Emu Bitter
Encyclopedia
Emu is a beer
label currently owned by Lion Nathan
. Originally brewed by the Emu Brewery
, it is currently brewed
by the Swan Brewery
in Western Australia
.
In the mid to late 20th century, when Emu Bitter came in large brown bottles with green labels, it was also called "green stuff", "green poison" or "kero
". These names were frequently used tongue in cheek, or in a derogatory way by those who preferred Swan lager, (often the only readily available alternative), and were a reference to Emu Bitter's green coloured label and its very bitter taste ("kerosene like taste" Swan Lager drinkers would claim). Post WW II, power kerosene in Western Australia was often coloured green and came in brown 26 oz. bottles similar to those used post war for Emu Bitter. These old colloquial names are still sometimes used with affection by some older generation Western Australians who recall the days when beer only came in large brown bottles or out of a keg.
Prior to the late 1970s, the Swan Brewery had a virtual monopoly in the Western Australia beer market. Therefore, outside of the Goldfields where the original Hannan's Lager and Kalgoorlie Stout (Kalgoorlie brewed by the Swan Brewery owned Kalgoorlie Brewery) still held their own, the choice for beer drinkers was often only between Emu Bitter and Swan Lager, and both brews had their loyal consumers who would make fun of the opposing brew. Emu Bitter drinkers, in response to the "kero
" name calling, would often claim that Emu Bitter was "a real man's drink", while Swan Lager was "a drink for women and young men not tough enough to appreciate the bitter taste of Emu Bitter". And in those less than politically correct days, any young Perth man who did drink an imported beer, or the locally bottled Skol
, or Swan Special Bond, was likely to get comments from his drinking friends suggesting his choice of brew indicated something questionable about his sexuality. The Kalgoorlie Brewery closed in 1982 and Hannan's Lager eventually disappeared from Swan's list of brews (but lately, a facsimile Hannan's Lager was launched by the Ironbark Brewery).
, the brewery's name was later changed to the "Emu Brewery" to better identify with its popular Emu bottled beer. In 1927 Swan Brewery acquired control of what was then its major competitor - the Emu Brewery.
Because of the popularity of the Emu bottled beer, Swan decided to expand and modernise the Emu Brewery and to run it as a separate concern rather than amalgamate it with Swan's other lines. As a result, and even in relatively modern times, the Emu Brand had a namesake brewery.
The last "Emu Brewery" stood at the corner of Spring Street
and Mounts Bay Road
at the western end of the Perth CBD. The art deco
building, designed by architects Oldham, Boas and Ednie-Brown in 1937, featured large interesting and attractive stone motives of brewing
activities created by WA sculptor Edward F Kohler. The building was considered one of the more attractive buildings operated by the Swan Brewery Company and a star example of the Perth Art Deco architectural era. Swan were proud enough of the building to feature a picture of it on the label of their bottles and cans of Emu Export Lager.
Once this last "Emu Brewery" was closed, proposed redevelopment of the site became a controversial issue as it was overlooked by Parliament House. The site remained empty and abandoned for many years and was the target for vandalism and graffiti. Despite a heritage listing, the site consequently became run down and the brewery building was demolished in late 1991 / early 1992.
Beer
Beer is the world's most widely consumed andprobably oldest alcoholic beverage; it is the third most popular drink overall, after water and tea. It is produced by the brewing and fermentation of sugars, mainly derived from malted cereal grains, most commonly malted barley and malted wheat...
label currently owned by Lion Nathan
Lion Nathan
Lion Nathan National Foods is the parent company created in October 2009, into which Lion Nathan and National Foods were merged. It is fully owned by Kirin Holdings Company, Limited...
. Originally brewed by the Emu Brewery
Emu Brewery
The Emu Brewery was a brewery in Perth, Western Australia, which traced its history to the first decade of the colony. Founded in 1837 by James Stokes as the Albion Brewery, it was located beside the Swan River on a block bounded by Mounts Bay Road, Spring Street and Mount Street...
