The Goldmines is one of those classic Aussie hotels that just oozes history. Upon pulling up outside it for the first time, British beer writer Pete Brown was moved to describe it as “an American Wild West saloon trying to disguise itself as a wedding cake”. Yet, as with many classic hotels, it had been struggling in recent years, going through a number of owners without ever really getting anywhere.

Then along came Fatty Anderson and Natalie Walduck, landing in Bendigo from the Mornington Peninsula with bright ideas and plenty of desire. Their arrival coincided with that of Bendigo Beer, the craft beer lovers on a mission to being quality beer to the city, and suddenly a change was underway. Beers from small Victorian breweries began appearing alongside the bigger boys behind the bar, people turned out in the droves for beer events and the Goldmines was reborn.

It hasn’t just been the beer offering that’s undergone a change, however. The beer garden had become a wild, overgrown jungle in the 12 months the pub was closed. So, while they went through the red tape required before opening in the middle of 2011, the couple brought in help from friends and family to turn it into what must be one of the best and prettiest beer gardens in the state. They also refurbished the courtyard and added a deck at the rear too.

The courtyard now hosts regular acoustic gigs (with Fatty not averse to picking up his guitar), with the aim being to foster more live music, and there are plans afoot to turn one of the storage rooms into B&B accommodation.

As Fatty says: “Our philosophy is to provide people with a good time, good beer and good food, but without being over the top and fancy, ‘cos that’s not what we are about. If we can continue to do that every week and make this historical hotel a 'destination’ rather than just a ‘local pub’ then I’ll be stoked.”