In March 2005 we acquired a little brewery at Dandenong in Victoria, a move that renewed our inquisitive nature and passion for beer exploration. Affectionately known as the ‘Garage Brewery’ it’s where we develop new beers and nurture them through to larger scale production.
Every year we also brew one-off, limited edition beers at the Garage Brewery. Recent releases include Sebastian Vintage Reserve and Barking Duck. Earlier brews included Grayston Reserve, MB21 and Crema.
Further experimentation saw us work with the wine team at Saltram to develop the first Australian beer ever to use the juice of wine grapes in the brewing process. Known as Pepperjack Ale, this unique brew was released in August 2007 and captured the hearts of wine and beer drinkers alike.
Today Matilda Bay continues to push the boundaries of beer while respecting the long history and tradition of brewing round the world. Not all our experiments succeed, but over the years we have made beers that cover the full spectrum of flavours and styles with absolute dedication to our craft and to the enjoyment and education of true beer enthusiasts.
For those beers in our range that become too popular for the Garage to meet production, we call on our favourite cousins down at the Cascade Brewery in Hobart. Cascade have been a fantastic supporter of Matilda Bay along our journey and we are now lucky enough to have some of our larger brands – like Beez Neez and Redback Original – brewed out of Australia’s oldest brewery. It is a magical place, and the brewers work hand-in-hand with our Matilda Bay Garage Brewers and Head Brewer Scott Vincent to maintain the essence of these very special beers.
A big ‘thank you’ to the brewers at Cascade.