A tale of two beers

Everybody has their own favourite beer, and in Tasmania, you're either for Cascade or James Boag's. The two breweries draw a horizontal line through the centre of Tasmania and there is something of a Mason-Dixon divide of beer lovers.

In the North, drinkers swear their allegiance to Launceston's James Boag's. Its brewery is surrounded by classic Georgian architecture in the heart of Australia's third oldest city.

Meanwhile, the southerners are staunch advocates of Cascade, which comes from a brewery nestled in the shadow of Mount Wellington on the outskirts of Hobart, which incidentally is Australia's second oldest city after Sydney.

The pubs in the north have Boag's on tap, while their southern counterparts go for Cascade.

The fierce loyalty of each side for its own preference of liquid lunch dates back to the nineteenth century.

With its imposing stone facade, Cascade is Australia's oldest surviving brewery as well as the nation's oldest manufacturing enterprise.

The Cascade story began with Englishman Peter Degraves, who came to what was then known as Van Dieman's Land to take part in numerous ventures before eventually starting up the brewery in 1824.

Only two years later he was thrown into prison for apparently not paying his debts back in England. But when Degraves later emerged from his jail cell, it didn't take long for him to become one of the colony's wealthiest and most prominent citizens, on the back of the success of the brewery and other businesses.

By the 1850s, Cascade was the colony's most popular beer amid fierce competition from Tassie's 47 other breweries.

Degraves died in 1852 and while his four sons continued to run the brewery, the family name's association with Cascade eventually ceased when they passed away without heirs. It is now in the hands of the Fosters Group.

Ninety-minute walk-arounds are conducted by guides several times a day, and the tour costs AUD 18. It includes the chance to see the beer being brewed, and after a tour of the beautiful Woodstock Gardens, comes a half hour of beer tasting – all included in the tour price.

Meanwhile, Cascade's main rival also has a long history of supplying beer drinkers from Tasmania and the mainland. People from the state's north still ask for a "Jimmy" when ordering a beer at the bar.

So, who was James Boag?

He arrived in Tasmania from Scotland with his wife in 1853 and worked for several breweries in the north of the island. Then in 1881 he joined forces with his son, also called James, to take control of the Esk Brewery situated on the banks of the Esk River, forming James Boag and Son.

Tours of Boags include a full circuit of the brewery from the brew house to the packaging line, along with an insight into the brewing process and the family’s fascinating history.