Oktoberfest SpecTAPular

Hot off the press, this years Oktoberfest SpecTAPular line up!

From Germany;-

Spaten Oktoberfestbier

Hofbrau Munich Dunkel

Aecht Schlenkerla Rauchbier Marzen

Weihenstephaner Hefeweissbier Dunkel

Weihenstephaner Hefeweissbier

Erdinger Oktoberfest Weissbier

Schoefferhofer Hefeweizen

Fischers Helles

Bitburger Pils

Gilden Kolsch

And from Australia;-

Buxom Wench from Neilenbrau

Stone & Wood Pale Lager

Jamieson's Chocolate Bock

Duke Hefeweizen

Prickly Moses Oktoberfest Lager

Red Hill Weizenbock

Sunshine Coast Munich Dunkel

Mash Eisbock

Last Drop Kellerbier

Holgate Big Reg

Traditional German fare and entertainment. So dust off your Lederhosen or your Drindl and prepare for slap dancing, bratwurst and of course BEER! Prost!

Saturday October 3 @ The Local Taphouse in St Kilda

Saturday October 10 @ The Local Taphouse in Darlinghurst

Gold coin donation for entry going to World Vision.

Melbourne Cup lunch - in Sydney

At Darlo, we're hosting a Melbourne Cup lunch. Sponsored by James Squire (who will have Sundowner on tap), there is even a lucky door prize hamper as a prize - yay!

When: Tuesday November 3
What: 3 course set menu
Price: $50/head

Click here to view Robbie's delectable menu. Oh, and it will be live on the big screen of course!

Book by emailing darlinghurst@thelocal.com.au or phoning 02 9360 0088.

Giddyup!

Official photos from Bar Awards

Last chance for Beer Diva - St Kilda

Beer Diva's first event in St Kilda is selling fast. There are a few spots left so get in quick if you'd like to be a part of it this Wednesday, September 30th.

The 5 course menu is as follows:


Salt & pepper dusted calamari
BBQ spicy pork ribs
Thai mussels
Chocolate mousse
Cheese board

These dishes will be match with Hoegaarden Wit, James Squire Golden Ale, Trumer Pils, Matilda Bay Alpha Pale Ale, Hargreaves Hill ESB, Murrays Icon 2IPA, James Squire Porter, Franziskaner Hefeweizen.

We hop to see you there.

The Local Taphouse named Best Specialist Beer Venue in Australia!

Wow! Wow! Wow!

Last night at the Australian Bar Awards in Sydney, The Local Taphouse (Darlinghurst) was named Best Specialist Beer Venue in Australia..

Both venues had been listed as finalists so we had booked a table of 10 and flew the managers up from Melbourne to help celebrate the occasion (whether we won or lost). While the Darlo Taphouse won the award, Guy and I very much see this as an award shared with the St Kilda Taphouse who are equally deserving.

A BIG thanks to all our customers, managers, chefs, staff, partners, wives, families, brewery suppliers etc for all the support as we worked tirelessly from a dream to where we are today - Australia's Best Beer Bar!!!

The Beer Diva is coming to St Kilda...

After months of hugely successful beer dinners in Sydney, We have decided to invite the Beer Diva to Melbourne.

Our very first Beer Diva experience will be on Wednesday, September 30th at 7pm.

Join the Diva as she talks you through 8 beers and 5 courses of food for only $60.

Book on the right hand side of this blog.

We hope to see you there.

Nice article about Hargreaves Hill Brewery rising from the ashes

I saw this feel-good article in The Age Epicure last Tuesday..
Read it here.

Reminder: Beer Diva Dinner in Darlo next Wed 23!

BEER DIVA - BEER & FOOD TASTING @ THE LOCAL TAPHOUSE, DARLINGHURST - NEXT WEDNESDAY 23RD SEPTEMBER!!

We say welcome to Spring 2009, with another great beer line up at our next beer & food tasting.

We will be tasting 8 beers, matched to 5 delicious courses of food, all for only $60.00 per head!! A great night, with great beers, great people and a lot of laughs!

There are a few places left, so book now.

Our beer line up for next Wednesday is:
• 5IBC Barbeerian Wit
• Hofbrau Munich Helles
• Hargreaves Hill ESB
• Bridge Road Bling IPA
• Newcastle Brown Ale
• 3 Ravens Dark Smoke Beer
• Moo Brew Stout
• TBC

To book, click on the link at the top right hand corner of this blog. We will be starting at 7pm.

Ale Stars St Kilda - Trappist Ales

Well Ale Stars was a bit special this month. Not that its not always special but this month there were member's shirts to hand out, fancy cheeses instead of pizza's, and the beers du jour were Trappist Ales.

mmm... Trappist Ales... mmm... cheese.

I'm going to hand over to the Prof for his eloquent rundown of the night as usual but I think the Cheesestars trivia team deserve a big congratulations as they went from perennial cellar (pardon the pun) dwellers to equal winners in the trivia comp. The jury is still out as to whether absentees Briony and Simon have been weighing the team down or whether the Trappist Monks put something in their brews to enhace beer related intelligence.

It may be the latter as it was an uncharacteristic even spread for the trivia with the teams finishing last managing to pick up equal third at the same time!

A special thanks to Elliot, the prof and all the other volunteer photographers. You can check their work out here. And you can read the Prof's version of events here.

Beer Dominos

These guys have far too much time on their hands!

Don't forget this year's Oktoberfest.. You gotta see this!

Taphouse Tippers St Kilda Winners Announce

After a huge season of footy the Taphouse Tippers results are in, and here they are:

1. Josh Gladwin

2. Nick Fairbairn

3. Earl Rowland

Conrgatulations to Josh for the win. He takes home $444 for his efforts. Well done to Earl and Nick as well who were around the top of the ladder all year.

We look forward to the Taphouse Tippers returning in 2010, and hopefully this particular blogger will put in a better effort than the 27th place I managed this year!

Improvocation - hilarious night of improvised theatre

This Tuesday night, 8th September at 7:30 in St Kilda, join us for a hilarious night of improvised theatre!

The theme of the night is films, so watch actors improvise anything from trailers through to interviews with directors and much much more!

Get ready to be super entertained and have a few good laughs!!

$5 entry and $10 pizzas!

St Kilda Ale Stars - next session is An Introduction to Trappist Styles

The next Ale Star session on Sept 15 is going to be brilliant. It's going to be "An Introduction to Trappist Styles and Cheese Matching". The beers (subject to availability) will include the following:

Orval
Westmalle Tripel
Chimay Dubbel (red cap)
Gulden Draak (not a Trappist, but the only traditonally brewed tripel) OR Rocheforte 10 (quad) (unlikely).

As we will be matching the beers with cheese, pizzas are not included so eat before the session (I'll be on the roof terrace if you care to join me)!

We're trying to get members' shirts and mugs finished by then. If we do, there'll be a presentation ceremony for the inaugural members!

Finally, as we have providing bigger beer samples at the sessions, we need to raise the price to $30 per session from now on. If you're looking for serious value, however, sign up as an annual member!

For non-members, you can book via the top right hand corner of this blog.. For members, we're working on a way to confirm whether you will be attending or not.

Ale Star memberships - a staggering response

While annual Ale Star memberships are being launched in Darlo tonight, they were introduced in St Kilda at our last session and the response was phenomenal. We expected less than 10 signups but already have 30 members! The $250 introductory offer ends on October 31st and with Ale Star sessions now costing $30 per session, there is considerable value in signing up before the offer ends.

To download the application form, click here.