HAWKES BREWING CO LAGER
Glass bottles are gone, but much of the stigma around mental health remains. Share this beer with a mate and together let’s make positive convo’s as common as cans!
Origin – Marrickville, New South Wales
ABV – 4.5%
Size – 375mL can
Style – Lager
'I'll tell you what … any boss who sacks anyone today for not turning up is a bum.' said the first-term Prime Minister to early-morning revellers amid champagne-soaked celebrations after Australia II became the first non-American Cup winner in 1983. This notorious decree by Bob Hawke that became synonymous with Australian sport's greatest successes is the first memory of then 7-year old's Nathan Lennon and David Gibson. 'Growing up, we cared little for politics, ' shared the co-founders of Hawkes Brewing. 'but much like that colourful comment, we remember Bob being a bit of a larrikin who represented simpler times.'
Four decades after those first memories, while homesick in New York and at a career crossroads, the pair percolated who they'd love to have a beer with if back in Australia. One standout name that made the shortlist was Bob Hawke. 'When we started to unpack it, we recognised that the attraction came from the desire to share a cold one with a simple man that embodied quintessential Australianness in a way unmatched by any leader since.' says David. Following a chance email, the duo returned home, where they found themselves sitting in the kitchen of their childhood hero. And what started as a musing to have a beer with Bob turned into creating a beer company with Australia's 23rd prime minister.
In early 2017, Bob poured the first schooner of his namesake beer to officially launch Hawke's Brewing Co. Sadly, passing away in 2019, he wasn't able to repeat that performance at the recent opening of the brewery's new flagship venue in Marrickville, that has been dubbed the Bob Hawke Beer & Leisure Centre. Yet this tribute isn't the only living memorial. In line with the original condition of his involvement, his legacy also lives on with the donation of his royalty share to Landcare Australia, the environmental charity he established in 1989. Almost half a million dollars has been handed over from sales of the range that includes this all-Australian craft lager. Designed to suit Bob's tastebuds, this first beer to be made by the trio has a whiff of the grain sweetness, a subtle citrus aroma, a trace of light bitterness and a gentle dry finish.
Bob once said, 'The things which are most important don't always scream the loudest.' It is certainly true of this AIBA trophy winner!
