Craft breweries collaborate with Quiz Meisters on unusual releases

Nine craft breweries from four states have jumped on board a unique collaboration with Australian trivia company Quiz Meisters, launching a series of innovative beers with unusual flavour combinations.

The collaboration was initiated by Quiz Meisters as a celebration of its 20^th anniversary, marking the occasion by inviting its brewery partners to showcase limited-edition releases at participating venues.

Since Quiz Meister was founded in 2004, the organisation has had a special interest in breweries after CEO Steffan van Lint observed an overlap between quiz fans and craft beer consumers. In those early days, as Quiz Meisters gained momentum, so did a handful of new brewers on the scene.

“Mountain Goat scaled up their operations in their North Street brewery. 3 Ravens, Bridge Road and Red Duck started popping up in the cooler bars we were performing at, and it seemed that the audience that loved a difference in beer also loved a difference in trivia,” said van Lint.

By 2007, Quiz Meisters was already partnering with craft breweries for its Beer of the Month newsletter feature, and taking its trivia to craft beer venues around the country.

“I personally loved the developing craft beer scene, so calling around these breweries to test and promote these awesome beers was such a fun part of my job. A standout that I still regard as the best lager I’ve tasted was Tooborac Brewery’s Shearers Lager,” van Lint added.

Early on, Quiz Meisters formed a symbiotic connection with the craft beer scene, and in the years that would follow, formed strong relationships with brewers and sales representatives.

Quiz Meisters marketed itself as the craft beer of the trivia choices and even adopted the tagline “the world’s best tasting pub trivia” as the craft beer scene picked up pace. Later, around 2016, as taprooms became commonplace and opening hours extended, Quiz Meisters began running weekly shows at breweries.

“We became a great choice to help attract and foster a community,” says van Lint. “Due to warehouse sizes and opportunities, most of them were in the suburbs, and Queensland seemed to lead this charge.

“Since then, we have become the brewery’s choice of trivia with more brewery trivia shows than our next 20 competitors combined.”

Van Lint believes that a lot of Quiz Meisters’ success was a result of its aligned values and ambitions with the craft beer industry.

“We were at the frontline in the beginning both trying to convince bars to try something new, we both rode the hipster wave of being different, and even now we face similar challenges of scaling up whilst staying innovative and unique,” he said.

“I like to think that whilst the craft beer scene helped with our success, that Quiz Meisters also helped with the success of the craft beer scene by assisting breweries in fostering a community and giving them a personality that punters can connect with and return to week-after-week.”

Innovative brews

It was this long-time association with craft breweries that led Quiz Meisters to launch its collaborative 20-year anniversary campaign.

The initial concept was to brew Brain Beer, featuring ingredients that were good for the brain. Running into issues with the ABAC, the collaboration changed direction and instead focused on incorporating the spirit of trivia into beers by encouraging brewers to think differently, resulting in some unusual flavour combinations.

“We thought brewing a beer for our 20^th birthday would be a great way to celebrate, but the issue was we had so many brewery partners, and many that offered to brew some with us, that we didn’t know who to choose,” says van Lint.

“So, we started a campaign to brew a bunch of unique beers and opened it up to all of our brewery partners, and nine jumped on board.

“Many of the brewers were quite excited by the challenge, and it was awesome to see some branch out and use this activation as an excuse to experiment and try something they hadn’t done before,” he added.

“Being the catalyst for that is somehow the best way to celebrate what Quiz Meisters has stood for for so many years.”

And while the campaign celebrates the achievements of Quiz Meisters, it provides an opportunity for the participating breweries to create something truly unique while also expanding their reach.

Throughout the month of May, the special releases will be available at their respective taprooms and participating Quiz Meisters venues, and participating breweries have arranged keg swaps to showcase their creations.

Dan Etiel, Marketing Manager at Quiz Meisters, told Beer & Brewer that the team behind the trivia are pleased with this continuation of their support for the craft beer industry.

“The collaboration provides our breweries a platform to reach a national audience and add an extra element to quiz nights you won’t find anywhere else,” he said.

“It makes for a memorable experience that breweries can stamp their brand on, all whilst showcasing their creativity and brewing prowess. It’s a brand awareness activation with the added benefit of a tangible, delicious product for punters. Oh, and it’s just a great excuse for brewers to let loose and have fun with their craft.”

The nine beers brewed specially for the anniversary campaign include:

• Deep Steep, an American amber with chamomile by Tallboy & Moose (VIC)
• Quiz Zing, a beetroot and ginger Berliner weisse by Brightstar Brewing (SA)
• Nut it Out, a walnut, coffee and ginseng pastry stout by Rocks Brewing Co (NSW)
• Mastermind, a Mango XPA by Cavalier Brewing (VIC)
• Bonus Point, a blueberry, chocolate and marshmallow stout by Happy Valley Brewing Co (QLD)
• Smarty Pints, a ginger, mandarin and chocolate stout by Crafty Robot (SA)
• Moch It In, an iced mocha latte ale by Akasha Brewing Company (NSW)
• Rizzle Quizzle, a pineapple and raspberry sour by Nowhereman Brewery (WA)
• Head Scratcher, a citrus west coast IPA by Woolstore Brewery (SA)