The Crafty Pint Podcast

FOUND. only launched in 2023 but the story behind one of WA's rising stars goes back far longer and takes in many of the state's best-known breweries and best-loved beers.We sat down with two of the brewery's key players, Steve Finney and Will Irving, at the former Golden West brewpub in Subiaco as they were midway through turning it into a home for FOUND. It's due to open to the public for summer 2024, with the first brew taking place onsite the same week this episode was published.Once open, it will give the team three venues in WA. Faced with ongoing delays to their original plan to open a sizeable production brewery and hospo venue in East Perth, they instead started out with FOUND.LAB in Byford, a 45-minute drive south of Perth, and have since opened a pop-up bar in Maylands.This episode of the podcast covers their respective backstories, their first meetings at Feral's brewpub in the Swan Valley and subsequent time together at the iconic brewery, their vision for FOUND. – including how they're trying to create the ideal beer business and conceptualise what a modern Australian brewery venue should be, their thoughts on the future of beer in WA and further afield, bringing new people into the world of craft beer, and plenty more besides.  Links referenced in or relevant to the show:  FOUND.LAB: https://craftypint.com/brewery/819/found-lab  FOUND. Taking Over Former Golden West Site In Subiaco: https://craftypint.com/news/3443/found-taking-over-former-golden-west-site-in-subiaco  Brew & A ft Will Irving from his time at Feral: https://craftypint.com/news/1086/brew-and-a-will-from-feral-brewing  The Story Of Hop Hog At Ten: https://craftypint.com/news/1921/the-story-of-hop-hog-at-ten

Rocky Ridge gave the beer lovers of Melbourne a boost midway through 2024 with the news they had acquired Thunder Road Brewery in Brunswick in order to establish an East Coast outpost.  While availability of their beers in the eastern states has been relatively limited, in their home state of Western Australia the brewery took little time forging a fine reputation after launching in 2017; today, they're well-established as one of WA's finest.  They've picked up a stack of trophies over the years, have a tight core range, produce a phenomenal amount of limited releases, and are in no way afraid to experiment – nothing, it seems, is off limits.  More than that, however, is their approach to brewing, business, community and the planet. Born on co-founder Hamish Coates' family farm in Jindong, not far from Busselton in the South West, the brewery he launched with partner Mel Holland operates off grid, is always exploring ways in which to brew more sustainably, has been involved in multi-partner projects to develop new products, and is a shining example of how breweries can lead the way.  Even the decision to buy Thunder Road was driven by a desire to stop sending beer across the Nullarbor and instead produce beer for customers in the east in the east.  We sat down with Hamish in the bluestone cottage attached to the Brunswick brewery the day before they signed the deal for a conversation covering all of the above and more. The chat was recorded before we'd set up our podcast studio so is audio-only.  Links referenced in or relevant to the show:  Froth Town 2024: https://www.froth.town/ Phat Brew Club: https://craftypint.com/brewery/731/phat-brew-club Ten Lessons From Ten Years: Bendigo On The Hop: https://craftypint.com/news/3558/ten-lessons-from-ten-years-bendigo-on-the-hop Rocky Ridge Buy Thunder Road: https://craftypint.com/news/3468/rocky-ridge-buy-thunder-road Brewing A More Sustainable Future: https://craftypint.com/news/3202/brewing-a-more-sustainable-future  24 Hour Barley People: https://craftypint.com/news/2864/24-hour-barley-peopleRocky Ridge Brunswick Pre-Opening Drinks: https://craftycabal.com/member-events  Meet The Brewer Oktoberfest Special: https://craftypint.com/event/13406/meet-the-brewer-oktoberfest-special-ft-king-river

