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Supplying Indie Brewers As An Indie Producer
One of the side benefits of the rise of craft beer in Australia has been the way it has brought other small – or craft, if you prefer – businesses to life alongside it. Sure, for most people who enjoy drinking the stuff, it's the liquid in their glass that matters most, then the brewers, venues and retailers bringing it to them next.
Over the years, however, we've witnessed and reported on the creation and evolution of all manner of operations that may not exist were it not for the potential customers out there: those have founded or work for the nation's indie brewers. There's the mobile canning operators, graphic designers able to focus on the craft drinks producers they love, producers of bespoke glassware, and so on.
Arguably, nowhere is this more true than in the world of ingredients. While the vast majority of malt, hops and yeast used by the nation's brewers still comes from the larger producers and suppliers – whether grown and sourced in Australia or overseas – there's a growing (sorry...) number of smaller operations dotted around the country.
People are having a crack at growing hops outside the country's traditional growing regions of High Country Victoria and Tasmania: in parts of New South Wales, South Australia, Western Australia and even Queensland. There are maltsters working with local farmers to bring heritage grain varieties back to life or provide small batch specialty options for brewers. And there are even those who have decided to dedicate their lives to providing Aussie brewers – pro and home – with local yeast too.
Derek Lacey belongs in the last of those categories. He's the former medical researcher who, while spending time as a stay-at-home dad, had a "Eureka!" moment that led to the creation of Melbourne-based Bluestone Yeast.
The business launched in 2018, providing local liquid yeasts for brewers, and has been growing ever since to the point that, at time of writing, Derek and his team are putting the finishing touches to a new, far larger production facility. Given said facility is around 800m from Crafty Towers, we felt it was the ideal time to invite him onto the show.
He joined us in the studio for a chat about how he came to swap medical research for his new career, the challenges and triumphs he and the brewers he works with have experienced along the way, what it's like operating as a small indie producer supplying craft brewers and those making beer in their homes, his future plans to diversify, and the lessons learned along the way.
As someone who was born in Ireland, albeit having moved to Australia as a child, he has the gift of the gab and shares as many stories as he does insight on life at a yeast manufacturing business. In the intro to this episode, we also discuss the latest news, including new openings and the ongoing travails of some local businesses.
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