OUR STORY
A pioneering spirit
John O’Brien is a legend of Australia’s beer industry. In 2003, he dreamed of producing a great tasting beer that could be enjoyed by everyone, free from the ill effects of mass-produced wheat and barley.
Upon blending the unique aromas and flavours offered by ancient grains such as sorghum and millet, John realised he needed to modify the standard brewing process and equipment. For years he worked with local Aussie farmers to produce the right malted ancient grains and through extensive trial and error (and a fair bit of tasting!), he created his masterpiece!
Since that first commercial brew launched in August 2005, O’Brien has won over 100 local and international awards – including being judged the World’s best gluten free beer at the World Beer Awards – making it Australia’s most awarded gluten free beer.
OUR BREWING PROCESS
Naturally crafted, distinctly different
All our beers are craft brewed – with an O’Brien twist. A unique combination of ancient grains, brewer’s art and specialist brewhouse equipment sets them apart from other craft beers.
At Rebellion Brewery, we use adaptations of traditional brewing methods shown below:
- Mashing the grains with water and using our unique mash filter to extract the wort solution
- The boiling of the wort with bittering hops and then aroma hops at the end
- Cooling the wort
- Adding yeast to ferment the wort sugars into alcohol
- Conditioning the beer at -2c to settle out the yeast and suspended hop particles
- Filtering the beer to remove the remaining yeast and hop particles
- Carbonating the beer
- Bottling, pasteurising and packaging the beer
- Then it’s over to you to chill and enjoy
Cheers!
THE ANCIENT GRAINS DIFFERENCE
The old becomes new
Ancient grains are reclaiming their rightful place in beer brewing.
Soghum and millet were historically used to brew delicious, highly nutritious fermented beverages as far back as 20,000 years ago. But their natural aromas and taste profiles gave way to commercial farming with mass-produced wheat and barley becoming the norm.
Alternative grains have experienced a popularity boost over recent years thanks to the rise of influential health and wellbeing trends in the food industry.
As awareness about the nutritional value of ancient grains has grown, the appeal of gluten free has moved beyond taste to include health benefits. These derive from high levels of beneficial minerals such as zinc (triple that of barley-based beers) and magnesium, proteins to help muscle growth, B vitamins and antioxidants. In addition, a low GI index supports more stable blood sugar levels.
OUR GONGS
O’Brien is Australia’s most awarded gluten free beer.
We’re immensely proud that O’Brien beers have won over 100 local and international beer awards, including being judged the World’s best gluten free beer at the World Beer Awards in 2021. Since 2021 alone, O’Brien beers have been awarded more than 20 Gold medals at the Australian International Beer Awards, the Independant Brewers Associations ‘Indies’ Awards and other international awards. Whilst it’s great to be recognised in competitions, we’re happiest just seeing you enjoy one of our beers…
