MARIS Biezaitis is living the dream of millions of beer lovers – making a living from brewing his own.
At Robe Town Brewery, he is doing it the traditional way, with a wood-fire kettle, oak barrel mash tuns, straw filter beds and open fermentation.
The small rustic brewery, opened 18 months ago by Maris and his wife Kristi, has quickly become a major tourist attraction in the seaside village.
The “slow brewed” craft beers are on the menu of many of the licensed cafes and restaurants in Robe and throughout the Limestone Coast. It is also distributed in Adelaide and Melbourne.
Each beer has a unique flavour, including the popular Shearer’s Joy Farmhouse Ale – a partial sour mash of malted barley and potatoes, lightly flavoured with homegrown hops, ginger and wild horehound.
“It’s an old slang name for beer from the colonial era and I’ve used ingredients and techniques that would have been used then to make a beverage for farmers and labourers,” he said.
Three years ago Maris began “gypsy brewing” pale and amber ales at microbreweries in Ballarat, Vic, and Adelaide.
After initial success, the couple launched the unique brewhouse in an old fish factory on the outskirts of Robe in early 2015.
Many microbreweries are located in or near major cities but the couple “fell in love” with Robe.
“There is a really diverse mix of friendly people who live and work here and amazing natural surroundings with the beaches, Little Dip Conservation Park and the vineyards,” he said.
They have also revived some of the town’s history at the brewery.
Prominent citizen George Lord Snr operated a brewery by the same name in the 1860s, when Robe was a bustling export port, although for unknown reasons it was a short-lived venture.
Maris admits its has been a “major learning curve” starting a business on a shoestring budget, but it has been very enjoyable experimenting with recipes.
The business is beginning to turn a profit.
“We started from very small beginnings but we have tripled our output in the first year and again in the second and third year,” Maris said.
Robe Town Brewery is at full capacity, producing up to 900 litres a week, but in the next six months the couple has expansion plans of a bigger kettle and faster water purification system.
Maris is conscious of maintaining the personal touch, keeping batches less than 1000L.
“There is a lot of energy and love that goes into it and hopefully that comes out in the beer.”
The brewery has released two new beers in time for the summer rush.
The Little Wild Muntrie is a light, tart sparkling ale made with a sour malt mash and locally grown native berries, while The Moon Hop is a fruity pale ale.
Maris says the beers are mostly inspired by old-style recipes with a “modern twist”.
The malt is sourced from a Melbourne maltster, which includes SA barley.
In future Maris hopes to use some locally-grown barley and even hops.
“It is not every season barley can make malting grade, but there is a local farmer growing it this season that we can hopefully get some from,” he said. “Hops, which need a cool climate and fertile soils, could be grown in the area, too.”
Details: robetownbrewery.com