above) from a local, tight-knit beach community on the Central Coast.
Another Brookvale brewery is set to launch after Freshwater Brewing Company received the green light from the local council for a new taproom.
Brightstar Brewing opened in SA last month, in a building initially built by F.H. Faulding & Co to manufacture eucalyptus soaps and medicinal product and occupied by the company for 70 years. More recently it was home to Adelaide University and Bureau Veritas.
Udder Delights opened its Verdun brewhouse and taproom. The cheesemongers moved into the former Grumpy’s Brewery after it was destroyed by a fire in 2016. The team behind the brewery secured $273,972 towards the $3 million project from the South Australian Government’s Tourism Industry Development Fund grant.
Silver Brewing in Adelaide officially opened its doors at the end of March.
Flat Lizard received its building certification for its site on 18 Harvton Street in Stafford.
Maggie Island Brewery has brought on a new head brewer Jordan Dahl who previously worked at The Brewery Townsville. It completed the installation of its brewhouse last month and is getting ready to serve its first brews this year.
After some hard work, Archer Brewing has been given the green light by Brisbane City Council, its application was approved late last month for the site on 278 Newmarket Road Wilston. The brewery will be looking to open before summer this year, and it just received its provisional liquor licence last week.
Chinchilla Microbrewery founder Steve Keating opened its venue at the Chinchilla Melon Festival on 23rd February, after some of the hardest years for farming communities in the region, having been flooded three times in just the last four months after years of drought.
Keating was able to acquire Clover Hill in 2020, and he called it “the best thing we ever did”, launching a meat brand and farm tours.
But the team is now looking to expand with a microbrewery after applying to the council, and it will be advertising for a head brewer shortly.
Currumbin Valley Brewing’s second site is underway, but the approvals process is still underway with the local council after some further information requests. The team are hoping to hear back from the council next month.
Family-owned brewery Lucha Brewing Co. has opened in the western suburb of Seventeen Mile Rocks in Brisbane.
A new microbrewery is set to open east of Brisbane in the suburb of Tingalpa. A development application was approved last month under the name, Gangster Brewing Pty Ltd.
According to the development application, a food and drink outlet will be attached to the microbrewery.
Straddie Brewing Co. is closing in on its opening date, with a final concrete slab for its roof deck poured at the beginning of this month. The roof is scheduled to go on in mid-May with brewing equipment set to be installed in July. The team are on track for a spring opening.
Red Dog Brewing Co. opened last week in Mackay’s CBD area. The brewery has a 5400-litre brewing capacity and opened with six beers on tap, according to local news.
Wards Brewing Co. is coming along at 131 Auckland St in Central Gladstone, with plans to open later this year.
Scarborough Harbour Brewing Co. is set to open on the Redcliffe Peninsula in the next two weeks
With wet weather and COVID-related hiccups, Sobah Beverages’ new brewery is behind schedule, but its 25hL brewhouse has been commissioned and all other equipment is veins sourced and built ready for installation mid-year.
Ploughman Brew Co. in the Brisbane suburb of Enoggera is working on new beers after setting up a nanobrewery.
Local media reports suggest that a new Ipswich brewery could be on the way, after a development application was submitted at the vacant lot at 16 Saunders St.
Meanwhile, Four Fires Brewery in Toowoomba is ongoing, but there was a delay with plumbing but the region’s flooding put plans back and the work will begin in May.
Alexandria’s On Point Brewery is still on the cards, but it has a number of hurdles to jump before opening although its beer garden is beginning to take shape.
Bendigo Brewing is at a standstill while it was its for building surveyors and the local water authority to agree on a few minor issues, but the brewery has arrived and is in storage in Bendigo to install as soon as the floor goes down.
Following a three-year development journey, Escape Brewing on the Mornington Peninsula opened in February.
Smiley Brewing is well on track to open in Pakenham. The brewery, founded by Trent Butcher, started the search for a location in 2019, but when a number of properties fell though and COVID hit, the project got put on the backburner.
Smiley found its new home in early 2021, but was hampered by issues with council, which, like many councils, found it difficult to place a brewpub in its existing planning frameworks.
After lodging with VCAT in January and explaining to councillors the situation, it went before a town planning committee meeting and the initial recommended refusal was overturned.
The taproom will fit 90 and feature a 10hL brewhouse.
Du Cane’s build
Du Cane Brewing Co. is set to open later this year in Launceston. The development application was approved in January with the brewery equipment arriving soon after.
With the building application receiving approval last week, the build has finally started with a rough opening date set for September this year.
Spotty Dog Brewers has nearly completed the structure of its building and internal fit out has begun. The team is aiming to be complete by July, with brewhouse installation starting in May.
Fox Friday Craft Brewery received delivery and installed its Codi canning line at the end of last month.
Expansions
This edition of Brewery Radar also features expanding breweries, as existing breweries grow and add tanks, grow its venue floor space and capacity.
Whitelakes Brewing Co. is expanding its operations according to local media.
Frenchies Bistro and Brewery in NSW has added six new tanks this year after increased demand for its beers.
“Our new tanks are a little different this time around – they are a bit smaller in size and laying down flat, a decision we intentionally made so we can get creative and develop lots of small batch brews for beer lovers to enjoy,” said Vince De Soyres, co-founder and head brewer.
Meanwhile, Moffat Beach Brewing Co. brought in new tanks in February which they acquired from fellow Sunshine Coast brewers Terella Brewing.
Newcastle’s Shout Brewing Co. is relocating to new premises in Islington according to the local newspaper.
Jervis Bay Brewing Co. has added 90 new solar panels to its roof, adding 36kW to its existing 27kW solar system.
The Gold Coast’s Lost Palms Brewing Co. has completed much-needed upgrades to its 11 Oak Avenue site (above). Overseen by head brewer Mitchell Wirth, the brewery undergone modernisation, which has seen the replacement of an electric kettle with a direct-fire Bespoke Brewing Solutions system and the further addition of two new tanks.
As a result, Lost Palms will be able to increase capacity at its Miami site, and grow its limited release beer range.
Expanding? Let us know – cheers@brewsnews.com.au.
