South West Beer Fest

February 3, 2012, by Crafty Pint

South West Beer Fest

All over the country in recent months, the people have been turning out in droves at beer festivals. Thousands upon thousands have rocked up to events from the Australian Hote’s annual beer festival in Sydney, the Tasmanian Beer Fest and Microbrew Fest, Ballarat’s inaugural Beer Fest, Perth’s first Craft Beer Showcase and many more.

And now it’s the turn of south west WA to show off its wares with the first South West Craft Beer Festival taking place in heart of the Margaret River region. Bringing together a dozen breweries and brewing companies – alongside food and live entertainment – it takes over the sprawling grounds of the 3 Oceans Palandri Estate winery grounds on the weekend of February 25 and 26. It’s a festival that’s been mooted by the region’s brewers for some time, but which has required the impetus of a marketing firm to get it up and running.

“Whenever we got our heads together, we’d say we must do this,” says Jeremy Good, co-owner of Cowaramup Brewery. “But then everyone would get tied up in their own brewery, so we needed someone to come along and organise it.”

Buzz Marketing stepped up to the plate and now they have 12 breweries and brewing companies taking up stalls for the weekend to show off their wares, plus one local cider maker.

“There are brewers from as far afield as the Moody Cow in the Ferguson Valley as well as locals like us, Bootleg, Colonial, Eagle Bay, Duckstein and, if they’re open in time, Cheeky Monkey,” says Jeremy. “It’s on a weekend that’s not traditionally that busy so hopefully the festival will draw a Perth crowd. I’ve heard quite a lot of locals talking about it too.”

While it’s known first and foremost as a wine region, the Margaret River is awash with breweries. There are those that are well established, such as Bootleg – now in its 18th year – and others, such as Eagle Bay, which opened just over a year ago in a superb hilltop setting overlooking the ocean. There are quirky venues, such as Bush Shack, which specialises in flavoured beers, and others with eyes fixed firmly on the traditional, such as Cowaramup with its focus predominantly on British ales and the likes of Colonial (pictured above) and Duckstein who specialise in German styles.

The team running the event, Buzz Marketing, specialise in events in the south west, including the Cape to Cape mountain bike event.

“We’ve met a lot of brewers at events and through talking to them knew that there was a need for a beer festival,” says Chloe Krushka, from Buzz. “They were all really keen on the idea. Palandri Estate has a huge lawn so is a perfect spot and is central for all of the breweries.”

This week, the organisers confirmed entertainment for the weekend, with Triple J Unearthed winner Split Seconds following up slots at the Laneway Festival with a Sunday appearance. On stage on Saturday are Kris Buckle, Paige Trantham, Ill Starred Captain, Dallas Royal, Juwana, New Soundland and local favourite Cowtown, while on Sunday you can also catch Kate Tillman, Qynn, Tank 7even, Polly Medlen and Minute 36.

The full list of beer and cider exhibitors is:

Bootleg
Cowaramup
Eagle Bay
Cheeky Monkey
Duckstein
Colonial
Bush Shack
Occy's
Moody Cow
Cape Bouvard Brewing Company
The Cidery
Margaret River Ale Company
Old Coast Road
Wild Bull

“The brewers here all get on and appreciate and acknowledge what everyone is trying to do,” says Jeremy. “Competition is healthy and this will give people the chance to experience what we are doing.”

Adult day passes are $25pp in advance, $35 on the door (if available). Sunday family passes cost $50 in advance, $60 on the door. It runs from 11am to 6pm on Saturday, 11am to 5pm on Sunday at 3 Oceans Palandri Estate on the Bussell Highway. There are shuttle buses running from Margaret River, Yallingup and Dunsborough. For more info or to book your tickets, head to the festival website. And look out for a review of the weekend on Crafty in the coming weeks.

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