Gage Roads Little Dove Case

When they look back over their history, the Gage Roads team will view 2016 as quite a year for the little brewery that grew large aided by Woolies investment before "Returning to Craft" by taking back the retail giant's 25 percent share. Mostly, it's likely to be remembered for an evening in May when eyebrows were raised and jaws dropped in equal measure when they took out Champion Australian Beer at the prestigious Australian International Beer Awards. Chances are not many in the room would have plumped for Gage Roads beforehand if asked to pick the brewery that would collect the award; if they had, the chances of them picking the actual beer were slimmer still as Little Dove had only just been brewed and barely released.

The success of a beer that combined input from the broader brewing team led to Little Dove's development being fast-tracked somewhat. Kegs were sent east to capitalise on the buzz and plans put in place to add the beer to the brewery's core range. It sits atop what's a deliberately approachable lineup and sits some way apart in character, tipping the scales above six percent ABV and packing plenty of hop character.