In recent years, Australians looking to partake in Dry July while still enjoying a beer have enjoyed a far wider choice than ever before. 

Breweries have expanded their lineups to include non-alcs, several make nothing else, and you've even got the likes of the boundary-pushing Mash Gang, which launched in the UK but now has wings in the US and Australia.

In Ireland, anyone eager to cut back on booze can turn towards Fierce Mild. The brewing company launched just a few months back and, while Irish and led by locals Cathal Byrne and Fergal Carroll (pictured above left and right), there’s an Australian connection at the heart of the operation.

Ferg’s face will be familiar to many Melbourne beer drinkers, particularly if they have a fondness for hops: he joined the team at Fixation just as the IPA-focused brewery’s taproom opened in 2019.

While there, Ferg worked as the venue manager until he left Australia in 2021, after spending a decade in hospitality, including running restaurants and opening an Irish-style chippy in St Kilda.

“Food and beverage have been in my DNA,” he says. “From a young age, I’d cook for the family and be tasting wine – I had a serious interest in food and flavour.

“That’s why I stayed in Melbourne for ten years; for me, it just ticked all the boxes of what I liked.”

While in Melbourne, Ferg also developed a budding interest in the local beer scene and soon started homebrewing. Eager for a change from the fast-paced nature of restaurants, he started running bottleshop tastings for Moon Dog and Mountain Goat, which is where he met the man behind Fixation, Tom Delmont as he was working on the brewery's Incubator venue in Collingwood. 

“That’s when I went in and started working in the taproom there,” Fergal says. “It’s all grown from that.”

Indeed, Ferg’s involvement with beer has grown significantly and doesn’t just involve the launch of Fierce Mild. In 2021, he and his wife made the decision to move back to Ireland to be closer to family; now, as well as running Fierce Mild, he heads sales in Ireland and Europe for Loughran Brewing Supply. The company provides ingredients from around the world to craft breweries – much like Cryer Malt or Bintani do locally – which means Ferg’s life involves travelling to breweries to chat ingredients and beer.

The seed of an idea for Fierce Mild was planted when he was living in Australia and saw the rise of dedicated non-alc brewing companies here. In Ireland, most non-alcs are made by the major breweries and, when he and Cathal set out to create Fierce Mild, their aim was to develop full-flavoured offerings – “taking a stand against bland” with beers like their flagship Extra Pale Ale.

“Our beer is all about flavour and character,” Ferg says. "Over here, it’s really just Heineken Zero, Guinness Zero and Peroni Zero with a few craft imports.

“You get people who like bland and that’s fine, they’re not our target. You get the ones – as Tommy Delmont always says – who are the flavour chasers. That’s who we’re after.”

Ferg’s familiarity with Australian beer isn’t the only connection Fierce Mild shares with Australia; the team developed their recipe with another Fixation alumnus, Sam Bethune. Sam was the Incubator’s first head brewer and now works for Bintani where, like Ferg, he spends much of his time talking hops, yeast and malt and applying his technical brewing nous to trialing those ingredients.

“He’s been so great, he’s a close friend of mine, and he’s just given us such a great hand. He’s such a great technical brewer."

When it comes to non-alc beverages in Ireland, Ferg says there’s a long way to go. Beer drinking is on the decline there and, while alcohol-free is coming off a small base, it is growing yet has a long way to reach the European average.

But when it comes to early signs for their own brewing company, that future is certainly looking very bright. They’re only up to their second batch but they’ve already found plenty of customers across the country, including pubs and breweries keen to stock their beer.

“It’s not even sitting on shelves,” Ferg says. “It’s to on-premise and the repeat order is really high.”

Given the nature of their product, they've been working closely with tap stockists to ensure the beer is handled properly, including the team at one of his personal favourite haunts in Dingle, on Ireland’s southern coast.

“I have some venues on tap and I deliver to them myself, they keep it cold, and the lines are cleaned properly,” Ferg says.

“I’ve travelled five or six hours to the bottom of Ireland to drop off five kegs because it’s such a cool pub that’s really looking after the beer.”

When he makes that drive, naturally Ferg’s hoping the weather might be Fierce Mild: Irish slang that refers to a day being, well, quite mild and lovely.

So, while slang and accent both ensure you’re never going to miss Ferg’s ties to Ireland, his connection to the Australian craft beer industry runs deep. And, given he’s also an Australian citizen, we figured he fits perfectly into our Aussie Exports series.

So over to the man himself...  

Fergal Carroll

When did you move back to Ireland?

June 2021. I had been ten years away from Ireland and decided it was the right time to leave my adopted home of Melbourne. I live just outside of Dublin in a coastal village called Blackrock, Dundalk.

How long has Fierce Mild been in the works and where did the idea come from?

