Beer gets makeover in Oz with infusion of different flavours

MELBOURNE - For those who love to experiment with their drinks, now comes an array of beers that have been infused with different flavours.

This year’s Sydney Royal Fine Food Show saw brewers offering up everything from the Longshot coffee-infused dark ale to a chocolate porter and a ‘Christmas beer’ brewed with a mix of dried fruit and spices.

Brad Rogers, who is a brewer and a judge for 12 years, was very excited at the quality of the 98 entrants, and said that while the local craft beer industry was still young, there are some amazing brews on offer.

“There are so many good beers being made. I think for us it’s about experimenting, pushing the boundaries, it really is just exploring,” the Daily Telegraph quoted him as saying.

While small brewers have been experiencing exciting growth, Rogers challenged Aussie drinkers to “get out of the comfort zone” and do their own taste test of some of the great new beers that have come on to the market.

As one of the founders of Byron Bay brewer Stone and Wood, and a trained winemaker who “always wanted to make beer”, he believes small brewers have more freedom to try new things and experiment with new styles.

It was a sentiment shared by fellow judge Brendan Varis, from the Feral Brewing Company in WA, who has just returned from one of the world’s largest beer festivals in the United Kingdom.

“We’re finding year by year all the entries are stronger and better,” he stated. (ANI)