Duncan Gibson & Sam Hambour have known each other a long time. Both are Kiwi winemakers, who met in that pursuit whilst working in Central Otago. It was there that they started brewing on a 100l kit at Peregrine Wines. Their respective winemaking careers took them around the world, before they both ended up in Victoria; Sam at Paringa Estate (Mornington Peninsula) & Duncan at Yering Station (Yarra Valley).
It didn’t take long for the pair to begin brewing together again & they began to formulate plans for what would eventually become Hop Nation. In May 2015 they took the plunge, venturing to the recently opened Hawkers Beer to take their homebrew to the next level. The Fiend, an Australian IPA, was launched to much fanfare with really fun labels. They had plans to continue winemaking, whilst pumping out some contract brews on the side with the idea to maybe open a small taproom down the line – but in November 2015 things changed quickly.
Brewery Type
Physical
Region
Western Suburbs
Tasting Room
6/107-109 Whitehall St, Footscray
Duncan received a call from back home in NZ. Sawmill were selling their 12hL kit in order to expand & if Duncan & Sam wanted it, it was theirs; assuming they could pay for it! After begging their bank manager, family & friends they scrounged enough cash to secure the brewhouse. Part of the deal they struck involved uninstalling the brewery, a task which fell to Duncan’s Dad! After 2 weeks of hard work the brewhouse was on it’s way to Melbourne & it’s eventual home in Footscray.
That home took some finding, but as anyone who’s visited will attest it was worth the effort! The brewery is housed in this wonderful old brick warehouse that dates back to the 1880’s! It has these enormous archways, which I assume at one point connected this section to other parts of the industrial complex, but have now been turned into a feature piece by a local artist, who has painted them to look like stained glass windows.
It’s no frills whilst retaining a nice industrial feel with metal drums & pallets being used for tables, whilst the bar is clad in wood from old pallets. They still rock a chalk board for the menu & there is only a 2ft high see through metal fence that separates the punters from the stainless steel & barrels. They have a nice mezzanine level over to one side where you can really oversee the brewing area & take in how good the “stained glass windows” look.
I find it hard to believe that Hop Nation only opened 7 years ago; such has been their impact on the Australian craft beer landscape. Alongside their core brand which has expanded to the old Mornington Peninsula production brewery in addition to their Footscray home; they’ve launched Ray Hard Seltzer, Site (which takes the boys back to their roots in wine & wood fermentation in general), Zymurgy (a food focused bar in West Footscray with Julian Hills) & Blobfish (a sour beer festival).
I wouldn’t be being true to myself if I didn’t talk about the one & only Rat Dog here. Rattenhund was initially planned to be a one & done limited edition beer & was named after one of their brewers’ Italian Greyhound. Such has been it’s popularity that it has become a core range beer, not ideal for a beer that needs 8 weeks lagering! Simply put; it’s the best Pilsner made in Australia!
Remember it’s always Beer O’Clock somewhere in the world!
