Mountain Goat Beer

Mountain Goat Beer
Industry Alcoholic beverage
Founded 1997
Headquarters 80 North Street
Richmond, Victoria
Australia
Products Beer
Website www.goatbeer.com.au

Mountain Goat Beer is a microbrewery in Richmond, Victoria, Australia. The brewery was founded in 1997 by Cam Hines and Dave Bonighton, who continue to manage the company. The company's first commercial brew—'Hightale Ale'—was released in October 1997. Over 150 licensed venues supply the company's beers "on-tap" throughout Victoria (mainly concentrated in the suburbs of inner Melbourne), and retail distribution extends to every state and territory in Australia. The company also markets a cider under the Two Step brand.

History

The origins of Mountain Goat Beer date to the early 1990s, when co-founder Bonighton was homebrewing in his backyard in Elsternwick, Victoria, Australia. His friend and co-founder Hines was travelling in North America and he was struck by the range of micro-brewed beer available at the bars in Vancouver, Canada.[1] Both Bonighton and Hines were already homebrewers at this point in time.[2]

The pair then decided to start a brewing company and attempted to secure a bank loan with collateral that included surfboards and mountain bikes. After they were unable to borrow a sufficient amount of funding from a bank, friends and family assisted Bonighton and Hines to launch Mountain Goat.[2] Bonighton explained in a September 2012 interview:

We're a small brewery run by two former homebrewers who, for 15 years, have been making the kinds of beers that we like to drink. Most breweries brew to a formula, something born in a focus group or in a marketing team meeting. We come up with our ideas at the bar.[2]

Taste test

By September 1996, Mountain Goat beer was ready to taste-test three beers—The Leroy Brown Ale, Sheik-It-Out Stout and Golden Boy—at a gallery space in Melbourne. The success of this venture indicated to Hines and Bonighton that their original idea might be viable.

Scottish Chiefs and Grand Ridge

Lacking the money to invest in their own brewery, the first Mountain Goat beers were brewed using excess capacity first at the Scottish Chiefs brew-pub in Geelong and then at the larger Grand Ridge microbrewery in Mirboo North, Victoria[3] and in October 1997, Hightale Ale was commercially released.

Mountain Goat brewery

By 1999, the brewery was able to raise funds to move to their original premises in Crown St, Richmond, effectively relocating the equipment from the defunct brewing operations at the Geebung Polo Club in Hawthorn, Victoria.[4]

At the end of 2004, Mountain Goat beer moved to the much larger current premises, in North St, Richmond. The North St site is around 1200m2: a little over three times the size of the older brewery. In October, 2011, the brewery upgraded its brewing operation with the purchase of a brand new 25 hectolitre system from Canadian manufacturer, DME.

United States market

In 2011, the brewery began exporting to the United States (US) with an initial offering of the Hightail Ale and a re-work of their IPA (renamed as "Australian Pale Ale" for the US market).[5] Bonighton explained in September 2012 that due to the inspiration that he and Hines gained from US breweries prior to starting Mountain Goat, an expansion into the country's market seemed appropriate.[2]

Company structure

Mountain Goat Beer was purchased by Asahi in September 2015.[6]

Turnover

The brewery's turnover now exceeds A$1,000,000 per annum.

The brewery

The Mountain Goat brewery operates out of a converted red brick warehouse in the inner-city suburb of Richmond. The site is home to the brewing operation as well as sales, administrative and management staff.

As with an increasing number of microbreweries in Australia, the brewery is open to the public two nights a week, with a licence allowing them to sell liquor on-site. Their liquor licence also allows them to operate as a private function venue. Brewery tours are also offered.

The brewery has been widely promoted as a tourism attraction and has been featured in the Victorian Government's Beer Lover’s Guide to Victoria’s Microbreweries publication [7] and in television travel shows.[8]

Environmental credentials

Mountain Goat brewery has taken many steps to reduce - and in some cases eliminate - their impact on the environment.

Moving to new premises in 2004 gave the company the opportunity to set up the brewery with the environment in mind, from using recycled materials in their fit-out through to installation of solar panels and an 11,000-litre rainwater tank.[9]

Their seven solar panels came at cost of $15,000 (with the aid of a 50% government grant) and can pre-heat brewing water to around 55 °C, reducing the use of mains power, and it is estimated the brewery's use of collected rainwater saves approximately 250,000 litres of water annually.

The brewery also pH neutralises waste water and have all but eliminated steam and odour emissions that are a by-product of the brewing process.

The company operates an incentive scheme encouraging their staff to cycle to work as part of their environmental program. Each staff member is given a $200 subsidy each year for bike maintenance and equipment; and a further bonus of $1.50 for each day they ride to work, paid as part of the annual Christmas bonus.[10]

Beers

All Mountain Goat beers are vegan friendly[11]—no animal products are used in their production—and are free from preservatives and additives.

