Good Beer Week: Bayside brewery Bad Shepherd gives beer festival a good nudge with new licorice ale

ONE of Bayside’s best brewers is lining up for another ale award with a dark licorice-linked beverage.

Dereck Hales pours a Bigsi’s Baltic Porter ahead of the Great Australian Beer SpecTAPular. Picture: Nicki Connolly

ONE of Bayside’s best brewers is lining up for another ale award with a licorice-linked beverage.

Cheltenham’s Bad Shepherd has entered a worker-inspired beer — named Bigsi’s Baltic Porter — in the Great Australian Beer SpecTAPular festival this weekend (May 19-21).

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It is one of hoppy, hopeful ales competing for the title of top tipple at the burgeoning beer event.

Head brewer Dereck Hales said it would be great if the new brew was voted people’s choice.

He said it was their take on a traditional Baltic porter, with key flavours and aromas such as old fashioned licorice, brown sugar with a dark fruit “ester”, and was toasty with dark chocolate notes.

They have previously won two state titles, including a gold medal for one of their hazelnut beers, and twice have been named among the top 100 craft ales in the country.

Mr Hales, a Canadian native, set up the Reserve Rd brewery and associated bar, which also serves food, in 2015 with wife Diti.

He said they had thrown everything they had at the fermenting venture, quitting their corporate jobs and sinking their life savings into it.

“It was just the right thing to do, something we wanted to put our heart and soul into,” he said,.

“We’re all about local; all our suppliers are within 5km of here, we invest back in our community with things like karma kegs, helping charities, and we support other Melbourne brewers wherever we can.”

This is the fourth time they have been part of the festival — twice with his own amateur ale, and now the second time with a Bad Shepherd entry.

“The festival is huge, it is pretty cool; I encourage everyone to go along and give it a try,” he said.

GABS is at the Royal Exhibition Building, Carlton from May 19-21 — go to gabsfestival.com for more information.