Australian Brewery beer is continuing its global export run with Japan, exceeding demand expectations with two large supermarket chains stocking the crafty product.
Working with highly respected Japanese importer Konishi, the brewery has added to its growing list of exporting nations of India, Singapore and Malaysia.
Brewed locally in Sydney’s west at the purpose-built Australian Hotel & Brewery, the brand successfully launched its line of craft beer at the Australian Embassy in Tokyo late last year.
Japan has proven a notoriously difficult market for Australian beer manufacturers to crack, but the decision by Konishi attracted over 100 media and business people to the launch event.
Konishi Brewing, a company that is over 500 years old, researches all its business decisions, with Mr Konishi visiting 40 different breweries in three visits to Australia in an effort to try and find the best beer to import, and be the first major craft brewer available to Japan.
The Australian Brewery said it had put a twist on each of the beers in its range, which are crafted around the international flavours and styles, to give them a “classic Australian taste”.
“We are always interested to see how international audiences respond to our taste in craft beer,” said Neal Cameron, Australian Brewery head brewer.
“We’ve had success at a number of international trade shows, but each country represents an entirely new audience. But based on what we have heard so far, we are confident that the flavour profiles transfer quite well,” he said.
The Australian Brewery beers are distributed throughout Australia in cans and draught format.
It was the first craft brewer to embrace modern can technology in Australia and offer national distribution, which was a decision made by the growing recognition of canned format overseas and the recent development of small-scale canning operations.
Offering the benefits of UV protection and longer shelf life, canning is enjoying a come-back with several craft brewers here including CUB’s Matilda Bay (Fat Yak) following suit.
Australian Brewery general manager Marcello Colosimo believes that as craft brewers need to replace their bottling lines they will likely adopt the new generation of canning lines due to their product and cost benefits.