BEER lovers of all stripes blew the head off a few frosty ones at the Tom Flood Sports Centre on Saturday at the third annual Bendigo Craft Beer and Cider Festival.
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All bases were covered from the more staid pilsners and pale and amber ales to chocolate stouts and smoked ales for those with more adventurous palates.
Festival organiser Darrell Billett said the move to March from later in the year had been well received by brewers as his mission to bring a touch of class to Bendigo's beer scene continued.
"Now it's starting to embrace it a little," he said. "You can go to a couple of bars and get craft beers but there's still not too many, in Melbourne you can go to a pub and all they've got is craft beers."
Mr Billett said the festival was a chance to give people more of an awareness of what's out there in the wider world of beer.
"There's some magnificent beers out there," he said. "This sort of event gives people the opportunity to come and try the different beers and maybe get onto something they'll really enjoy."
Mr Billett said the freedom to experiment that small brewers had gave them an edge over their commercial rivals.
There's some magnificent beers out there.
- Darrell Billett
"Left to their own devices they can practice and mix things up as much as they like so that's where they're at an advantage as opposed to the big major brewers, these guys can chuck in whatever they like."
"That's where there's an advantage, they can make something different every week."
As for his own chosen poison, Mr Billett says you can't go past a good Indian pale ale, but he's not fussy.
"As long as they do a good IPA they'll get my vote," he said. "Of the brewers that are here I'd struggle to find a beer that I wouldn't enjoy."