Stone Beer is back! Brewed using one of brewing's oldest traditions, Stone Beer 2026 is a rich porter made with wood-fired stones, delivering layers of roasted malt, dark chocolate, coffee and subtle smoke.
In mid May, we gathered in the brewery for one of our favourite annual rituals: Stone Brew Day. Heated over a wood fire before being lowered into the brew, the stones caramelise the malt, creating the rich, distinctive flavour that makes Stone Beer what it is.
Brewed just once a year and worth the wait. Stone Beer is available soon online, in our Byron Bay Tasting Room and at select bottle shops.
Born and raised in Byron Bay, Stone & Wood is proudly local, brewing approachable, sessionable beer in the Northern Rivers of NSW. Inspired by the idea of creating a village brewery and with the vision of building a conscious business, we’re striving to do good in our community with beer that is simply good to drink.
Our people make Stone & Wood what it is. A down to earth and diverse bunch, who all share a love for beer, it is their shared passion, values and community spirit that bind us together as a team. We place great importance in bringing the right people on, who respect our vision and contribute to cultivating our unique culture.
“I love the fact that we’re all so different…everyone’s unique and it’s nice that we’ve promoted such a culture where we can be so different, but share the same values and the same passions…which makes for really good drinking buddies.” –Lou Klatte, Stone & Wood Road Crew member.
All of our beers are left unfiltered, to let the natural flavours shine through. It means that the beer can be enjoyed at the pub or at home in the same condition as it is when we put it through its paces (aka quality testing) at the brewery…simply fresh.
Filtering beer removes the remaining yeast which causes the beer to look cloudy, we love this aspect of the beer and feel it adds something special!
So, what about the yeast in the bottom of the bottle?
Because the yeast drops to the bottom of the bottle over time, we recommend you give the bottle a gentle roll or tip it upside down before opening it to rouse the yeast and mix it up, then follow our two step pour. Watch our head brewer Caolan Vaughan demonstrate the perfect Pacific Ale pour in the video above.
From there, take the time to sit back and enjoy whatever occasion it is that brings you to be relaxing with a couple of our cold ones.
Don’t forget to support all of the awesome and passionate independent breweries in the 2017 Hottest 100 Aussie Craft Beer poll. You’ll find all of our beers on the list!VOTE NOW
Take a glimpse into the creative world of Swedish born sketch artist, Jonas Claesson
Take a glimpse into the creative world of Swedish born sketch artist, Jonas Claesson. A world where perfect waves break in outer space…where a moose, a bear and a dingo share empty lineups and the surf is always 6ft and offshore…The type of world a surfer dreams about.
With a passion for the ocean, Jonas mixes strong references from his new home in Australia with his Scandinavian roots. You may have stumbled upon@Jonas_drawswhilst flicking your thumb through Instagram on a quest for something refreshing and something exciting, and found yourself immersed in the fantasy surf world that Jonas lives in.
A couple of weeks back, we were lucky to have Jonas perform a live illustration at our event at the art space of the107 ProjectforSydney Beer Week. Surrounded by a crowd of partygoers and beer lovers, he took to a piece of plywood with a sharpie to free draw peeling right handers in Byron Bay, with our beer truck ‘Clyde’ parked up on the beach…An illustration Jonas says is the largest he’s ever done. He’s now adding the final touches to the Byron masterpiece and It’ll have you dreaming up your next surf adventure.
We caught up with Jonas to discuss the piece and have a chinwag about all things art…
So, where are you from Jonas?
I am from Sweden, moved to the Gold Coast in 2002. About 2 years ago we moved down to Freshwater / Sydney.
How did you get into this style of illustration?
I think it is just a natural progression and always changes a little bit over time I have noticed. In general I like to draw the things that I like to do, or aspire to do.
Any influences?
Lots of influences, but I find more inspiration in everyday things I see and photography usually. I think Instagram is amazing for following all the great photographers out there doing great work.
How long have you been drawing for?
Since I was a kid, always did extra art classes in school. Then one year of art school in Stockholm before 3 years of design studies in Australia.
Describe your illustrations in 3 words.
Hmm, tricky…. Ocean Peaceful Fun – Super hard to try and describe something you create.
Do you have a favourite piece and why?
