Brewing boundaries: Brewery's latest product shakes up beer scene with unconventional ingredient
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Breweries are increasingly adopting unconventional and environmentally friendly materials and manufacturing techniques to differentiate themselves in a competitive industry.
Craft beer aficionados and the simply curious are buzzing about a new brew that's pushing the boundaries of innovation and sustainability.
South Australia's Robe Town Brewery has taken a bold step into uncharted territory by introducing a beer that incorporates an ingredient few would ever expect.
The brewery's newest offering, appropriately dubbed ‘Holy Smokes!’, exemplifies the extent to which some brewers will go to distinguish themselves in a saturated market, as evidenced by their use of camel dung in the production of this unique beverage.
However, before you turn up your nose at the thought, let's delve into the story behind this unconventional concoction.
Holy Smokes! was inspired by a neighbouring camel farm known as Humpalicious.
‘When I befriended the people that run the local camel dairy, I wanted to make a beer from something with the camels,’ Maris Biezaitis, the Owner and Head Brewer at Robe Town Brewery, shared.
‘I was racking my brain for quite a few weeks and eventually realised just about the only thing I could use from the camel to make a beer is the dung.’
The process of creating this beer is as fascinating as it is eco-friendly. The brewery feeds leftover grain to the camels, and the resulting dung is collected and used as fuel to smoke the malted barley.
‘There might be people out there that smoke their brisket with some birch wood chips or cherry wood chips, but we smoke malt with camel-dung,’ Mr Biezaitis shared.
‘People have been cooking with dung for thousands of years … it is a natural fuel source for cooking.’
However, before you start imagining a beer that tastes like a camel, rest assured that the end product is dung-free and doesn't carry any hint of the animal itself.
According to Mr Biezaitis, ‘I think the flavour is something akin to a peat-smoked malt.’
‘Actually, I was quite surprised to find how little camel flavour there is.’
The innovative Holy Smokes! will make its debut at the upcoming Great Australian Beer Spectacular, where it will join around 100 other new beers.
‘The concept is a bit of a hook to pique interest, and a bit of a “wow” factor,’ Mr Biezaitis pointed out.
It's part of a growing trend of unusual beers that have been gaining popularity, including flavours like chicken salt beer, beetroot and ginger sour beer, and even a frog cake ale inspired by a beloved South Australian dessert.
Steve Brockman, the Independent Brewers Association SA chapter lead, noted that breweries are constantly experimenting with new ingredients to stay competitive.
‘The beer industry is hurting a bit at the moment—transport costs have gone up and brewing costs have gone up,’ he stated.
‘So sometimes you might need a little bit of a gimmicky beer just to get people in the door.’
‘They're always trying to find a different ingredient to stand out.’
‘We're also seeing a real push from customers out there for some sort of local … ingredients being put in their beer,’ Mr Brockman added.
As craft brewers continue to push the boundaries of innovation in the beer industry, one South Australian brewery's unconventional approach has garnered widespread attention.
However, amidst this spirit of experimentation, smaller breweries across Australia find themselves facing a different challenge: the dominance of overseas beer giants in local pubs and venues.
This discrepancy in market power raises questions about the future of independent brewers and their ability to compete in an increasingly globalised industry.
Would you be willing to try a beer smoked with camel dung? What are your thoughts on the growing trend of unusual beers? Have you tried one yourself?
It's certainly a conversation starter and perhaps a bucket-list item for the more adventurous beer lovers. Share your thoughts and stories in the comments below!
Craft beer aficionados and the simply curious are buzzing about a new brew that's pushing the boundaries of innovation and sustainability.
South Australia's Robe Town Brewery has taken a bold step into uncharted territory by introducing a beer that incorporates an ingredient few would ever expect.
The brewery's newest offering, appropriately dubbed ‘Holy Smokes!’, exemplifies the extent to which some brewers will go to distinguish themselves in a saturated market, as evidenced by their use of camel dung in the production of this unique beverage.
However, before you turn up your nose at the thought, let's delve into the story behind this unconventional concoction.
Robe Town Brewery in South Australia brewed ‘Holy Smokes!’, utilising camel dung to smoke malted barley. Credits: Facebook / Robe Town Brewery
Holy Smokes! was inspired by a neighbouring camel farm known as Humpalicious.
‘When I befriended the people that run the local camel dairy, I wanted to make a beer from something with the camels,’ Maris Biezaitis, the Owner and Head Brewer at Robe Town Brewery, shared.
‘I was racking my brain for quite a few weeks and eventually realised just about the only thing I could use from the camel to make a beer is the dung.’
The process of creating this beer is as fascinating as it is eco-friendly. The brewery feeds leftover grain to the camels, and the resulting dung is collected and used as fuel to smoke the malted barley.
‘There might be people out there that smoke their brisket with some birch wood chips or cherry wood chips, but we smoke malt with camel-dung,’ Mr Biezaitis shared.
‘People have been cooking with dung for thousands of years … it is a natural fuel source for cooking.’
However, before you start imagining a beer that tastes like a camel, rest assured that the end product is dung-free and doesn't carry any hint of the animal itself.
According to Mr Biezaitis, ‘I think the flavour is something akin to a peat-smoked malt.’
‘Actually, I was quite surprised to find how little camel flavour there is.’
The innovative Holy Smokes! will make its debut at the upcoming Great Australian Beer Spectacular, where it will join around 100 other new beers.
‘The concept is a bit of a hook to pique interest, and a bit of a “wow” factor,’ Mr Biezaitis pointed out.
It's part of a growing trend of unusual beers that have been gaining popularity, including flavours like chicken salt beer, beetroot and ginger sour beer, and even a frog cake ale inspired by a beloved South Australian dessert.
Steve Brockman, the Independent Brewers Association SA chapter lead, noted that breweries are constantly experimenting with new ingredients to stay competitive.
‘The beer industry is hurting a bit at the moment—transport costs have gone up and brewing costs have gone up,’ he stated.
‘So sometimes you might need a little bit of a gimmicky beer just to get people in the door.’
‘They're always trying to find a different ingredient to stand out.’
‘We're also seeing a real push from customers out there for some sort of local … ingredients being put in their beer,’ Mr Brockman added.
As craft brewers continue to push the boundaries of innovation in the beer industry, one South Australian brewery's unconventional approach has garnered widespread attention.
However, amidst this spirit of experimentation, smaller breweries across Australia find themselves facing a different challenge: the dominance of overseas beer giants in local pubs and venues.
This discrepancy in market power raises questions about the future of independent brewers and their ability to compete in an increasingly globalised industry.
It's certainly a conversation starter and perhaps a bucket-list item for the more adventurous beer lovers. Share your thoughts and stories in the comments below!
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