It’s an underdog story truer than the movie Dodgeball itself. In the third annual South African Craft Brewers Championship, a part-time brewer who shares his 120-litre system with 14 fellow beer lovers, beat more than 100 other South African beers from breweries large and small. Michael Howes topped this year’s list with his Rambunctious Rye, a beer that impressed judges for its originality, technical perfection and all-round awesome flavour.
Michael’s brewing label is Hopping Frog, one of 15 brands created at the Brewers’ Co-op in Woodstock, Cape Town. The Co-op launched in early 2015, a joint venture between 16 beer fans. Unable to afford the brewery of their dreams, the guys clubbed together to purchase a snazzy automated system that they imported from the States. Richard Andrew, the founder member of the Co-op admits that it’s been a greater success than he could have imagined. “It started much more modestly,” he admits. “But to be where we are just six months after getting our licence is fantastic. It’s sometimes difficult to come to group decisions, but when you look at people coming and enjoying beer from our 16 taps, what’s not to like?”
Michael cites his brewing inspiration as being Devil’s Peak. “King’s Blockhouse was the first IPA I ever tasted,” he says, admitting it’s “pretty unreal” that his Rye IPA stole the King’s crown this year. There are no plans to give up his day job as a programmer though. He’ll keep brewing in the evenings while juggling his day job and fatherhood and no doubt a new following of hopheads who will be demanding a taste of his Rambunctious Rye.
Michael wasn’t the only Co-op member to make the finalist list. Stefan Wiswedel made it into the top 10 ciders with two of his appley creations, Lethukuthula Tshabangu and Richard Andrew were ranked in the top 10 beers with their barley wine, the awesomely named Red Brick Shit House, and founder member Richard also placed with his Bitter Spring Cider.
Cape Town fared particularly well this year, with eight of the top 10 beers hailing from the Mother City (or the surrounding area). Second place was Valve IPA from Woodstock-based Riot Factory while Cape Brewing Company’s crisp and uber-drinkable pilsner took the third spot.
The top 10 had more than a meagre sprinkling of hops. If you ever hear someone saying that South Africans only drink light lager or that they don’t do hops, try slapping them about the head with a bag of Southern Passion. As well as a RyePA and an IPA in the top three, the top 10 counted two other IPAs as well as two beers over 8%. Here are all the winners:
Beer
- Hopping Frog Brewworks – Rambunctious Rye
- Riot Beer – Valve IPA
- Cape Brewing Company – CBC Pilsner
Cider
- Everson’s – Everson’s Pear Cider
- Garagista Beer Company – Brut Pom Cider
- Little Wolf Brewery – Hibiscus Cider
Journalists’ Choice – Beer
Hopping Frog Brewworks – Rambunctious Rye
Journalists’ Choice – Cider
Windermere – Rooibos Wooded Cider
Well done to the winners and the finalists. Nice article. Can’t wait to pop in at the Brewers Co-op, never seems to be any parking.
Hi Lucy, one of the judges (who judged both comps) commented that the standard of the top beers at the home brew competition beat that of the commercial comp. Perhaps you should post these results too! :-). The most artisanal and craft of all types of brewing after all. Randy Mosher says “well made home brew is the best beer in the world”.
Hi Brendan – yes, I do need to post the homebrew champs. It’s been a manic week but I’ll get on it over the weekend.
Great read, Lucy – thanks! Don’t forget Red Brick Shit House was a joint collaboration between Richard and Lethu 🙂
Yep, Richard already corrected me on that front!!
Well done to the Top 10 and congratulations to the winners … it is really great news for the craft beer industry to see the range of new faces appearing at the top of the pile! I look forward to tasting the new beers soon!
Hi all call me ignorant or arrogant but how does Stellenbrau win a gold at the worlds best beer in Germany and then not even feature in the top10? Something fishy I smell and it’s not fish and chips.
Well for a start their beer wasn’t up against any other South African beers in Germany…
So with that pattern of thought if we did enter another 9 South African beers at the world champs we would dominate the top 10? As well as Stellenbrau can be happy other SA companies didn’t enter the competition as well? The 25 judges at the SA champs didn’t select Stellenbrau(best craft beer in the world winner) in their top 10, event though it was entered?
Oh one more thing how does SAB breweries who is the complete opp of craft beers as in they use the cheapest ingredients they can find ask scientists to rush their beer with chemicals and pasteurize their personality away judge or comment on craft LOL????
SAB indeed sponsored the competition – who else in South Africa has the finances or logistics to be able to pull off a competition like this? But they didn’t choose the winners. The blind judging was undertaken by a panel of 25 judges, made up of BJCP-qualified beer nerds, industry players and SAB staff.
Oh that makes a lot more sense and credibility except for the simple fact that I just can’t visualize and SAB employee sitting their drinking and judging a perfectly executed craft beer and thinking yummy this is better than the crap we lot make.
It’s sort of like Ronald McDonald walking into butchers grill and saying I’m here to try and eat your burgers and then I’ll pass you on some judging scores and some tips…just seems strange but hats off to them for organizing and paying for the whole evening, and well done to all the craft brewers and beer geeks.
I think you underestimate brewers who work for SAB. Many are true beer lovers who drink craft beer and even those who are not can appreciate a brilliantly made IPA, for example, or a world-class stout.