The regularly brewed beers and cider are available in 50-litre kegs as well as 330-millilitre brown glass bottles—or stubbies—for retail sale. The Organic Steam Ale and Hightail Ale stubbies are available in packaged lots of six—known in Australia as a six-pack—and a closed cardboard carton that consists of four six-packs—known in Australia as a slab—may also be purchased. The India Pale Ale and Two-Step Cider are packaged in four-packs, while a closed cardboard carton that consists of six four-packs may also be purchased.

Seasonal and one-off beers—known as 'Rare Breed' releases—are available in 50-litre kegs and are often bottled in longneck bottles that are 640ml. in quantity.

Regularly brewed beers

One-off and seasonal beers

One-off and season beers are known as 'Rare Breed' releases. Small batches, generally only available for a few months. Where collaboration is involved the releases are referred to as 'Cross Breed'.

The brewery rotates a series of "one-off" brews, generally only available on-site, at the brewery's own bar, but occasionally available both on tap at select outlets. Examples of these limited run brews have been:

Beers made in collaboration with other breweries but not bottled.

Cider

In late 2011, the brewery began to market an apple cider under the Two Step brand. The cider became widely available in early 2012 in 330ml bottles - interestingly with twist-tops.

Two Step cider has an alcohol content by volume of 5.0%.

Awards

Mountain Goat beers have found success at the Australian International Beer Awards and the brewery has been awarded the Premier's Trophy for Best Victorian Beer three times: twice for the Surefoot Stout (in 2004 and 2006), and most recently (in 2009) for Rapunzel.[12]

See also

References

  1. ↑ "Inside Business - 13/10/2002: Persistence pays for home-brewers with a dream". Abc.net.au. 2002-10-13. Retrieved 2013-08-19.
  2. 1 2 3 4 Erika Bolden (4 September 2012). "Q & A With Australian Brewery Mountain Goat Beer: Surfboards as Collateral + The Influence of American Craft Beer". LA Weekly. LA Weekly, LP. Retrieved 10 October 2013.
  3. ↑ "The Australian Good Beer Directory - Mountain Goat Beer". Goasdoue.com. 2000-04-15. Retrieved 2013-08-19.
  4. ↑ "The Australian Good Beer Directory - Geebung Polo Club". Goasdoue.com. 2000-02-18. Retrieved 2013-08-19.
  5. ↑ Tim Noetzel (4 June 2012). "Bringing Australian Beer to the US: Interview with Mountain Goat". BostInno. Streetwise Media. Retrieved 20 August 2012.
  6. ↑ http://www.smh.com.au/business/asahi-buys-australian-craft-beer-brewer-mountain-goat-20150928-gjwgxa.html
  7. ↑ "Beer Lovers Guide to Victoria's Microbreweries" (PDF). Victorian Association of Microbrewers. Retrieved September 2015.
  8. ↑ Archived 25 July 2008 at the Wayback Machine.
  9. ↑ "Cam Hines, Mountain Goat Brewery at the SCRT". YouTube. 2008-08-31. Retrieved 2013-08-19.
  10. ↑ Archived 15 September 2009 at the Wayback Machine.
  11. ↑ Jo; Damien (August 2007). "Vegan Beer" (Bulletin board discussion forum). Vegetarian Network Victoria Forum. phpBB Group. Retrieved 14 June 2013.
  12. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 The Royal Agricultural Society of Victoria Limited (2008–2010). "Past Results". The Royal Agricultural Society of Victoria Limited. The Royal Agricultural Society of Victoria Limited. Retrieved 20 August 2012.
  13. ↑ rick (12 September 2013). "THIRSTY THURSDAY: MOUNTAIN GOAT SUMMER ALE CANS". Smith Journal. Frankie Press. Retrieved 15 September 2013.
  14. ↑ Stephanie Collins (11 September 2013). "Goat now available in cans". The Shout. The Intermedia Group. Retrieved 15 September 2013.
  15. ↑ "When Worlds Collide". Crafty Pint. Retrieved 2013-08-19.
  16. ↑ "Mountain Goat Coffee IPA - Mountain Goat - Beer". Crafty Pint. Retrieved 2013-08-19.
  17. ↑ "Mountain Goat Black Pepperberry IPA - Mountain Goat - Beer". Crafty Pint. Retrieved 2013-08-19.
  18. ↑ Dave (25 June 2013). "Hopfweizenbock". Mountain Goat. Mountain Goat Beer. Retrieved 25 June 2013.
  19. ↑ "Trans-Tasman Beer Love". Crafty Pint. Retrieved 2013-08-19.
  20. ↑ "The Wheaty SchwartzHopf - Moo Brew (TAS) - Beer". Crafty Pint. Retrieved 2013-08-19.

External links

Coordinates: 37°49′0″S 145°0′45″E / 37.81667°S 145.01250°E / -37.81667; 145.01250

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