Canned beer is for bogans.

A fair statement or a misconception? If you listen to the team at Mornington Peninsula Brewery, it’s very much a case of the latter.

Last Tuesday night at the Local Taphouse in St Kilda, the brewery celebrated its recent installation of a canning line that has started churning out its flagship pale ale. The move comes as the brewery aims to attract further support for the local boutique beer movement.

“We want more people to drink Australian craft beer,” Mornington Peninsula Brewery managing director Matt Bebe said in regards to the motive behind the venture.

“It’s just a different vehicle.”

The release is inspired by similar moves in the American craft beer market and comes hot on the heels of the success of the canning of Mountain Goat Summer Ale. In addition, Bebe believes the ‘tinnie’ has several advantages that make it a more appealing option than its bottled brother.

These include the cans’ light weight, ability to chill quicker, increased beer purity and improved shelf life. More importantly, Bebe is confident that the contents within the metal container make this a winning move.

“It’s the quality of the beer that will sell it,” he said.

The brewery founder also debunked a common myth about drinking beer from a can.

“I think the main misconception is that there is a metallic taste,” Bebe said, adding that technological advancements ensured that concern was no longer justified.

“We look at it as a mini-keg.”

While the brewery’s distribution will initially target bottle shops, there are plans to reach can-friendly festivals and events for the new product. Mornington might also expand its canned range.

Asked whether we could expect to say bye-bye to bottled beer, the managing director was quick to point out that the two products could easily sit side by side.

“I don’t think you’ll find that cans will replace bottles,” Bebe said. “There will always be a place for bottles in Australia.”

Upon opening one of the new cans for the first time, it is the nose that is first to benefit: pleasant aromatics punch through with force. However, it turns out that this is merely a recent tweak to the pale ale recipe rather than a result of its new surrounds.

Whatever the case, the pale ale is full of flavour, and the product’s striking design is sure to catch the eye.

If you’re still undecided about whether to embrace the can, Bebe points out that, in some regards, it’s a non-issue.

“We would always recommend that beer gets poured in a glass,” he said.