I think one that is called; Searching – Part 2. Just really liked how it came out and did not end up at all as I was expecting. Another one that comes to mind is called: Migration. That was cool because during the night when it was drying on the balcony a possum jumped on it so it tilted and the paint made this really cool sky. I like to think it is probably my only ever collaboration with a possum, but who knows.
Are some of your illustrations real moments that you’ve experienced?
Some are definitely inspired by real events, for example sitting in the line up and seeing whales playing further out. I feel that that we as surfers are so fortunate to see the world from the water as we do. So many magical moments that is hard to explain to someone that does not spend much time in the ocean.
Is the moose that features in your drawings your spirit animal?
It was not in the beginning, but I think it might slowly becoming just that
Tell us a bit about the piece you are working on at the moment.
Right now I am working on my second ever piece on plywood and the largest one I have ever done and it is for you Stone and Wood guys. It is inspired by the Byron area and your cool Landcruiser.
What do you enjoy most about Byron Bay?
The natural beauty is the first thing that comes to mind. I have had some really nice days in Byron, and the stretch between Byron and Ballina I think is one of my favorite stretches of coast anywhere.
Introducing our new cup exchange program for the Mullum Music Fest...
We are stoked and excited to announce that we will be eliminating single use cups from theMullum Music Festivalthis year with the launch of our new cup exchange. The Cup Exchange will be launched this weekend at the Festival’s 10 year anniversary, the first for the Byron Shire.
“After years of searching for a solution, we are thrilled to partner with Mullum Music Festival to introduce re-useable cups through our Cup Exchange,”says Sarah Blomkamp who looks after community partnerships for Stone & Wood.
“The amount of hours we have dedicated to this conversation around viable alternatives has been crazy! We’re just stoked to be able to trial it with at the festival and hopefully be able to integrate this solution at more events in the future,”she said.
SO HOW DOES IT WORK?
It works as a circular economy, closing the loop on a cup’s lifecycle, meaning it will never end up in landfill. Drinkers will be able to purchase their cup with their first drink. The cup can then be taken home to be used again and again or returned for a refund.
For those drinkers wishing to have another beer they can exchange it for a fresh cup for no extra cost. All cups will be removed from the site and commercially washed to Australian Food Safety standards. The cups will then be returned for us to use them for future events!
The benefits of using The Cup Exchange are:
Reduces the number of cups used. By re-using the cups we reduce the number of cups required for events as opposed to using a single-use alternative.
The best waste – is no waste!
Our cups will never end up in landfill and will never need to be recycled in commercial recycling centres as we send all cups to be 100% recycled back at our cup manufacturer and supplier Globelet
Globelet cups are made of polypropylene #5 which is BPA free, tough and durable and made to withstand high heats ensuring our cups will last 100s of washes or years of events.
It encourages a circular economy
We work with the DCA to wash our cups, employing people that may not be able to be employed elsewhere
The wastewater produced by the Globelet washing procedure is non-polluting as we use a washing solution that is environmentally friendly and created by ECOSTORE.
We are hoping to implement The Cup Exchange at all of our local events as well as across the country in time.
If you’re around the Northern Rivers come say hi, enjoy a cold frothy, listen to some great music and grab a momento of the 10 anniversary of the Mullum Music Festival happening this weekend. We’ll be parked up at the festival pouring cold beers from our beer truck ‘Clyde’. Be sure to give ourRed Russian Gherkin beera try, brewed especially for the Mullum Music Fest with our matesDustyesky!
What happens when a publican meets a butcher and two hatted chefs that share a passion for burgers? They go into business and launch a mouthwatering burger joint with fresh ingredients and good beer to match. What happens when the publican, the butcher and the two hatted chefs meet a brewer? A delicious beer inspired burger dubbed “The Stone & Wood” burger is born.
Tom Robinson, Tim Perrum (chefs), Tim Montgomery (Butcher) and Ty Burford (Publican) are the four mates behind Newcastle’s favourite burger place,Rascals Burgers, Chicken, Anarchy…A hang out for dude food lovers, with an original take on the 1950s American Diner…and some very creative decor.
When the Rascals met with our crew over a couple of cold Pacific Ales one evening in Newcastle, they got chatting about a doing a collab together. They wanted to try something different…Rather than using beer as an ingredient in the burger, our Head Brewer Caolan worked with the Rascal Head Chefs Tim and Tom to design and craft a burger they’d most enjoy with a cold frothy in hand….Thus, “The Stone & Wood” was created.
