By Clyde Mooney
A Sydney brewery has bucked the Australian norm and is packaging its range of craft beers and cider in cans rather than bottles.
The Australian Hotel & Brewery (AHB) head brewer Neal Cameron has equipped the AHB's onsite brewery with a canning operation, an industry first among Australia's smaller craft brewers.
Speaking to TheShout, AHB beer ambassador David Ward said the decision ticks several boxes for the brewer.
“We have gone with cans because they preserve beer for longer and are less susceptible to oxygen during the sealing process,” he said.
“They also leave a smaller environmental footprint, which is something in which we pride ourselves in our operation.”
Stefanie Collins, editor of Beer & Brewer magazine, told TheShout cans are taking off in North America's thriving craft beer sector.
"Well-loved craft brands like Brooklyn Brewery are now producing bottles and cans, while Boston Brewery (makers of Samuel Adams) has begun to investigate the process, despite strong initial opposition from the founder Jim Koch," she said.
"Canning also opens up a whole new market for craft brewers, such as sports stadiums and airlines, which would previously have been impossible due to bans on glass vessels."
The AHB in Rouse Hill has been honoured with a string of awards in its opening two years and now boasts around 50 tap outlets on the east coast.
For more from the interview with David Ward, see this month’s ‘Leaders Forum’ edition of Australian Hotelier.