Work really started on Fierce Mild four years ago. The inspiration comes from the growing Australian non-alcoholic beer market and the innovation and quality coming out of it. This was coupled with a personal frustration with the lack of choice in the sleeping Irish non-alc market.

Who else is involved?

My old school friend and now brother-in-law Cathal Byrne, who looks after all things finance. 

What's your beer lineup like?

Fierce Mild Extra Pale Ale is the beer we hang our hat on. It is a recipe that has been carefully perfected and tweaked over many years alongside one of the best Australian brewers, and my very close friend, Sam Bethune.

The beer itself is an easy-drinking, refreshing hoppy ale. It's a very unique flavour profile that creates its own character and doesn't necessarily fit one category or style. In terms of expanding the range, we will continue to innovate and push the boundaries of non-alcoholic beer and see where that takes us.

How does the non-alcoholic beer market look in Ireland? Is there much interest from drinkers and retailers?

There is demand for non-alc – take a look here. 

A shift in consumer habits post-COVID has led to an increase in mindful drinking and moderation. Consumers are looking for an experience and something to remember. Social media has a big part to play too, with younger generations looking to remain in control online with cameras in their faces. They are prioritising not only physical health, but mental health also. This can only be a good thing. All of this creates the perfect storm for non-alc really!

We have a unique offering for pubs and restaurants to list us. We are Irish, independent, dedicated to one style, and actively challenging the blandness associated with the non-alcoholic beer sector. The reception for Fierce Mild has been beyond my highest expectations.

Is your focus with Fierce Mild just Ireland or other countries too?

Right now, our focus is on Ireland. We are only a few months in! 

The broader plan is to explore export markets across the EU. But for now we are focusing on quality and consistency of the product, coupled with sustainable growth.

How long were you in Australia? And did you find the Irish beer industry had changed a lot in your time away?

Ten years. I am a proud Aussie citizen. The Irish beer scene has shifted dramatically in my time away. The explosion of craft breweries during this time has been very noticeable but this growth has been suppressed slightly by the bigger macro players. 

They have a huge stranglehold in Ireland with a certain owner of the "black stuff" being the biggest roadblock to craft getting taps. On the plus side, being a member of the EU allows significant growth opportunities in export for Irish brewers. This is where the opportunity lies.

For non-alc in Ireland, multimillion PR marketing campaigns by "big beer " targeted at sport to avoid loopholes in regulation has resulted in a social acceptance and normalisation of non-alcoholic beer in the past four years. You no longer need an excuse. The smaller independent players in the non-alcoholic sector can only indirectly benefit from this which is fantastic. This has happened with sales of non-alcoholic beer growing last year by 18 percent and production surged by 50 percent in response to rising consumer demand. The market is up 100 percent in four years.

Alcohol consumption in Ireland was already at its lowest in 20 years back in 2021, having plummeted 33 percent since its peak of 2001.

Are you still paying close attention to the beer scene in Melbourne or Australia?

I am still keeping in touch with the Melbourne beer scene and was back to visit last year. It is a turbulent time for the industry for various reasons.

How about the wider beer scene in Ireland? Everyone knows Guinness, are there any other beer experiences people shouldn't miss when they visit?

Get down to Dick Mack's in Dingle County, Kerry, for a pint. It's an amazing little brewery and old pub: they only serve their beers on draught in the pubs of Dingle and have some of the best beers in Ireland.

Ireland's beer scene is small with around 120 breweries, but it is blessed with some very talented brewers who produce some of the best beer in the world.

You can check out other Aussie Exports features here. Know an Australian working in the beer industry elsewhere? Let us know.

About Will

Will Ziebell is a history graduate who knows more about The Wire than he does about beer. He was awarded the AIBA Best Media trophy for 2018; HBO have told him to please send his fan mail elsewhere. He can be found on Instagram, Twitter and TikTok.

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The beer(s) or moment(s) that turned you on to good beer:

Spending time living in the UK (and backpacking across Europe) when I was 21 certainly gave me a better understanding of the beer and different styles of the world. But I'd say it was a holiday to the High Country a little while later when lunch and a tasting paddle at Bridge Road Brewers created an obsession with Australian breweries and locally made beer.

You've got three beers to turn someone else on to good beer; what are they and why?

• Boatrocker's Miss Pinky: It's a raspberry-packed Berliner Weisse that neither looks or tastes the way many people conceive of beer.

• Bad Shepherd Hazelnut Brown: A luscious mix of chocolate and hazelnut that can appeal to the sweet tooth within us all.

• Stone & Wood Pacific Ale: As the father of my oldest friend once said to me: "It's the perfect refreshing pint that smells like they've loaded it with the God's herb."

The last beer you enjoyed:

Garage Project's DFA while sitting at the bar at Miss Moses as the sounds of The Rolling Stone drifting in the background.

Three things that represent you:

• Bruce Springsteen
• Ken Burns
• The State Library of Victoria

Articles by Will