15 fun facts about Bright Brewery
As part of the ongoing celebration for our 15th anniversary this week, we’ve put together 15 fun facts about Bright Brewery that you might not know…
#1 The original Bright Brewery was established during the gold rush and ran from 1876 to 1916.
#1 When Bright Brewery first opened, it was two tin sheds with a small bar and no indoor seating.
#3 This original building cost less to build than the architect’s fees for the proposed venue which was eventually built 5 years later!
#4 Our first ever beer – Pioneer Ale – was brewed at Jamieson Brewery, Mansfield in 2004. It was a “pretty basic pale ale”, according to founder Scott Brandon. We’ve just released a tribute beer – Pioneer Barrel Aged Stubborn Russian Imperial Stout – for our 15th Anniversary.
#5 The first beers ever brewed onsite in Bright were Hellfire Amber Ale and Blowhard Pale Ale and these are still two of our best-selling beers 15 years later!
#6 Bright was a founding member of the High Country Brewery Trail which promotes beer tourism in Victoria’s High Country.
#7 100% of our beers are brewed right here in Bright. Many people think we must have a production facility in Melbourne but, despite the logistical challenges it creates, we are committed to staying local and investing in our community
#8 Our production brewery, about 1km from our venue, is named ‘Fred’s Shed’ after our co-founder Fiona ‘Fred’ Reddaway.
#9 Our now-infamous Stubborn Russian Imperial Stout was first brewed in 2011 by then-brewer Jon Seltin. It’s gone on to become our most iconic annual release.
#10 Stubborn Russian was named by Jon and Scott because the beer itself was “stubborn” and took so long to ferment during our cold Alpine winter.
#11 The roof of Bright Brewery is completely covered in solar panels, generating about a quarter of our current energy usage and saving the equivalent of 6000 trees!
#12 In 2019, the Brewery bought a herd of cows, raised them in the nearby Buckland Valley on fresh grass and spent brewery grain, before they made their way back to the Brewery as part of our low-food-mile Paddock To Plate program.
#13 One of our current Apprentice Chefs and Ambassadors, Sammy McMahon, summited Mt Everest in 2018 and lost half a toe to frostbite in the process. Now she’s known as Sammy 9.5
#14 In 2020, Bright Brewery was forced to shut for more than 150 days (nearly 6 months) due to bushfires and COVID-19.
#15 Bright recently commissioned a brand new canning line which means more cans than ever will be coming your way!