Few venues have made an impact on their city's beer scene quite like Brewski, the Brisbane venue opened by Antoinette Pollock and Matt Emmerson back in 2013. It was one of the first to wholeheartedly embrace craft beer and, along with its notable peers and the teams behind each of them, helped create one of the most colourful, creative and welcoming beer communities in Australia. Fired by a love of big beers and outlandish events, Brewski's reputation spread far beyond Brewsvegas, becoming a second home for many.In July 2024, Matt and Ant announced they'd made the hard decision to close; changing economic realities meant continuing to operate such a venue in the heart of Caxton Street was no longer viable. Given all they'd brought to the local beer world, we asked them to join us for a chat about the Brewski years, their approach to running multifaceted beer venues, the rise of craft beer, the future for beer bars, marketing and plenty more.Then, two days before this show was published, we learned there was a silver lining: they're opening another My Beer Dealer bar-bottleshop in Fortitude Valley and have, of course, grand plans for their new baby: they want it to be one of the biggest drink-in bottle shops in the country.Also discussed in the episode are the collapse of Valhalla Brewing and associated beer distribution business Lotus, plus the news that Brisbane brewers Slipstream are opening a venue on the Sunshine Coast.NB: The main interview was recorded prior to The Crafty Pint Podcast launching and is audio-only. There's some inconsistency in the sound, in part due to recording in the venue, but there's much to enjoy in the discussion too, hosted by Mick Wüst and Craig Williams.Links referenced in or relevant to the show:Valhalla Liquidation Impacting Multiple Indie Brewers: https://craftypint.com/news/3552/valhalla-brewing-to-be-liquidated-multiple-indie-brewers-counting-the-costSlipstream Opening On Sunshine Coast: https://craftypint.com/news/3549/slipstream-to-open-a-venue-on-the-sunshine-coastBrewski To Close: https://craftypint.com/news/3507/brewski-to-close-after-a-decade-of-beersTen Lessons From Ten Years: Brewski – https://craftypint.com/news/3288/brewski-ten-lessons-from-ten-yearsBendigo On The Hop 2024: https://www.bendigobeer.com/both-2024 The Crafty Cabal: https://craftycabal.com/

Few people in Australia have put as much craft beer into as many venues as Tom Delmont.He was Mountain Goat's first ever sales rep – forcing his way into the role and leaving the world of entomology behind – before moving on from the Melbourne icons when they sold to Asahi, later founding IPA-centric brewing company Fixation with the founders of Stone & Wood. He left Fixation a few weeks prior to recording this show, joining carbon accounting platform Zevero, and on the podcast shares stories from his colourful career in beer as well as insights into the art of selling beer and building beer brands. Anyone that's met him over his two decades in beer will know he's a great storyteller and has a genuine love for good beer that surpasses pretty much everyone else on the planet. As an aside, hours after we recorded the show, both he then we learned that Lion had taken the decision to close the Incubator – Fixation's brewpub in Melbourne – hence the late insert into the show. The brand and IPAs will live on, however. Links referenced in or relevant to the show: Froth Town 2024: https://www.froth.town/ Bendigo On The Hop 2024: https://www.bendigobeer.com/both-2024  Lord Nelson sold to Laundy Hotels: https://craftypint.com/news/3545/laundy-hotels-buy-the-lord-nelson  Burnley Brewing to close their Richmond taproom: https://craftypint.com/news/3548/burnley-brewing-to-close-their-richmond-taproom  Zevero launches in Australia: https://craftypint.com/news/3539/zeveros-mission-to-help-breweries-cut-emissionsNB: around 47 minutes in, you might pick up a slight buzzing sound coming and going. We're not sure what's caused this given we didn't pause or restart the recording before that point, but we'll attempt to find out what caused it before the next show...

