The Malt Shovel Brewery is an Australian brewery owned by Lion, a subsidiary of the Japanese conglomerate Kirin. It is located in

Camperdown, New South Wales Camperdown is an inner western suburb of Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. Camperdown is located 4 kilometres south-west of the Sydney central business district and is part of the Inner West region. Camperdown lies across the ...

. Malt Shovel is best known for its James Squire range of beers. The beer is named after the

convict A convict is "a person found guilty of a crime and sentenced by a court" or "a person serving a sentence in prison". Convicts are often also known as " prisoners" or "inmates" or by the slang term "con", while a common label for former conv ...

turned Australia's first brewer

James Squire James Squire, alternatively known as James Squires, (18 December 1754 – 16 May 1822) was a First Fleet convict transported to Australia. Squire is credited with the first successful cultivation of hops in Australia around the start of the 19t ...

, who also went on to grow Australia's first hops and is said to have created Australia's first commercial brewery.

History

In 1988, master brewer Chuck Hahn established the

Hahn Brewery Hahn Brewery is a brewery that was established by Dr Chuck Hahn, Charles Hahn in 1988 at an old factory site in the suburb of Camperdown, New South Wales, Camperdown in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. It was originally a brewer of premium ...

(then Australia's largest microbrewery) in a former horse stables and later furniture factory, in Camperdown, an inner-city suburb of Sydney. In 1993, the boutique beer-making operation received financial support from Lion. In late 1998, the brewery was relaunched as the Australian craft-brewing arm of Lion, and was renamed the Malt Shovel Brewery, after the James Squire's original brewery tavern ("The Malting Shovel"). The Malt Shovel Brewery produces boutique beers in small batches and in honour of Australia’s first brewer, the brewery named their range of pale ales, ales and porters 'James Squire'. In 2003, the business produced four million litres of beer and in 2010 it had increased to 4.74 million litres. In 2008, the brewery acquired the adjoining building, which allowed the company to expand both its production and storage facilities. The company has also established a number of brewpubs, with the Crafty Squire Brewhouse on

Russell Street, Melbourne Russell Street is a main street and thoroughfare in the central business district of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. It runs roughly north-south and was laid out as a core feature of the Hoddle Grid in 1837. Russell Street is named after Joh ...

, the Squire's Maiden on Honeysuckle Drive,

Newcastle Newcastle usually refers to: *Newcastle upon Tyne, a city and metropolitan borough in Tyne and Wear, England *Newcastle-under-Lyme, a town in Staffordshire, England *Newcastle, New South Wales, a metropolitan area in Australia, named after Newcastle ...

, the Squire's Fortune on The Esplanade, Perth, the Generous Squire on Murray Street, Perth, the Curious Squire on O’Connell Street,

North Adelaide North Adelaide is a predominantly residential precinct and suburb of the City of Adelaide in South Australia, situated north of the River Torrens and within the Adelaide Park Lands. History Surveyor-General Colonel William Light of the colo ...

, and the Charming Squire on Grey Street,

Brisbane Brisbane ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Queensland, and the third-most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a population of approximately 2.6 million. Brisbane lies at the centre of the South ...

. In 2017, new brewhouses were opened in Sydney and in Hobart.

Public access

The brewery is generally not accessible to the public. However, the brewery does welcome visitors each October during Sydney Craft Beer Week.

Beers

James Squire regular beers

The Malt Shovel Brewery produces a number of main brews under the James Squire brand, each with a moniker related to the James Squire story: * One Fifty Lashes Pale Ale * Nine Tales Original Amber Ale is a handcrafted English-style Brown Ale, consisting of a blend of Pale and Crystal malts, three distinct hops, and a 140-year-old top fermenting ale yeast. (Silver medal 2008 Australian International Beer Awards, Bronze medal 2009 AIBA, Silver medal 2012 AIBA) Alcohol content: 5.0% * Four Wives Pilsener is brewed using Pale and Munich malts,

Saaz hops Saaz is a "noble" variety of hops. It was named after the Czech city of Žatec (german: Saaz). This hop is used extensively in Bohemia to flavor beer as the Czech pilsener. Saaz hops accounted for more than of total 2009 hop production in the Cze ...

and lager yeast. (winner of 'Best Pilsner' at the 2002

Australian International Beer Awards Australian International Beer Awards (AIBA) is an annual brewing competition that commenced in 1992. The AIBA is undertaken by the Royal Agricultural Society of Victoria (RASV). Judging of the awards is conducted at Melbourne Showgrounds, wit ...

, Silver medal 2008 AIBA, Bronze medal 2009 AIBA, Silver medal 2010 AIBA, Bronze medal 2013 AIBA) Alcohol content: 5.0% * Stowaway India Pale Ale (I.P.A.) has robust malty flavours and earthy floral aromas from dry hopping with English Fuggles hops. (Silver medal 2008 Australian International Beer Awards, Bronze medal 2009 AIBA, Silver medal 2010 AIBA) Alcohol content: 5.6% * Jack of Spades Porter is a dark beer consisting of five different malts combined with roasted barley and wheat. Porter has a longer maturation than the other James Squire brews. (Gold medal 2002

, Silver medal 2008 & 2010 AIBA, Bronze medal 2011 & 2012 AIBA) Alcohol content: 5.0% * Chancer Golden Ale is an English-style Summer Ale, created with toasted grains of wheat and barley, combined with new season Amarillo hops. (Silver medal 2008 Australian International Beer Awards, Silver medal 2009 & 2010 AIBA, Bronze medal 2011 AIBA, Silver medal 2012 AIBA) Alcohol content: 4.5% * Orchard Crush an apple cider using a blend of

Granny Smith The Granny Smith, also known as a green apple or sour apple, is an apple cultivar which originated in Australia in 1868. It is named after Maria Ann Smith, who propagated the cultivar from a chance seedling. The tree is thought to be a hybrid ...