, it is currently brewed
Brewing
Brewing is the production of beer through steeping a starch source in water and then fermenting with yeast. Brewing has taken place since around the 6th millennium BCE, and archeological evidence suggests that this technique was used in ancient Egypt...
by the Swan Brewery
Swan Brewery
The Swan Brewery is a brewery located in Perth, Western Australia. It was founded in central Perth in 1837. From 1879, it occupied riverside premises below Mount Eliza, displacing an official "Aboriginal institution" which recognised traditional use of the land by indigenous people.The brewery...
in Western Australia
Western Australia
Western Australia is a state of Australia, occupying the entire western third of the Australian continent. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Great Australian Bight and Indian Ocean to the south, the Northern Territory to the north-east and South Australia to the south-east...
.
Varieties
There are three varieties:- Emu Bitter is a full-strength lagerLagerLager is a type of beer made from malted barley that is brewed and stored at low temperatures. There are many types of lager; pale lager is the most widely-consumed and commercially available style of beer in the world; Pilsner, Bock, Dortmunder Export and Märzen are all styles of lager...
. It is a very bitter beer with now only 4.0% alcohol, high hoppHopsHops are the female flower clusters , of a hop species, Humulus lupulus. They are used primarily as a flavoring and stability agent in beer, to which they impart a bitter, tangy flavor, though hops are also used for various purposes in other beverages and herbal medicine...
iness and a medium body. The recipe has not changed since it was first launched in 1923. Emu Bitter is colloquially known as "Bush Chooks," "EB" or "Kenny" (after the master brewer, Ken Arrowsmith (Ken Oath) featured on the current label and in recent advertising). - Emu Export, sometimes called Emu Export Lager, is a lagerLagerLager is a type of beer made from malted barley that is brewed and stored at low temperatures. There are many types of lager; pale lager is the most widely-consumed and commercially available style of beer in the world; Pilsner, Bock, Dortmunder Export and Märzen are all styles of lager...
. The beer was first brewed in 1954 and contains 4.4% alcohol. It is also affectionately known as "the red leadRed leadLead tetroxide, also called minium, red lead or triplumbic tetroxide, is a bright red or orange crystalline or amorphous pigment. Chemically, red lead is lead tetroxide, Pb3O4, or 2PbO·PbO2....
", the "flightless birdEmuThe Emu Dromaius novaehollandiae) is the largest bird native to Australia and the only extant member of the genus Dromaius. It is the second-largest extant bird in the world by height, after its ratite relative, the ostrich. There are three subspecies of Emus in Australia...
" or simply "export" or "sport", "E squared", "wife bashers" or "red can". It is marketed as the flagship brew of the Emu armada even though its recipe and taste has changed markedly since the controversial dropping to 4.4% alcohol. (It was 4.9%). - Emu Draft, sometimes Emu Draught, is a midstrength beer. It was first made in 1992 and is brewed with maltMaltMalt is germinated cereal grains that have been dried in a process known as "malting". The grains are made to germinate by soaking in water, and are then halted from germinating further by drying with hot air...
giving it a distinctive amber colour. It contains 3.0% alcohol.
In the mid to late 20th century, when Emu Bitter came in large brown bottles with green labels, it was also called "green stuff", "green poison" or "kero
Kerosene
Kerosene, sometimes spelled kerosine in scientific and industrial usage, also known as paraffin or paraffin oil in the United Kingdom, Hong Kong, Ireland and South Africa, is a combustible hydrocarbon liquid. The name is derived from Greek keros...
". These names were frequently used tongue in cheek, or in a derogatory way by those who preferred Swan lager, (often the only readily available alternative), and were a reference to Emu Bitter's green coloured label and its very bitter taste ("kerosene like taste" Swan Lager drinkers would claim). Post WW II, power kerosene in Western Australia was often coloured green and came in brown 26 oz. bottles similar to those used post war for Emu Bitter. These old colloquial names are still sometimes used with affection by some older generation Western Australians who recall the days when beer only came in large brown bottles or out of a keg.
