Somehow, we were able to host Pint of Origin as part of Good Beer Week once more in 2021.įor the first decade of The Crafty Pint, these end of year features were mostly cause for celebration, a time to mark the high points and advances made by the craft beer industry. Which, of course, is a pretty good way to approach life as a whole right now who knows what the next person you encounter in the street is going through, but chances are they’ve been better.

When it comes to the support we can offer as consumers, it’s not just a case of spending generously with our favourite local businesses (if we can afford to), but also treating everyone in our local pubs, bars, restaurants and taprooms with kindness and understanding as they deal with ever-changing and ever-challenging circumstances. Sadly, we’re pretty sure viruses don’t deal in luck so it’s heartening to have been able to write about the new Mind And Strength Support this week – a project designed to support small business owners and their teams in the hospo world when it comes to dealing with mental health issues and wellbeing. But there sure are a lot of exhausted people, especially those who’ve carried their businesses and staff through the tribulations of the pandemic, and who would dearly like a lucky break or two. Remarkably, there haven’t been too many casualties in the craft beer industry. Now, with Christmas days away and the booze and hospo industries looking forward to their busiest time of the year, that bastard called Uncertainty is looming large again, cancellations are skyrocketing, and fingers are being crossed that the hard work done over the past 21 months will prevent the sort of disaster seemingly unfolding in much of the Northern Hemisphere from happening here. It’s also a sign of how fast things can change that had this article been written a fortnight ago it would have been against a much brighter background as a state, we’d done what was asked of us in terms of vaccinations, isolation and mask-wearing, so life was returning to the new normal, with the simple pleasures of a pint at the pub, a meal with mates, a singalong in the Sidney Myer Bowl, all flooding back. It’s created another painful year for everyone involved in hospitality and events, not least due to the ongoing legacy of massive staff and skills shortages. Perhaps even an element of congratulatory pat-on-back at having done the hard yards to crush COVID (at least its early versions) and being able to look forward to a return to normality, even if the casual aside, “you keep a lid on things now, Sydney!” causes a hindsight-sharpened twinge.ĭepending where you live in Victoria, you’ve been through up to four more lockdowns in 2021, including another lengthy one, especially if you roll five into six, which, let’s face it, you may as well given the briefest glimmer of hope that separated the two.

With Christmas just days away, and with WA, Tasmania, NSW and Queensland under our collective belt, we head to Victoria for the fifth instalment of our look back at the best of beer in 2021.Ĭall us naive or optimistic, but looking back at our review of the year in beer in Victoria from 12 months ago, there was definitely something of a “the worst is over” vibe.

Beers at the bridge 2021