Fathers' Day...

In Australia, the first Sunday in September is Fathers' Day. And so it was that DsD1 and her partner gave DH 2 tickets for a tour of micro brewery, 'Brews Brothers' at East Brisbane. There are a number of these small boutique breweries spread throughout Brisbane, where small batches of some quite 'adventurous' beers and ciders are brewed. Customers range from private bars, restaurants and individuals. We travelled on public transport which is encouraged by the owners of Brews Brothers, as they are very generous with the sampling throughout the 2 hour tour. When we arrived there were quite a few other people there, also doing the evening's tour.
Many years ago I toured the Castlemaine Perkins Brewery in Milton with my first husband, who worked for the company that printed all the labels for that very large brewery. So this micro brewery was going to be a lot different from that experience. It was like visiting old friends who did some home brewing in their garage/shed; it was very relaxed and the staff very welcoming. :-)
But no prizes for interior decorating! lol

This lady preferred to sit quietly with her mobile phone...

  DH enjoying his first sample...

I tentatively chose a Pear and Strawberry cider...it was a really nice drink...not too sweet and not too gassy.

And pretty soon, the cider was all gone!

This young man worked so hard during the evening...he spent the time running between all these steel 'cookers'. All the ingredients were  already measured and set out ready to be added at the appropriate time. he was doing some orders for people who wanted particular beers brewed for them...

The man in the checked shirt was a customer who had ordered a special brew with honey...he kept a close eye on the brewer...

This was the 'boss' and our tour guide for the night...

Here he is demonstrating adding the yeast mixture...

Looking the length of the room from the other side of those steel cookers...

In the fermenting room...

In the cold room, where the beer goes after fermentation is finished and before bottling...

Looking up, you can see the Blues/Brews Brothers...

Lots of 'kitsch' and beer memorabilia decorated the rooms...coasters, cans and mugs..

 Beer glasses etc....

The tour also included a 'Sausage Sizzle', which featured delicious sausages. My sweet husband took me along with him that night (instead of taking a male friend as suggested by DsD1) but I didn't do justice to the beer tasting opportunities that were offered, preferring to just have a sip of DH's...but it was still an enjoyable, and different evening...a great Fathers' Day gift!