, Pink Lady and

Red Delicious Red Delicious is a type of apple with a red exterior and sweet taste that was first recognized in Madison County, Iowa, in 1872. Today, the name ''Red Delicious'' comprises more than 50 cultivars. From 1968 to 2018, it was the most produced cu ...

apples from the

Orange Orange most often refers to: *Orange (fruit), the fruit of the tree species '' Citrus'' × ''sinensis'' ** Orange blossom, its fragrant flower *Orange (colour), from the color of an orange, occurs between red and yellow in the visible spectrum * ...

and

Mildura Mildura is a regional city in north-west Victoria, Australia. Located on the Victorian side of the Murray River, Mildura had a population of 34,565 in 2021. When nearby Wentworth, Irymple, Nichols Point and Merbein are included, the area h ...

regions. Alcohol content: 4.8%

James Squire limited edition brews

Every three months the brewery creates limited edition beers under the James Squire brand which are available in its James Squire brewhouses and via selected liquor retailers. These beers are produced in much smaller quantities than the regular brews. Some examples have been: * James Squire The Hop Father. IBU: 35. ABV: 5.0. Style: Hoppy Pale Ale (Limited Edition). Hops: Simcoe & Columbus * James Squire Chancer 'Brewers Edition. IBU: 34. ABV: 4.5%. Style: Golden Ale. Hops: Amarillo, Summer, Topaz, Cascade. Malts: Pale, Munich, Crystal, Wheat. * Australian Strong Ale * Rum Rebellion Porter * Pepperberry Winter Ale Previously brewed brews * Sundown Lager - 2009 Bronze medal Australian International Beer Awards, 2010 Gold Medal AIBA, Silver Medal 2011 & 2012 AIBA. This beer has not been made since Oct 2015. * The Constable Copper Ale

Malt Shovel Brewers (formerly Mad Brewers)

In addition to beers brewed under the James Squire brand, the brewers at Malt Shovel Brewery also release limited edition beers under their own brand. Recent releases has been: * Interceptor Black IPA Released April 2017: IBU: 50. ABV: 6.1%. Style: Black IPA. Hops: Victoria Secret, Centennial, Cascade, Mosaic. Malts: Pale, Vienna, Crystal, Melanoidin, Midnight Wheat * La La Lager Released Dec 2016: IBU: 42. ABV: 6.5%. Style: Lager. Hops: Tettnang, Magnum, Northern Brewer, Centennial, Citra. Malts: Pale, Malted Wheat, Carapils, Caraaroma * Hoppy Hefe Released Oct 2016: IBU: 35. ABV: 7%. A bold lager with a zesty hit of citrus and a powerful spicy finish. Style: American Wheat Ale. Hops: Citra, Motueka. Malts: Pale, Munich, Wheat. Previous brews: * Australian White Beer is brewed using fresh wheat, extremely pale malt and Willamette hops. ABV: 5.0% * Noir Stout an imperial-style stout, brewed with pale chocolate, dark crystal barley malts, roasted black wheat malt, Australian Super Pride hops, New Zealand Super Alpha hops and powdered liquorice root. ABV: 7% * Hoppe Hefe brewed using a blend of Citra and Motueka hops along with wheat barley. (Silver medal 2012 Australian International Beer Awards) ABV: 7.0% * Wee Highlander a rich, full-bodied Scotch Ale brewed using peated malt. ABV: 6.7% * Garden De Paradisi launched mid-February 2014. ABV: 6.2% * Ginger Chops Ale a ginger beer made from an authentic balanced beer with spicy ginger and Australian honey. ABV: 4.2% * Scribbly Gum Lager (Bronze medal 2011 Australian International Beer Awards) ABV: 6.7%

Others

* Kosciuszko Pale Ale, first brewed at the Kosciuszko Brewery (established by Chuck Hahn in April 2009 in

Jindabyne, New South Wales Jindabyne () is a town in south-east New South Wales, Australia that overlooks Lake Jindabyne near the Snowy Mountains, in Snowy Monaro Regional Council. It is a popular holiday destination year round, especially in winter. This is due to its ...

) it is also now produced and bottled at the Malt Shovel Brewery. (Bronze Medal 2012 Australian International Beer Awards) Alcohol content: 4.5% * TEN20 Commemorative Ale

Awards

Malt Shovel Brewery has won numerous awards, medals and trophies world wide for their permanent range of products. The most notable awards include: *

**2000 Champion Australasian Brewery **2003 Champion Australasian Brewery **2003 James Squire Amber Ale (subsequently renamed Nine Tales Original Amber Ale) won Champion Lager *

World Beer Cup The World Beer Cup is an international beer competition organized by the Brewers Association, a trade group A trade association, also known as an industry trade group, business association, sector association or industry body, is an organizat ...

**2006 - Chancer Golden Ale received the bronze award in the English-style Summer Ale category. **2008 - Four ‘Wives’ Pilsener received the gold award in the Bohemian-style Pilsener category. **2010 - New Norcia Abbey Ale received the gold award in the Other Belgian-style Ale category. **2016 - James Squire The Swindler received the gold award in the Summer Ale category.

References

{{reflist

External links

James Squire Website
Australian beer brands 1998 establishments in Australia Food and drink companies established in 1998 Beer brewing companies based in New South Wales Kirin Group