Australia's best beer crowned in tiny Brisbane suburb
Australia's best beer has been crowned, with the title going to a brewery nestled in a tiny Brisbane suburb.
Slipstream Brewing Company in Yeerongpilly beat out 530 entries from 67 Australian breweries to take out the title of Grand Champion Beer at the 2025 Royal Queensland Beer Awards, with their winning beer being their Classic Saison.
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Gavin Croft from Slipstream Brewing Company Instagram/@slipstreambrewing
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This particular beverage is, according to head brewer Gavin Croft who spoke to Sofie Formica at 4BC radio, "a traditional European style... and it's a yeast driven style. Nothing too challenging about it. It's a style that can be drunk in a session, but it's also quite complex," he said, adding that they included, "lemon and pepper and orange and things that are actually quite refreshing."
The beers were assessed "blind", with the judges having no prior knowledge of any of the breweries or beers that a particular beverage came from.
The beers were judged on flavour, aroma, mouthfeel and the beer's alignment with style guidelines, allowing winners to be based on merit and the brewery's skills. The beers were then tested again for the Grand Champion Trophy.
Slipstream won a total of five major trophies at the awards, with their Classic Saison also winning the title of Champion European Style Ale, and Best Queensland Beer, their Scooter American Red Ale winning the Champion Amber Dark Ale, and the brewery itself winning the Champion Small/Medium Brewery.
They also won 10 gold medals, 11 silver medals, and two bronze medals for their various beverages at the awards.
Croft says their success lies in "a big focus on quality from from the top to the bottom. In the business, there's no one thing, but, you know, everyone's got the same dream to make the best beer possible... so that our customers keep coming back."
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The Slipstream Brewing team is "in party mode now Instagram/@slipstreambrewing
Croft says that the team is "in party mode now" and is already (jokingly) pitching to their bosses to have their $5000 in prize money go to pay rises.
He also pitched in on the long-standing debate about what temperature is optimal for a beer.
In his opinion, "a general rule for most beers is sort of in the four to five degrees Celsius range. It really gives you a chance to have the flavors open up over the course of the beverage."
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He also revealed a trick that some breweries use if they have a less flavourful beer. Croft says that is a beer is too cold, "You're just sort of numbing your taste buds, and you missed out on some of the flavour there. So, yeah, definitely a trick that a lot of breweries use. If maybe the beer doesn't have a lot going on, they'll serve it cold."
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