Before we continue the Australian half of the story I need to correct
some popular misconceptions regarding our first settlers Firstly according
to popular folklore the majority of the convicts were poor but honest
working people who had been falsely convicted of petty crimes such as
stealing a loaf of bread or a handkerchief and harshly penalised by
an over zealous criminal system, however the truth is dramatically different.
The social problems that existed in London's poorer communities during
the late 1700's was horrendous, alcohol abuse, prostitution and crime
existed hand in hand and they fed off each other, prostitution and stealing
were a means to obtaining gin and rum and drunkenness lead to more prostitution
and crime. The problem was also a long term one, and had existed from
the mid 1730's so by 1788 there was almost an entire generation who
knew no other existence. In fact the majority of those who were transported
were habitual long term offenders and not innocent people wrongly convicted
for a single indiscretion.
Now back to the story
On January 26th in 1788, ( what a coincidence - " Australia Day"
) a total of 11 ships carrying 756 convicts (564 male, 192 female),
550 officers, marines, ship crew and their families arrived at Port
Jackson to establish the first white settlement of Australia
The consumption of alcohol began almost immediately the convicts stepped
ashore however no one was looking for a long cool glass of beer in fact
the only available beverage would have been an appalling brew known
as "grog". a watered down mixture of rum and molasses. Although
at first the convicts were denied spirits, it didn't take long for a
thriving black-market to develop and prostitution and crime to re establish
themselves as prisoners sold their services and assets cheaply for meagre
amounts of alcohol obtained from corrupt and opportunist officers.
Illegal stills flourished during the early years of settlement and it
was not uncommon to see men and women sitting round a bucket of spirits
and drink it with quart pots until they were unable to move. It was
said that the population was divided into two classes, those who sold
rum and those who drank it. Grog was indeed the national currency
In order to stop the illegal trade the government issued licenses for
the sale of liqueur in April 1796 and later that year, Australia's first
legal hotel, the Masons Arms, was built in Parramatta by James Larra,
also that year the first recorded beverage resembling beer was brewed
by John Boston
However in reality during the first fifteen years of settlement there
was insignificant amounts of beer brewed or sold in the colony, as the
only beer drinkers in the colony would have been a few of the free settlers
and some of the administrators as rum and gin were the preferred drink
of the poor and working class and beer was a rich mans beverage ( oh
how times have changed)
The problems that gin ( and spirits) had caused in London were having
the same effect in the new colony and in 1804 the government attempted
to supply an alternative to crudely distilled rum by establishing a
brewery and in September that year Australia's first (and last) government
owned brewery commenced production in Parramatta (the same area where
the first hotel opened its doors a few years previously) The brewery
was privatised two years later and was purchased by Thomas Rushdon who
was its head (and only) brewer.
In the first years of settlement the majority of migration consisted
of convicts however from about 1800 onwards there was an increasing
component of free settlers who where either tenant farmers who had been
evicted from their leases to make way for sheep or land speculators
looking to acquire cheap land in the new colony. These new settlers
bought with them a different culture - they were hard working, god fearing
people who did not need ( or could ill afford) to be permanently drunk
. They bought with them a liking for ale and beer which in turn resulted
in an increase in brewing in the colony and because of the distances
involved and the lack of transport would have been done on a small scale.
From about 1820 onwards the number of free settlers exceed the number
of convicts being transported so it is not surprising to see the establishing
of an increasing number of breweries the most significant was in 1822,
when Peter Degraves set up the Cascade Brewery in Hobart. It would become
the longest operating brewery in Australia
In the 1830's the escalation of evictions Scotland and to a lesser extent
in Ireland and England plus and a widespread famine in 1834-36 saw a
dramatic increase in the number of settlers arriving on our shores.
They sought out land to farm ( and climate) that was similar to what
they had left and settled predominantly in the cooler southern states.
This resulted in breweries being established to service these new settlers
and in 1836, John Warren set up South Australia's first brewery, in
1837 James Stokes established the first brewery in Western Australia
(it later became the Emu Brewery) and 1838 James Moss established the
first brewery in Melbourne.
In 1845-46 the great potato famine opened the floodgates to migration
and bought about mass migration on a scale not seen before. The vast
majority of the new arrivals were from the country areas of Ireland,
Scotland and England and would have had a preference for beer and even
the arrivals from London would have been beer drinkers and ex clients
of many of the new beer shops and Public houses that were being established
The discovery of Gold in Ballarat in 1851 was responsible for attracting
to Australia people from all walks of life. Their sheer numbers created
markets of a size few in Australia had dreamed of before gold. Moreover,
these immigrants were often young, educated and energetic and very thirsty
- all that Australia need was a beer to call its own. - this happened
in 1887 when two New Yorkers arrived in Melbourne with refrigeration
equipment and set up a new brewery - yes it is true - two yanks teaching
us how to brew beer!! Actually I believe that they were originally from
Ireland so that might make it a less bitter pill to swallow..
Up until this time the local brewers only made heavy, sweet, warm, top
fermented ales, the Foster brothers brought with them the technology
and yeast strains to produce a lighter style of bottom fermenting lager
that could be served icy cold and more suited to the hotter climate
(and the tastes of local drinkers), it was an instant success and has
become Australians national drink -
Just to set the record straight the Foster brother were not the first
to brew lager in Australia - in 1885 Gambrinus Brewery in Melbourne
became Australia's first lager brewery.
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