AUSTRALIA'S ULTIMATE BEER CLUB
AUSTRALIA'S ULTIMATE BEER CLUB
Home » News » BEER WITH THE BREWER: BLAKE BOWDEN

BEER WITH THE BREWER: BLAKE BOWDEN

Blake Bowden is Jetty Road’s Head Brewer and chief recipe developer, who is known for pushing boundaries but always keeping an emphasis on quality and consistency. With humble beginnings as a home brewer just around the corner from the Jetty Road Dromana brewery, it’s fair to say Blake has come a long way. We recently caught up with Blake to discuss influences, recent events, the future, and of course the beer!

Jetty Road is “shaped by a life alongside the sea and your roots on the Mornington Peninsula”. making beer by the sea, is that the best job in the world?
I think maybe drinking beer by the sea would be the best job in the world. But on a serious note, it’s pretty bloody good. We love where we live and feel pretty honoured to be making beer that people seem to be enjoying. I’m certainly in no rush to go back to cabinet making.

 You have two locations now, one in Lorne and the other Doromana. Can people come down and say hello (in a COVID safe manner!)? 
Absolutely. Dromana is our original site and home of the brewery, but both locations have brilliant taprooms. The teams at each are amazing people and deliver a real Jetty Road experience. We love a chat and feel beer is the best way to bring people back together in such a high tech online world.

CCL recently joined forces with Jetty Road to create the Gone to Rio Hazy Pale. It was a cracking drop if we do say so! Why are hazy’s all the rage at the moment? 
Thanks guys. It was certainly fun partnering with you to brew our first Hazy beer. I think the large majority of palates prefer sweet to bitter. The lower bitterness, softer mouth feel and juicy hop profiles when well balanced really is a beer for any time of the day. You know, like breakfast.

What makes a good hazy?
To me the backbone of any good beer is balance. Nice silky mouthfeel and tropical fruit aroma that jumps from the glass is a must.  

If you had free reign to make any beer you could, what would it be?
What day of the week is it haha. I love brewing all styles but more traditional brewing such as Lambic is something I haven’t had the chance to play with. Yet.

What’s next for Jetty Road?
After the last 12 months it’s impossible to make plans. However, we are about to be adding more tanks to our cellar which will help us not only get more of our flagships out there but also some freedom for experimentation.

You can only drink one beer for the rest of your life. What is it?!
I don’t want to live in such a world. Haha. I think the last 12 months especially in Vic with all the lockdowns, we have seen that we all want variety in our lives. I love every style of beer and to choose one seems impossible.