History + Beer = A Great Date Night

In my opinion, you have a good thing going for you when your boss likes beer as much as you do. Ryan and his boss, Howard not only brew beer together, but also occasionally meet up for a beer at a local brewery. Last night, Ryan and I met up with Howard and Marg at the Platform Bar in downtown Brisbane to celebrate the end of the work week.

The Platform Bar is located at Brisbane's Historic Grand Central Hotel which is adjacent to the Central Station Railway Station, first opened in 1899. The back wall of the bar runs parallel with the train rails, and from your table you can watch the trains cruise past through narrow windows that have been built into the back wall. Hence the name "Platform Bar".



There have, of course, been renovations done over the years. Today, there is a combined sense of history, as well as stunning decor. Not to mention, Brisbane's best handcrafted beer list. There are over 50 to choose from, many of which are on tap.



We enjoyed a few beers and chips. My favorite was the Pale Ale.



It's always great to hang out with Howard and Marg. But, perhaps meeting up at a historic watering hole makes it even better!!

Return to BrewsBrothers

Last month, I went with Ryan and Howard to a local brew on premise facility called BrewsBrothers where they brewed an IPA (pictures of the brewing are in an earlier blog). For the past four weeks, we've been waiting for the yeast to ferment, so that we could return to bottle the beer. Ryan bought a couple of small kegs in the States and we were going to get to use kegs this time instead of bottles. Unfortunately, one of the kegs cracked in transport and we ended up having to bottle half of our portion of the beer. It was interesting seeing the entire process of beer making from brewing to bottling. Here are a few of the pictures of the "bottling" process.

Where the brewing happened 4 weeks ago


The bottling station


The refrigerator where the kegs are kept during fermentation


more kegs


The capping tool


Sterilizing the kegs


Checking the keg for leaks... found a crack! Ugh!


Our keg of IPA


Ryan pouring the first of it


Ryan pouring and Howard capping the bottles... they had quite an assembly line going!


Howard using the capping tool


Cheers to our first pint of IPA


Our frig after we got home with our beer

BrewsBrothers and Beer Snobs

Before last July, I was under the assumption that beer was beer. Stocking my refrigerator with Coors Light or Corona was normal. In fact, that's what I grew up on.... a frig full of Coors Light for Dad. However, after being introduced to the world of "real" beer last summer, I've quickly become what some would call "a beer snob". Long gone are the days when I would actually enjoy a beer made in the Rocky Mountains. Instead, I have moved on to more flavorful, full-bodied beers. Beers you won't find in a silver can, rather beers that have been brewed and bottled for longer than the United States has been a country. My favorite being Belgian beers.

Last summer, when I arrived at Ryan's apartment in Australia, he offered me a beer. I had been awake and traveling for about 24 hours and a beer sounded fabulous. Inside his refrigerator was no fewer than 50 homebrewed beers. He and his boss, Howard, had gone to a local brew on premise facility and had brewed a Begian Triple. That was the beginning of my cheap beer demise!

Ryan's refrigerator the day I arrived last July


Since then, Ryan and Howard have returned to BrewsBrothers every few months. They spend a couple of hours brewing the beer and then eagerly wait four weeks for the yeast to do its thing. At which time, they return to bottle it and bring home the gold. During the four week fermentation, it is kept in a refrigerated environment inside of a keg.

BrewsBrothers


Where the brewing takes place!



This past week, I accompanied them to BrewsBrothers to watch the process. This time, they made an IPA ~ India Pale Ale. In four weeks, we will return and I'll see how they bottle it. Except this time, Ryan will put his share in two 2.5 gallon kegs that he bought while in the States this past January.

Ryan measuring the liquid malt extract


Measuring the corn sugar


Discussing the recipe


Primary source for inspiration


Stiring the malt extract and dextrose into the boiling water


Adding the specialty grains


Adding one of the four kinds of hops

All Dressed Up at the Breakfast Creek Hotel

Yesterday was another fun day in Oz. I've been here for a week and a half and I've worn nothing but sundresses the entire time. The hot, humid weather here makes wearing anything else less than comfortable. Sundresses are definately going to be the thing to wear in the next few months. Because I owned only a handful of dresses, it was clear that I was going to need to go shopping. Poor me! So, yesterday I took a city ferry across the river to the Queen Street Mall. It's an outdoor shopping area a short walk from the pier. I've noticed that things in Australia are more expensive than in the States. In Australia, it's not uncommon to pay $40 a plate for dinner or several hundred dollars for a pair of jeans. So, you can imagine my surprise when I discovered several holiday sales still going on. I spent a couple of hours browsing the stylish tropical metropolis where, in the end, I not only bought 6 dresses but also enjoyed a mug of flat white ~ a coffee lover's dream!

After returning home, Ryan and I decided to go out to dinner to my favorite restaurant in Brisbane, The Breakfast Creek Hotel. It's a refurbished building that was built in 1889. It now makes the most of its exposed brick walls, soaring ceiling and wharehouse feel. There are no waiters or waitresses. Instead, guests approach a butcher case, which houses several cuts of raw steak, where they order their choice cut. After the meal is prepared, guests return to the pick up counter to retrieve their meal which includes salad and either a baked potato with bacon sauce or chips (fries). It sounds semi-formal, but on the contrary, it's a pretty fancy place. We've been twice before when I visited in July, and both times were after long days at the beach. There is no dress code. However, compared to the other diners I felt underdressed. This time, I was prepared. After all, I had just purchased 6 new sundresses. Ryan and I both dressed up and had a fantastic dinner of New York Steak and Striploin.

Breakfast Creet Hotel in Brisbane, Australia