New online boutique beer retailer Beer Cartel launches

Sydney, Australia March 19th 2010 – Specialist online boutique beer retailer Beer Cartel officially launches within the Australian market.

On the 6th March 2010, a new Australian online boutique beer website, Beer Cartel (http://www.beercartel.com.au) was officially launched. The website was founded by owners Geoff Huens and Richard Kelsey with the aims of opening consumers’ eyes to the world of boutique beer. Director Geoff Huens said “We knew there was much more to beer than the mainstream brews found in most pubs and liquor stores but found them hard to come by. As a result we decided to create an online shopfront which provides access to a wide range of amazing craft beer from Australia and overseas”.

The ability to educate consumers was one of the fundamental drivers for Beer Cartel’s inception Mr Huens said. “What we are now seeing is a shifting landscape with consumers trying to become more educated about beer in much the same way people have learnt about wine in the last 20 years. It really is amazing, beer is more consumed than any other alcoholic product in Australia and yet it is one the general public actually know very little about".

As well as introducing consumers to boutique beer from around the world, Beer Cartel aims to support the Australian micro-brewing industry. "We recognise for most Australian micro-breweries it is exceptionally difficult to compete within the Australian market. As a result we want to show our support as it’s these brewers who are really changing the beer scene in Australia”. Mr Huens acknowledged that creating awareness of these micro-breweries was a real challenge. “For most consumers they will have heard of just a handful of different breweries within Australia. Very few actually know there are over 120 breweries spread throughout all parts of this great country”.

The Beer Cartel website offers a range of boutique beer products including a monthly beer club, beer gifts and beer related experiences such as brewery tours, and beer and food matching events. The website was ‘soft launched’ at the end of 2009 with the official launch having taken place once sufficient boutique beer, beer experiences and related products had been added to the website. Beer Cartel expects to continue to grow the number of beers and products on its website over the coming 12 months.

The monthly beer club, which is delivered to the customers’ door, has already become quite popular. It is based on a number of successful wine clubs in Australia and overseas. Through the beer club members are able to try a wide range of beers that most would struggle to find in a typical bottle shop. The beer club is also designed to educate. Tasting notes accompany each monthly pack allowing customers to learn about the beers as they enjoy them.

An official launch party was held in Newcastle, New South Wales to celebrate Beer Cartel’s launch. Guests were able to enjoy a wide range of Australian boutique beers while also taking part in a number of themed events, including a silent auction which raised money for charity organisation Beyond Blue.

Visit us at: www.beercartel.com.au

About Beer Cartel:
Beer Cartel is an online beer store which specialises in the sale of boutique beer, beer gifts and beer appreciation events in Australia. Its aim is to create an online community of beer lovers interested in experiencing craft beer from Australia and around the world.

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