Beer

When you think of Australian beer you’d be forgiven for thinking of lager, particularly Fosters. Beer was the iconic drink of Australia since it was colonised by the West (as a means of preserving drinking water on board Captain Cook’s ship Endeavour) and ale was introduced by the British. However, ale might have suited the chilly shores of the UK, but in the hot, arid climate of Australia, lager soon became the dominant drink.

One of the earliest brewers was John Boston who brewed an ale with Indian corn and cape gooseberry leaves – tasty! A certain James Squire was the first to discover hops and he was awarded a cow by the government in recognition of his success. Lager in its recognisable form was first brewed in 1885 by the Gambrinus Brewery in Melbourne.

Fosters may be one of the largest breweries in Australia, but the drink isn’t top of the popular poll Down Under and is largely made for exporting to places like Britain.

Fosters does have its place in the lager history of Australia however, the Foster brothers were the first ones to use refrigeration techniques on their lager, making for the chilled ale we drink today.

Lager still dominates the Australian beer market but there is a place for real ales too.

The most popular of all Australian beer is Victoria Bitter, or VB. Technically though, compared to British beer, VB is more of a lager. It’s brewed by Fosters and has the highest market share of all beer sold in Australia, both on tap and packaged.

Stout has become increasingly popular and in the late 1990s Brisbane developed their own Brisbane Guinness Appreciation Society, which promoted the drink as an alternative to the regular brews on the market at that time.

Australia has many of its own stouts but these are not readily promoted, even in the states in which they are brewed.

Microbreweries are becoming increasingly popular in the more cosmopolitan areas of the cities. They make it possible to sample many different varities of Australian brewed beer and are well worth visiting.

There is now a comprehensive, and more importantly, free guide to Victoria’s microbreweries aptly titled The Beer Lovers Guide to Victoria’s Microbreweries. It includes tasting sheets, maps, brewer profiles and even a guide to the beer terminology used. This guide can be picked up at any outlet that serves or sells Victorian Craft Brew or from any Victoria Tourism shop.