The Cool Room

247 - Rocky Ridge Part 2

In the second part of their visit to the the Thursday night Zoom Room Ollie, Ross and Hamish from Rocky Ridge share more stories of the their journey in both the West Australian and Victorian craft beer scenes.

In this episode we sip the amazing Hoppel Bock which is available as part of the tasting pack from our online store: https://the-coolroom-podcast.myshopify.com/products/rocky-ridge-mixed-6-pack We learn all about the original doppelbock style and then how the team worked with hop growers on this adaptation.

Then we go behind the scenes to find out what the guys wish they'd known earlier in their journey, the realities of the craft beer market in 2024 and why they are optimistic and expanding into Victoria.

246 - Rocky Ridge 1

In the first of two episodes Hamish, Ross and Ollie from Rocky Ridge join Davydd to discuss their amazing beers and the stories behind them.

In this episode we compare and contrast Rocky Juice V14.1 and V14.2 which you can purchase from the Rocky Ridge website or directly from the Coolroom shopify here: https://the-coolroom-podcast.myshopify.com/products/rocky-ridge-mixed-6-pack

In this episode we meet the team and hear about the origin story of the brewery and the ethos that underpins all that they do. We learn about their core beers how they decide which beers make it into the range.

With beers like these there is plenty of hop nerd talk as we taste two versions of the same beer, one made with hop pellets and one made with hop liquid.

Stay tuned for the second part of their visit in the next episode!

245 - Kenzo Crawl - Bonehead, Bakery Hill & Nubilum Distilling

To celebrate the 6th birthday of the podcast Davydd and Warren head off to join the new Kenzo Crawl which winds through the streets of Kensington from Bakery Hill, to Nubilum Distilling and finally finishing up with our old friends from Bonehead Brewing.

We learn all about the emerging hospo scene in Kensington, the different collaborations between the 3 venues and what they hope it will bring to the area. 

At Bakery Hill we sip their new blended Whisky and hear why they decided to produce this style for the first time and what they hope this will do for the brand.

At Nubilum we meet Elle and Andrew and learn what brought both of them into the Nubilum family and why they're looking forward to the looming "10 Days of Grappa"!

And we finish up on the big stage with the smoke machines at Bonehead Brewing with Anthony and Travis. We learn about what has changed and what's stayed the same over the many years since the first time they appeared on the podcast and what keeps them excited and motivated to stay in the industry.

You can learn more about Bonehead's "Lighter Than You Think" mid-strength dark and the mental health resources funds raised from its sales contribute to here: https://www.boneheadbrewing.com.au/pages/lighter-than-you-think

And to learn more about joining the Kenzo Crawl go here: https://www.nubilum.com.au/kenzo-crawl

244 - Dangerous Ales Pt 2

It's the second part of our interview with Damien from Dangerous Ales as we indulge in the Dead Man Tell No Tales Imperial Chocolate Rum n Raisin Stout.

You can grab that all the beers we discussed in episode 243 with Damien at our online store here: https://the-coolroom-podcast.myshopify.com/products/dangerous-ales-mixed-6-pack

In this episode we hear all about the process Damien went through when stepping up to the production brewery, which new brewing products excite him and what he's experienced inside coolrooms.

We get some excellent audience questions and even have to delete a little bit of the interview just so no one gets into any trouble!

243 - Dangerous Ales Part 1

Davydd and Warren catch up with Damien from Dangerous Ales to chat about some amazing beers and hear the story of his journey in brewing.

You can buy the beers that accompany this podcast from our online store here: https://the-coolroom-podcast.myshopify.com/products/dangerous-ales-mixed-6-pack

Warren kicks off with trying to do a little podcast banter before we dive into the core range and a discussion of Damien's transition from chef to brewer and what made him so "dangerous" in the first place.

Then it's time for Warren to pronounce "Nelson Ha Ha" and to discuss both the fantastic art on the outside of the can and the unique way that the nelson sauvin presents inside.

We hear Damien's advice for home brewers, his favorite piece of equipment and all about the importance of avoiding making boring generic beers.

Stay tuned for part 2 of his visit soon!

