- Local Loves
What the locals are loving: Range Brewing
This cult Brisbane craft brewery has made its name focusing on innovation and creativity.
When mates Matt McIver and Gerard Martin first started tossing around ideas for a brewery, they landed on a theme that would guide them right to the top of Australia’s craft beer industry. “We started out with the mantra of ‘forever exploring, forever evolving’,” Matt says. “We were excited by trying new things and exploring how we could make beer and what we could use at that time – and we still are.”
Staying true to this philosophy has seen Range Brewing develop a cult following for its wide range of modern, innovative beers since it opened in Brisbane’s Newstead five years ago. “We’re always trying to think of new ideas that will engage our customers and bring a different experience to drinking,” Matt says. “We want it to be enjoyable and engaging for people.” Bouncing from hazy pale ales to sours to stouts on a weekly basis has also attracted some exciting opportunities. Range often works with suppliers to test out new hops technologies and yeast strains in its boundary-pushing brews. “It’s a lot of work, creating new products all the time, but it’s actually allowed us to learn a crazy amount in the last five years,” explains Gerard. “It’s a lot of fun for our brewers and everyone who works for us.”
Laying the groundwork
When mates Matt McIver and Gerard Martin first started tossing around ideas for a brewery, they landed on a theme that would guide them right to the top of Australia’s craft beer industry. “We started out with the mantra of ‘forever exploring, forever evolving’,” Matt says. “We were excited by trying new things and exploring how we could make beer and what we could use at that time – and we still are.”
Staying true to this philosophy has seen Range Brewing develop a cult following for its wide range of modern, innovative beers since it opened in Brisbane’s Newstead five years ago. “We’re always trying to think of new ideas that will engage our customers and bring a different experience to drinking,” Matt says. “We want it to be enjoyable and engaging for people.” Bouncing from hazy pale ales to sours to stouts on a weekly basis has also attracted some exciting opportunities. Range often works with suppliers to test out new hops technologies and yeast strains in its boundary-pushing brews. “It’s a lot of work, creating new products all the time, but it’s actually allowed us to learn a crazy amount in the last five years,” explains Gerard. “It’s a lot of fun for our brewers and everyone who works for us.”
At the brewery
Inside the Range taproom in the trendy suburb of Newstead on the Brisbane River you’ll find a contemporary, Scandinavian aesthetic thanks to Gerard’s background as an engineer for design company Vitsoe in London. Choose from the extensive roster of Range brews and settle into a booth among the tanks with a freshly made Roman-style sourdough pizza that’s as light and refreshing as the surrounds. “The Range taproom is the best place to drink a Range beer because it’s the beers’ spiritual home,” says Matt. “You really are right in the middle of where it gets made and where it gets packaged.”
In the spirit of its ‘always evolving’ philosophy, Range has just opened a new neighbourhood bar, Patio, around the corner in Paddington showcasing their beers alongside natural wines and cocktails, and an events venue, The Bethnal, next door to the brewery where they can host bigger groups and experiment with wild-fermented beers and barrel-aged stouts. You can also visit Range’s Melbourne outpost in Abbotsford, a lush, greenery filled space that reflects the brand’s Queensland roots.
Products featured are available from 02/08/23 to 05/09/23, while stocks last. Some products or varieties featured may not be available in all stores.
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