The 2024 Indies awards took place in Perth for the first time on August 2, and The Crafty Pint was there to enjoy the celebrations that took place a few hours after the WA Beer & Brewing Conference.The following morning, we sat down with new Independent Brewers Association chair Callum Reeves, also co-founder of KAIJU! Beer, for a wide-ranging chat about the awards, his new role, the challenges facing indie brewers – including insight on the impact of bi-annual excise tax hikes, new partnerships and key goals for the IBA.There's also reaction from some of the Indies winners on the night, a look back at our event with FOUND., and a look forward to upcoming Crafty events featuring Phat Brew Club and Rocky Ridge.If you'd like to find out more about partnering with The Crafty Pint Podcast, contact [email protected] referenced in or relevant to the show:Indies 2024 winners: https://craftypint.com/news/3538/uraidla-win-champion-beer-at-the-2024-indies-with-a-ripa-of-a-beerMax Bowering Slays Beer: https://craftypint.com/news/3532/max-bowering-slays-beerEpisode 002 featuring Lindsay Astarita: https://craftypint.com/news/3534/episode-002-lindsay-astarita-of-stomping-groundWA Craft Beer Strategy: https://www.wabeer.com.au/wa-craft-beer-strategy/IBA's call to the Federal Government on excise tax: https://craftypint.com/news/3540/the-iba-asks-how-much-more-can-we-pay-for-beerFOUND.'s plans for Subiaco: https://craftypint.com/news/3443/found-taking-over-former-golden-west-site-in-subiacoBoundary Island: https://craftypint.com/news/3168/who-brews-boundary-island-beersAlice Springs: https://craftypint.com/news/3233/alice-springs-brewing-co-five-years-in-five-beersPhat Brew Club event: https://craftypint.com/event/13346/pre-froth-town-frothies--feedPoint Break Brewery International: https://www.blackmansbrewery.com.au/point-break-brewery-invitational/

Lindsay has developed the sensory and quality program at a brewery that has a happy knack of winning major trophies. The tale of how she ended up in that position, after years spent travelling the world seeking out good beer wherever she went, is an excellent one. She's about to head back to her home country, the US, so we needed to get her on quickly. As with many of the ongoing series on the main website, we're keen to use the podcast as a platform to shine a light on people in all parts of the beer world, not just owners or founders. And, as a mutual friend from outside the beer world put it, Lindsay is a superstar.So, following our debut episode with Sailors Grave, here she is as the star of the second show.Our chat with Lindsay features insights into how installing quality programs can help breweries produce consistently great beer, the importance of beer education, and the day in the life of a beer judge – as well as Lindsay's personal journey from beer-loving traveller working front of house to someone who's just landed a gig judging at this year's Great American Beer Festival.

Chris and Gab Moore are the visionaries behind Sailors Grave Brewing, the East Gippsland brewery that's different in pretty much every way you can imagine: from the artwork designed by a British children's book illustrator and unusual ingredients to the amazing partnerships they've forged throughout their home region and further afield.We invited them on to tell us about the impending arrival of Dunetown – the brewery and venue on their farmland near Cape Conran that will see them bring their original vision to life – as well as their pre-brewing life in Sydney hospo, their focus on sustainable practices and the importance of staying true to yourselves.Before the chat with Chris and Gab, we outline our intentions for the weekly podcast and have a chat about some of the latest news from the Australian beer scene. Look out for a special guest who's very excited about the upcoming Blackman's Point Break Brewery Invitational too!  Links referenced in the show:  Two-part mini-series on voluntary administrations: https://craftypint.com/news/3489/the-secret-brewer-voluntary-administration & https://craftypint.com/news/3490/the-secret-brewer-voluntary-administration-part-ii  Article on the state of play in beer, Shift Happens: https://craftypint.com/news/3500/2024-mid-year-report-shift-happens  Seeker's Tiny Tins: https://craftypint.com/news/3522/seeker-take-flight-with-tiny-tins  Holgate Brewhouse's People's Choice: https://craftypint.com/news/3521/vote-for-holgates-25-years-of-beers-peoples-choice Sailors Grave Brewing: https://sailorsgravebrewing.com/  Point Break Brewery International: https://www.blackmansbrewery.com.au/point-break-brewery-invitational/

The Crafty Pint has been covering the Australian craft beer scene since 2010 and now we're launching The Crafty Pint Podcast.Hosted by the editorial team behind Australia's leading craft beer media publication, the show features curated discussion of industry news, as well as an ever-changing lineup of guests sharing perspectives from all corners of the craft beer world.Subscribe now and delve into the fascinating stories shaping beer.