A DESIRE to see the world, and a dream job, has brought German brewer Tobias “Toby” Dankert to Bright Brewery.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
And it didn’t take long for the German to embrace Australia’s culture and sense of humour.
“It’s easy to remember my name. You can call me ‘Twobeers dankerson’,” Mr Dankert said.
“Get it? To bi-as Dankert … two beers, thank you,” he added with his distinct German accent.
He joins head brewer Ryan Tyack, the first time the boutique brewery in Bright has employed two brewers to meet a growing demand.
“We’ve really experienced a rapid growth over the past 18 months,” Bright Brewery’s James Davidson said.
“Brewing is now a seven day a week operation and we’ve expanded beyond a one-man operation.”
Mr Dankert was born in Gera, Germany, and started his brewing career at Köstritzer Schwarzbierbrauerei, home of the world famous Köstritzer Schwarzbier, which is often considered the benchmark for black lagers.
The alpine geography of Bright shares many similarities with the areas of central Germany where Mr Dankert has lived for most his life, which attracted him to the job opportunity on the other side of the world.
He enjoys the hands-on approach small breweries take to produce distinct beers.
“The best thing for me is being integrated with the whole process, from developing the recipe right through to drinking the final result,” Mr Dankert said.
“It’s great to be part of every step, from the original idea, to the brewing, packaging and then sharing it with our customers.”
Mr Dankert’s first brew at Bright Brewery was, appropriately, an Oktoberfest style beer, which will be released in late September in time for the famous Munich celebration of beer.
“Toby comes to us from a brewery with a lot of clout,” Mr Davidson said.
“The Germans are very strong on quality, they have been known for a long time for producing quality beers.
“Toby can help to put the real emphasis on brewing the classic lagers.”
Bright Brewery now boasts a core range of up to eight beers on tap at its brewhouse overlooking the Ovens River, with its unfiltered lager, Hellfire amber ale and Blowhard pale ale among the most popular.
“We have our core range and then do seasonals as well, our brewer’s choice range,” Mr Davidson said.
“Lager is our biggest seller because it’s the style most people are familiar with, beers like Heineken.
“But our Hellfire is the best wholesale performer.”
The brewery sources the best ingredients from around the world and doesn’t have any automation in the brewing process. It opens at 11am each day and also runs regular brewery tours.
