Have you ever wondered what it would be like if a trio of opera singers with more than 20 years of experience came together to create a beer review show? Of course not. But, if you had, you're in luck...
Such a thing already exists, and it does so here in Australia. After travelling the world together as part of The Ten Tenors, David Kidd, Stewart Morris and Dom Smith got the band back together to start The Beerstreet Boys, a YouTube show covering all things beer – with extras.
The idea originated from David's desire to have some sort of creative outlet during the shambolic year that was 2020, while also showcasing some of the great craft beers he had been enjoying.
“Towards the middle of the year I was just going stir crazy,” David says, laughing. “I was missing that ability to be creative. I would usually be out performing so I wanted to create something that would scratch that itch.
“Eventually, I just laid out the idea for The Beerstreet Boys to the lads and they loved it. We wanted it to be like someone had put a camera on us chatting away about beers at the pub.”
While the trio aren’t pretending to be experts by any means, they have witnessed the rise of craft beer culture both locally and internationally firsthand. While touring internationally with the Ten Tenors, they saw the beer landscape shift over the years, especially in America, where they spent long periods.
“I remember seeing craft beer really taking off while we were in America and we didn’t really know what to think,” David says.
“It was so different to what we were seeing elsewhere in the world... in Germany they were doing different beers but they were still traditional. All of it was so much of a departure from what we had here in Australia.”
Despite first noticing craft beer in its earlier stages, David admits his full embrace of the burgeoning industry in Australia has been a more recent adventure.
“I’ve only really been exploring what craft beer has to offer over the last three or four years," he says.
“2020 was a very big year for embracing craft beer for me because I wanted to support our local brewers who were hit so hard by the pandemic. The past year I’ve been drinking almost exclusively craft beer... it does feel good to know you’re supporting local businesses and it also just tastes so good.”
Filming their episodes at Stewart’s house in Mudgeeraba, Queensland, the trio have already produced an early catalogue of colourful content, ranging from reviews of ginger beers and pale ales and European classics, to deep dives on some of the best beers to enjoy over the summer months.
What makes them stand out from the crowd, however, is when they switch back to the talents that brought them together; who doesn't want to watch a tasting of Rodenbach beers with a delightful interlude featuring a cover of Dean Martin's Memories Are Made Of This?
“We’re performers in the end, it’s what we do,” David says. “We’re having so much fun with it, we just hope that people are enjoying it as much as we are.”
Above all, however, as well as having fun, the trio hope their show is accessible for the everyday beer drinker.
“We know that the craft beer industry can be intimidating at times,” David says. “There’s just so much to know and so much going on, it can be hard to actually get comfortable with what’s going on.
"We wanted our episodes to be easy to watch and easy to understand so that everyone can enjoy them."
You can check out the delights of The Beerstreet Boys here.