1. FROTH CRAFT BEER MAG
15
We talk with Carwyn
Cellars bar manager
Ben Duval about their
Thornbury venue.
FOOD & BEER
THE
PLOUGH
HOTEL
Carwyn
Cellars
Devout craft beer aficionados
regularly make the pilgrimage to
Carwyn Cellars in Thornbury, braving
the dangers of the 86 tram to check
out the ridiculous range of offerings
at this bottleshop in Melbourne’s
north. After drooling over the 200-
plus selection of rare and quality
beers available in the shop, they pass
through into the inner sanctum to
salivate over the 16 rotating taps of
seriously intriguing brews in the Back
Room Bar.
Since Ben Carwyn took over this
High Street store in 2007, it has grown
from a ordinary bottleshop to an
Aladdin’s cave of exciting finds. Run
by two blokes with wine backgrounds
– owner Ben Carwyn and bar manager
Ben Duval – the focus is on quality
products and a dedicated selection of
local and international craft beer.
The Back Room Bar only recently
celebrated its first birthday but it has
already been voted the eighth-best
Australian craft beer establishment
by Beer and Brewer. With seating for
50 people, there are also long wooden
benches outside on the pavement –
the perfect spot to lounge in the sun
with a crafty drop. The beers on tap
include a diverse range of Australian
and overseas brewers, and unlike
most bars, none of the taps are under
contract to big-name beers, giving
Duval free rein to put on quirky, rare
and top-quality brews.
Carwyn also excels at boilermakers,
and they have 250 whiskies (including
40 Australian, 50 American and 30
Japanese). There is also a negroni
tap and 50 mezcals (a tequila-like
substance which I frankly could not
swallow, but apparently goes well
when sipped with beer).
Duval, who has worked at Carwyn
for several years after moving to
Melbourne from South Australia,
reckons their point of difference is the
bottleshop, “stocked full of the rarest
and coolest beers on the planet”,
where punters can grab a bottle of
something special and drink it in the
bar with a small corkage fee.
“we’re looking forward to
taking it to the next level”
What’s better than drinking craft
beer? Drinking craft beer with
some goddamn delicious food that
perfectly matches its frothy flavour.
The Plough Hotel in Footscray might
look like a bit of a rough old gaff from
the outside but it’s a classy affair
indoors, with funky modern industrial
design deco and a buzzing gastropub
vibe. There are seven Victorian craft
beers and one cider on tap, as well
as 20 craft beer bottles, a delectable-
sounding scran menu and a good-
looking crowd of locals to share the
experience with.
My hungry date and I couldn’t go past
the slow-cooked pork, celeriac and
pickled cabbage pie served up with
creamy mash, red wine sauce and
mushy peas.
And let me just say it was almost pie-
fect (sorry) with the only complaint
being the need to play a game of
“find the pickled cabbage”, but that
was easily forgiven. The tender, juicy
lumps of pork cosily placed inside
buttery melt-in-your mouth pastry was
enough to keep a smile on our happily
chewing dials. We accompanied it
with a light, fruity beer, opting for
a Sample Brew Golden Ale from
Collingwood. Smooth and crisp, the
citrus and stone fruit scent, mixed
with hoppy undertones, looked and
tasted like sunshine in a glass.
Now for dessert and one phrase will
suffice – “pure dead brilliant”. But
I will share (not the food, pals, but
the memories … and I wouldn’t have
shared if you were there either. That’s
how good it was, and how much of a
glutton I am. Just saying.)
So listen to this … I had steamed brown
ale pudding, with muscovado caramel,
peanut praline and salted caramel ice
Claire Henderson
is a perpetually
hungry Scot who
lives life with her
glass at least
half full at all
times.
cream. It was the darkest wee sponge
I’ve ever seen (and trust me, I’ve seen
a lot of those bad boys in my time)
plonked into a lovely puddle of treacly
sauce and topped with super crunchy
praline and a big dollop of ice cream.
It was intensely salty enough to justify
that every gorgeous mouthful had to
be followed by a swally of bitter, malty
Little Smith Brewing “Bastard Son”
from Fitzroy.
Plough Hotel manager Ellen Turner
says: “We focus on Victorian craft
breweries and avoid bigger players.
We also rotate seasonally or more
often if we can. Our menu is seasonal
too, so for example we go lighter in
summer and we get darker beers
in when it’s cooler and the food will
naturally match with that. All our staff
is trained in beer flavours and history.”
Rating: Get over there and gie it laldy!
Scottish-English dictionary:
Gaff: House
Scran: Food
Pal: Friend or enemy
Swally: Drink
Gie it laldy: Do something with
extreme enthusiasm.
Words and pictures by
Claire Henderson
Duval’s father John was Chief
Winemaker at Penfolds, and started
his own wine label in 2003. He’s
probably not too disappointed though
that his son has embraced the beer
world – in fact Ben somehow found
time while running a bar and brewing
craft beer to also whip up 1800 bottles
of Nero D’Avola.
Sounds a little crazy, but as Duval
says: “A lot of people think we’re nuts
but really we’re just getting started
and we’re looking forward to taking it
to the next level.”
Carwyn Cellars plans to expand
into next door to meet the demand of
thristy drinkers, are are constructing
an adjoining area which should be
open early next year. There’ll be more
seating, a small kitchen, a cellar and a
‘nanobrewery’ inside a small shipping
container.
They also make their own beer
– when I visited the 40ft Redneck
English Easter Bunny was on tap.
Based on an ESB or English Amber
Ale, the ingredient list includes
London ESB yeast, Cascade hops and
20kg of Vietnamese cacao – 10% of
which was soaked in rye whisky and
90% soaked in the beer post-ferment
for a week and a half. The result is
a smooth and pleasantly bitter drop
with a subtle chocolatey finish.
Duval says that unlike wine-making
which has so many rules, craft beer is
all about breaking the rules. But they
are not into brewing extreme ales:
“We want to make beer that’s really
enjoyable and drinkable.”
Words and picture: Emily Day