Home Brewing In Australia Pre-legalisation

[brando]

As we all know, home brewing beer was illegal in Australia until the early 1970's when the new Whitlam government changed the law.

Well, my Dad has stories of his Dad brewing beer at home way back in the 1950's. Apparently the beer was pretty bad, but still did the job.

Dad's father (my grandpa - the home brewer), worked at a pub in Northern NSW and got the ingredients from a travelling brewery rep from the Tooths brewery in Sydney is the story.

I'm told grandpa brewed it in an old laundry copper. I assume he used it as a fermenter, not a kettle. Apparently the part in the copper where the beer sat ended up sparkling clean by the end.

Not sure if he used grains or malt extract for fermentables.

Dad also says that other blokes in the area were brewing beer at home too.

I find this all interesting. Does anyone else have stories of beer being brewed at home prior to legalisation?

 

[Pourmeanother]

Hey Brando

As a young lad , one of my lasting memories of my grand father was his black fermenter sitting next to his armchair which were both sitting next to the fire place . The old blop bplop blop used to keep me ammussed for hours . This was early in the 70's . I cant remember ever seeing him bottleing the brew . Must have done that in private .

Homebrew must be in my DNA

Cheers Todd

 

[brando]

Hey Brando

As a young lad , one of my lasting memories of my grand father was his black fermenter sitting next to his armchair which were both sitting next to the fire place . The old blop bplop blop used to keep me ammussed for hours . This was early in the 70's . I cant remember ever seeing him bottleing the brew . Must have done that in private .

Homebrew must be in my DNA

Cheers Todd

The same thought has been in my mind.

 

[ianh]

Whilst did not brew in Australia before the legislation changes. I did brew in the UK in the late 60's.

Had some form of malt extract and hops. Missus reckoned it smelt like a brewery and used to go to her mothers for the day. Brewed in a plastic dustbin with a lid, which was handy has you put the hydrometer in and then just removed the lid to check SG whilst fermenting. Still have that hydrometer.

Initially bottled but then got a 5 gallon plastic keg with a pressure gauge. Used to bulk prime and used Sparklets CO2 bulbs (used in soda water bottles) to dispense the beer when the pressure was getting low.

Unfortunately sold everything except hydrometer when I came to Australia and it sat in a drawer for nearly 40 years before being used again.

 

[wabster]

My recollection is that prior to the Whitlam era changes, it was legal to make home brewed beer as long as it was under about 3% alcohol - the exact % I can't recall.

I remember my Dad making home brew with a big boiler on the stove, and the wonderful smell emanating from it. I'm pretty sure he used malt extract and probably some kind of hops extract. I don't remember any details about the fermenter he used, or the bottles.

The reason I remember the 3% limit so clearly is that he was a country solicitor, and was very strict about his observance of "the law". He explained to me how he used a hydrometer to ensure he did not make beer over the legal limit.

Also I can't recall if I ever tried his home brew, but I doubt he'd have ever offered me one.

Cheerz Wabster.

 

[brando]

bump

 

[Screwtop]

My first brew around 1967 was following in my dads footsteps, only I wanted to be modern and use a new fangled Plastic Rubbish Bin rather than the old drum the OM used. My Father had bakeries, bakeries had 44 gallon drums of malt extract, choice of dark or light. Didn't want to use the OM's recipe so off to the library, found a book from the UK on home brewing and I remember the recipe was called "Avon Ale" a darl ale. Bakers yeast was used and you could buy hop flowers (dried) from the grocery shop by the pound, weighed up and put in a brown paper bag. Open fermenter (well kind of, the bin lid was left on to stop 'things' landing in it) was the order of the day, no homebrew shops, airlocks or such available in a country town then. Was all boilled up in a big bakery pot (probably the one for the pie meat :lol: ) over a gas burner. Suppose it was ok, my beer palate hadn't exactly developed then (16yo) :lol: the OM drank it and liked it.

As for being illegal, well I never really thought about it really, lots of others did it in those days and lots of bakers in particular. Near where I lived lots of people made wine and grappa at home, mostly Italian farmers, the legality issue never really came up, people did their own thing and others left them to it.

Cheers,

Screwy

 

[Bribie G]

I ran a LHBS in Maryborough in the late 70s. Beer kits were just coming in, but a lot of the customers would still turn up with their tupperwares and their time honoured recipes dated back to the illegal days I would guess. Typical recipe was:

1.5 kilos Wander Liquid malt extract from the honey dispenser on the counter
1.5 kilos of raw sugar (mostly stolen from the mill by a friend of a friend :icon_cheers: - I had a sugar truck driver offer stolen sugaz to me once but I declined as receiving is a way of getting a crim record)

30g POR rather brown looking flowers
Tandaco yeast, but Edme was becoming popular.

Didn't taste like XXXX but I drank it like a fish. If well made it was quite ok and I've tasted far far worse in case swaps (no names no pack drill) :unsure: .

 

[Superoo]

Does anyone have a link to the current legislation ?

Am curious to know exactly how much you are allowed to brew, and what alc level limits are.

Cheers,