By Bec Cotton
Palais Imports is continuing to expand its product offering to meet strong demand for craft beer, with Italian brand AMA the latest addition to the portfolio.
The AMA beers are a collaboration between New York's Brooklyn Brewery and Italy's Amarcord Brewery, which produces the beers at its base in the small medieval town of Apecchio.
AMA Bionda, a Belgian-influenced blonde ale and the flagship beer of the range, is the first to arrive in Australia.
It will be followed in 2014 by the release of AMA Bruna – (7.5 per cent ABV Italian brown ale), AMA Mora (9 per cent coffee dark ale) and Riserva Special (10 per cent ABV American-style pale ale).
The AMA range, available in 330ml and 750ml bottles
Palais Imports owner Craig Jessup told TheShout he is confident that beers from Italian microbreweries like AMA will soon join mainstream beers like Peroni and Birra Miretti as staples in restaurants around the country.
“Australia has many Italian restaurants and as more and more restaurateurs and chefs discover just how well craft beer pairs with their food, the momentum will build – the potential is enormous,” he said.
Jessup said Palais Imports received the first shipment of Brooklyn Lager kegs three weeks ago and there is already a strong appetite for the new format, which can now be found at 12 permanent tap points around the country.
“There is a seemingly endless demand for craft beer in Australia at the moment, for both imported and locally brewed,” he said.