Footscray locals have access to the Best Amber ale, right around the corner.
On Thursday, May 26, the Australian International Beer Awards took place and local brewer ‘Hop Nation’ won Best Amber / Dark Ale for The Buzz.
Hop Nation have been brewing in Footscray for over 6sox years, and favour hop-forward styles and experimenting with a range of ingredients.
Brewer Sam Hambour, the general manager and founder of Hop Nation, said the night was full of celebrations.
“The atmosphere at work today has been great, everyone was really excited,” he said.
Sam and business partner Duncan Gibson created the recipe for the ale in 2014.
It was the second recipe they ever created and has been a fan favourite ever since,” Sam said.
“It has now won its second trophy in three years so it’s great to see it is still enjoyed.”
“…It’s a really well balanced beer that ticks a lot of boxes.”
“It always kicked along for us, it’s really popular for this time of year as a dark wintery beer.”
Hop Nation also won five different gold medals on the day, with a total of 13 medals across the board.
“It’s a nice bit of recognition for the hard work, it’s always been reasonably popular in both can and keg,” he said.
Celebrating the 30-year anniversary of the awards in 2023, the Melbourne Royal Australian International Beer Awards is the largest annual beer competition in the world assessing both draught and packaged beer.
This year, the awards featured 75 judges from around Australia and abroad critique 2826 entries from over 400 exhibitors from 21 countries.
Jennifer Pittorino