Prior to the late 1970s, the Swan Brewery had a virtual monopoly in the Western Australia beer market. Therefore, outside of the Goldfields where the original Hannan's Lager and Kalgoorlie Stout (Kalgoorlie brewed by the Swan Brewery owned Kalgoorlie Brewery) still held their own, the choice for beer drinkers was often only between Emu Bitter and Swan Lager, and both brews had their loyal consumers who would make fun of the opposing brew. Emu Bitter drinkers, in response to the "kero
Kerosene
Kerosene, sometimes spelled kerosine in scientific and industrial usage, also known as paraffin or paraffin oil in the United Kingdom, Hong Kong, Ireland and South Africa, is a combustible hydrocarbon liquid. The name is derived from Greek keros...
" name calling, would often claim that Emu Bitter was "a real man's drink", while Swan Lager was "a drink for women and young men not tough enough to appreciate the bitter taste of Emu Bitter". And in those less than politically correct days, any young Perth man who did drink an imported beer, or the locally bottled Skol
Skol
Skol was initially created to be a global beer brand. Allied Breweries , Labatt , Pripps-Bryggerierna and Unibra formed a new company called Skol International in 1964. Its aim was the creation of a world-wide beer brand, Skol, which could be licensed, manufactured and marketed across the world...
, or Swan Special Bond, was likely to get comments from his drinking friends suggesting his choice of brew indicated something questionable about his sexuality. The Kalgoorlie Brewery closed in 1982 and Hannan's Lager eventually disappeared from Swan's list of brews (but lately, a facsimile Hannan's Lager was launched by the Ironbark Brewery).
Emu Brewery
Emu beer originated from the Stanley Brewery (previously the Albion Brewery) which was established by James Stokes, a 27 year old settler from Bristol in England. Built in 1848 at the foot of Mt ElizaMount Eliza, Western Australia
Mount Eliza is a hill which overlooks the city of Perth, Western Australia and forms part of Kings Park. It is known as Kaarta gar-up and Mooro Katta in the local Noongar dialect....
, the brewery's name was later changed to the "Emu Brewery" to better identify with its popular Emu bottled beer. In 1927 Swan Brewery acquired control of what was then its major competitor - the Emu Brewery.
Because of the popularity of the Emu bottled beer, Swan decided to expand and modernise the Emu Brewery and to run it as a separate concern rather than amalgamate it with Swan's other lines. As a result, and even in relatively modern times, the Emu Brand had a namesake brewery.
The last "Emu Brewery" stood at the corner of Spring Street
Spring Street
Spring Street may refer to:* Spring Street, Melbourne, Australia* Spring Street, Singapore* Spring Street -New York City Subway stations:* Spring Street at Sixth Avenue; serving the trains...
and Mounts Bay Road
Mounts Bay Road, Perth
Mounts Bay Road is a major road in Perth, Western Australia, extending southwest from the central business district along the north bank of the Swan River, at the base of Kings Park...
at the western end of the Perth CBD. The art deco
Art Deco
Art deco , or deco, is an eclectic artistic and design style that began in Paris in the 1920s and flourished internationally throughout the 1930s, into the World War II era. The style influenced all areas of design, including architecture and interior design, industrial design, fashion and...
building, designed by architects Oldham, Boas and Ednie-Brown in 1937, featured large interesting and attractive stone motives of brewing
Brewing
Brewing is the production of beer through steeping a starch source in water and then fermenting with yeast. Brewing has taken place since around the 6th millennium BCE, and archeological evidence suggests that this technique was used in ancient Egypt...
activities created by WA sculptor Edward F Kohler. The building was considered one of the more attractive buildings operated by the Swan Brewery Company and a star example of the Perth Art Deco architectural era. Swan were proud enough of the building to feature a picture of it on the label of their bottles and cans of Emu Export Lager.
Once this last "Emu Brewery" was closed, proposed redevelopment of the site became a controversial issue as it was overlooked by Parliament House. The site remained empty and abandoned for many years and was the target for vandalism and graffiti. Despite a heritage listing, the site consequently became run down and the brewery building was demolished in late 1991 / early 1992.