By AIDAN KNIGHT
GOOD Land Brewing has quickly become an iconic staple of Gippsland since its doors first opened five years ago, and a recent award has cemented that status within the community.
National recognition was given to the Traralgon business after one of its beers was named in the top 100 in the country last month.
The Great Australian Beer SpecTAPular, or the GABS Hottest 100, is an annual countdown coinciding with and inspired by the widely celebrated Triple J countdown of the same name.
Each year, consumers vote on their five favourite Aussie beers, which are then presented in a live countdown on January 25, which often sees breweries around the nation hosting themed parties in hope of seeing their name in the list.
While no such party took place at Traralgon this year, the team at Good Land were overjoyed to see their entry, LITTLE MATE, make the cut.
Owner-brewer Jimmy Krekelberg said the result was a huge milestone for the independent establishment and all involved.
“We’ve been trying to get a beer in the Hottest 100 since the day we opened,” he said.
“Being a small regional Victorian brewery, it’s very hard to get traction when you’re up against big national brands with taps and fridges right across the country. So this is the first year we’ve got in, and we’re stoked.”
This year, 22 Victorian beers were included in the top 100, and Good Land’s LITTLE MATE was one of only three mid-strength entries that won a spot.
“For us, that’s massive,” Mr Krekelberg told the Express.
“It tells us that people are not just drinking it, they’re enjoying it, and choosing to vote for it.”
LITTLE MATE is a 3.5 per cent hazy pale-style, brewed to deliver maximum flavour without the higher alcohol content usually associated with that level of taste.
The beer has become a quiet success story for Good Land, evolving significantly since it first appeared shortly after the brewery opened in 2021.
“It started life as a 3.2 per cent Extra Pale Ale,” Good Land explained, “now a mid-strength brewed with completely different hops, yeast, and malt. We’ve just refined it to exactly where we want it, and people have really responded. We’ve got 12 taps (in Traralgon) and it still outsells every other beer, every weekend.”
Now pouring on tap at around 30 venues across Gippsland, from Omeo to Metung, Fish Creek to Warragul, the award is sure to boost the profile of both beer, brewer, and the locals involved in each process of crafting it.
Mr Krekelberg, who began commercial brewing in 2011 prior to opening Good Land, said the recognition from GABS reflected how far Australian, and particularly Victorian, independent brewing has come.
He credited earlier waves of small breweries, especially in Melbourne and Perth, whose efforts more than a decade ago helped pave the way for today’s independent operators.
Good Land prides itself on using Australian-grown grain and hops, and on remaining firmly local in its focus, brewing more than 180 different beers since opening.
For now, the Traralgon business is simply proud that a small Gippsland brewery can stand alongside some of the biggest names in Australian beer.
“At the end of the day, we just hope people choose local and independent over the mass-produced, foreign-owned stuff,” Mr Krekelberg said. “That’s the dream.”