242 - Bendigo on the Hop - King River, Bendigo Brewing, Brewers Collective & Coconspirators

A special episode featuring interviews from our visit to the 2024 Bendigo on the Hop Festival - a huge thanks to the BOTH team for inviting us up and helping us to organise some super fun interviews. 

We kick off with Brett from the Brewers Collective, hearing not just what they have planned for the festival but all about his journey from barman to helping to run a brewery and venue!

Then it's off to the Cambrian's headquarters in the centre of town to chat with Maggie from Co-conspirators about "The Ringleader" and to learn a few secrets about what they have planned for spring and summer [that she probably shouldn't have revealed just yet...]

Next is our first ever visit to Bendigo Brewing where we meet Head Brewer Evan Hunter inside a pagoda! We hear all about his journey to Bendigo and truly hectic week getting everything ready to be open for the festival.

Finally the tradition of bad audio for an interview with King River's Nathan Munt continues - if you listen closely you can hear him apologise for the audio from the last time he was on the show and perhaps a big scoop about future plans!

241 - Duncan's Brewing Pt 2

It's the second part of our discussion with Duncan's Brewing and Ian McNally is still with Davydd to add to the hijinks!

Make sure you check out our previous episode 240 for the start of the conversations and grab the accompanying tasting pack from our online store: https://the-coolroom-podcast.myshopify.com/products/duncans-mixed-6-pack

In this episode Llew Bardecki shares more of the behind the scenes stories from Duncan's and of his own experiences in craft brewing including the extraordinary lengths the brewery goes to to make their fresh hopped beers.

We learn about memorable mistakes, fun times in cool rooms and have a thorough discussion about 80s rock stars called Brett.

240 - Duncan's & Melbourne Drinking History Tours

Davydd is joined first by Desmond from Melbourne's Drinking History Tours, then the inimitable Ian McNally for the first of two episodes featuring Duncan's Brewing Company.

Make sure you grab the tasting pack that accompanies today's episode from our online store: https://the-coolroom-podcast.myshopify.com/products/duncans-mixed-6-pack

Desmond shares a fun taster of what a tour with Melbourne Drinking History Tours involves, including some of his current favorite Melbourne bars, a brief history of some famous establishments and even a ghost story or two.

We'd love to hear from listeners which pubs and bars around Melbourne you'd like to hear more stories about!

Then Ian McNally enters the Thursday zoom room for a chat with George and Llew from Duncan's about their approach to sour beers, the benefits and challenges of being based in New Zealand and lots and lots of hop talk!

239: Obsidian Beer Festival feat. Hawkers, Dollar Bill, Good Knight and Aunty Jacks

Davydd is joined by "rival podcaster" Ian McNally for an amazing day at the inaugural Obsidian Dark Beer Festival in Ballarat. 

They are joined by a stellar line up of brewers who are all at different stages of their journeys and with a range of insights into what's happening in the Australian craft beer industry. 

Joe from Good Knight and Matt from Aunty Jacks tell us everything that's happening in the Ballarat Beer Scene at the moment, what got them interested in brewing and the beer styles they love the most. 

Maz from Hawkers joins us to reveal the non-Hawkers beer he keeps in his fridge, some of his first experiences with selling beer in Lebanon and what's wrong with the government's approach to the craft beer industry.

Finally we're joined by Ed from Dollar Bill who shares a couple of amazing beers and tells us all about how they made and what makes a good sour beer. And we hear the very latest about their plans to open their own venue in Ballarat!

A huge thank you to Tom and the team from the Obsidian Dark Beer Festival - if you missed this year's event make sure you grab your tickets early next year!

238 Holgate Pt 2 & The Australian Tax Office

It's the second part of our online tasting with Paul Holgate and Chris Brady from legendary Australian brewery Holgate! But before we get to that we also have the ATO's answers to the questions you submitted to us!

Don't forget you can grab the beers we discuss with Holgate from our website here: https://the-coolroom-podcast.myshopify.com/products/holgate-mixed-6-pack

Paul and Chris share their approach to barrel-aging beers and why they choose to use local barrels, we learn all about the beer they've collaborated on for Bendigo on the Hop, the challenges of making 25 special beers to celebrate 25 years of brewing and what "beery mountains" they still have to climb.

Oh, and they tell us all about their 125 year old Coolroom!