Chris Shanahan: Redoak heads down the beer-with-food track

Siblings David and Janet Hollyoak own Sydney’s Redoak Boutique Beer Café. Located in Clarence Street, it offers an extraordinary range of beer styles brewed by David.

Somehow its existence slipped our radar until Frank Samios, of Café della Piazza, produced a bottle of David’s Rauch beer – a truly exotic style modelled on the originals from Bamberg, Germany.

I’ve not visited Redoak Café, but a look at the beer offerings surely puts it in a league of its own and makes it a must visit.

Rauch beer (made from beechwood-smoked malted barley) is exotic enough, but the current beer lists offers, as well, an eclectic and tempting range, including Framboise Froment, Hefeweizen, Bavarian Pilsner, Vienna Lager, Bock, Blackberry Hefeweizen, Organic Pale Ale and Belgium Choc-Cherry Stout.
The food and educational offering – including degustation menus and master classes – takes a leaf out of the fine-wine marketing books. See redoak.com.au for details.

Redoak Rauch 330ml $7.50 at Café della Piazza
Redback Rauch had the Schloss Shanahan tasting memories drifting back to Bamberg, Germany, and drafts of meaty, smoky Rauchbier served with liver dumpling soup. We’ve not seen an Aussie attempt at this beechwood-smoked style before, but see great promise in Redoak’s less in-your-face version. This is adventurous brewing by David Hollyoak.