Independent Canberra liquor retailer Plonk has released a 15th Anniversary Winter Beer Box, full of exclusive collaborations with Australian breweries.
The box is the result of over a year’s worth of work, during which time Plonk partnered with six independent breweries from across the country. Plonk’s Owner, Anthony Young, spoke to National Liquor News about the mammoth task behind the box’s creation.
“At Plonk, we love supporting independent, family owned grog producers. We are independent and family owned ourselves, so naturally for our 15th birthday, we decided to partner up with some of our favourite independent Australian producers to brew our best-loved wintery beer styles,” he said.
“In June 2020 we realised that one of the stalwarts of the Australian beer scene, Bridge Road Brewers, was having their own 15th year, so we asked Ben and the team there if they’d like to brew a 100 per cent Barrel Aged Russian Imperial Stout. They suggested that they brew two beers for us, one aged in Corowa Whisky casks and the other in Warrabilla (Rutherglen) red wine Durif barrels.
“The finished beers are amazing. We then approached five other independently owned Australian breweries to join the party.”
Other breweries in the box include Prancing Pony, Thirsty Crow, Batch, Molly Rose and Pioneer, which all created something special for Plonk that also suited beer consumers’ winter tastes.
Young said: “We have been supporting all these breweries since they launched. We looked at the beer styles they do particularly well and asked them to brew something special for us, which they have done!”
A lot of work went into pulling together the box, however Young said all the brewery owners and teams were incredibly supportive. It’s been hard to get to some of the breweries in person due to COVID restrictions, but one of the highlights for the Plonk team during the development of the box was finally being able to travel to the Bridge Road brewery in Beechworth, Victoria, and sampling the imperial stouts directly out of the barrel.
While an incredible amount of work and collaboration has gone into crafting the exclusive winter beer box, the job is not over yet, with Young revealing that Plonk is now working on a 15th Anniversary Summer Beer Box too.
“This is one to keep an eye on as we have secured another six amazing independent, family owned Australian breweries to brew six classic beer styles for us,” Young said.
In the midst of the winter beer box release and the summer beer box development, National Liquor News asked Young how it felt to be celebrating such a great milestone, and what reflections he has about the journey so far.
“When my wife Liz and I started Plonk, our three boys were three, five and eight years old. Gus, Elliot and Louis now work in the business and that’s really rewarding. They constantly offer great suggestions on the direction we should take Plonk,” he said.
“Our staff, past and present, have been an amazing asset to us, they are knowledgeable, personable and incredibly willing to offer their tips on newly arrived products and food matching ideas.”
The exclusive Plonk 15th Anniversary Winter Beer Box retails for $79.90 and includes:
- 2 x Bridge Road BA Imperial Stouts 440mL (1 x Red Wine Barrel-Aged, 1 x Whisky Barrel-Aged) both (9.6 per cent ABV)
- 2 x Prancing Pony Black Double IPA 375 mL (eight per cent ABV)
- 2 x Thirsty Crow Chocolate Vanilla Milk Stout 375 mL (4.7 per cent ABV)
- 2 x Batch Double Milk Stout 375mL (seven per cent ABV)
- 2 x Molly Rose Belgian Dubbel 375mL (eight per cent ABV)
- 2 x Pioneer German Dunkel Weizen 375mL (five per cent ABV)
- 1 x Breweries tasting notes with exclusive videos from all the brewers
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