To celebrate its release, we’re taking over the taps at Rascals for the week, pouring cold refreshing Pacific Ale and Green Coast to wash down our delicious collab wagyu beef and chicken burger.
We caught up with Tom to have a little chat about a big burger, how the collaboration came about and what inspired the creation.
Cheers Tom!
Tell us a bit about Rascal.
Rascal, Burgers, Chicken, Anarchy is a concept we put together last year its a collaboration between myself (Tom) Timothy Montgomery, Ty Burford and Tim Perrum. Tim and I are both hatted chefs who spent our lives in fine dining, we have known each other for 15 years. Ty is a very successful Newcastle publican and restaurateur and Tim Perrum is a local cattle buyer and butcher. We have put our different skill sets together to form Rascal a place we wanted to have and hang out in for Newcastle
How did the collab come about?
We are massive fans of Stone & Wood and have been pouring Pacific Ale since day 1. Ty has been a big supporter of the brand at his other venues too. We met Steve when he was up in Newcastle and over a Pacific Ale we thought it would be great to do a Stone & Wood inspired burger but instead of us using the beer in a sauce or relish we thought why not get the brewer (Caolan Vaughan) to come up with some ideas for a burger he would like to eat with his beers.
What is this beautiful creation?
So we took Caolan’s idea of a burger with chicken skin, Fioregras, caramelized onion and added a few of our thoughts to create this week’s Burger of the Week – Burger Bun – chicken liver pate – Red onion jam – Roast chicken skin seasoning – Chicken remoulade (poached chicken with mayo, mustard, tomato relish, pickles, capers, tarragon – Beef patty – Lettuce, tomato, onion, pickle
What style of beer is it best enjoyed with?
I think it works well with both the stone and wood beers we offer. We have both Pacific Ale and Green Coast lager this week to tie in with the burger.
How long is she on the Rascal menu for?
till Wednesday next week
What did you name the burger?
“The Stone & Wood” of course…
Where can we find it?
At Rascal 266 King st Newcastle 2300
Any brews consumed during the making of this burger?
hahahahit was conceptualised over a Pacific Ale! And there is always a responsible amount of beer being consumed here at rascal. I’ve been getting into a lot of the session ales around at the moment. I was also back in South Australia recently and went to the Prancing Pony Brewhouse which was amazing.
Here’s a look at the Stone & Wood x Rascals masterpiece.
Our crew enjoying a “Stone & Wood” burger and beer at Rascals
Blair has contributed 31 years to the independent beer revolution.
WHO IS BLAIR HAYDEN?
There are pioneers among us who have paved the way towards today’s burgeoning beer industry…This annual limited release is a tribute to theseForefathers.
This year’s Forefather is Blair Hayden, a publican and patriarch ofone of the oldest pubs in Sydney. Refusing to bow to what beers should line the taps, he built a brewery so he could pour his own. 31 years later, Blair’s contributed to the independent beer revolution.
We had the pleasure of meeting the passionate and animated Blair Hayden when he was in town to brew this year’s Forefathers release alongside our co-founder Brad and our brewers Sam and Caolan.
Using the finest English Maris Otter malt, Blair and the boys brewed an English Pale Ale. With hints of citrus zest from the addition of bergamot tea, the spicy and floral hop aroma is balanced with a medium bitterness.
Get to know this lovable legend, watch our latest Forefathers video featured above.
Check out our venue listing below for where to find this year’s Forefathers beer, it will be hitting shelves and pouring through taps at select bottle shops and pubs across the country from this week. Alternatively, you’ll be able to purchase through ouronline store.
SHARE A BEER WITH BLAIR…
Share a beer with the year’s Forefather at his brewery and pub,The Lord Nelson. This Thursday 24 August, join him and some of our crew from 6pm to share a few and talk all things beer…
Jasper Ale joins Beers From Our Backyard as a rich red hoppy ale...
JASPER ALE
Paying homage to the hinterland village Federal, once known as Jasper.
You may have noticed that our Jasper Ale has changed….It has joined the Beers From Our Backyard range, meaning it looks different and we’ve tweaked the recipe.
The unique brews from Beers From Our Backyard celebrate the landmarks of the Northern Rivers, so it only made sense for Jasper Ale to join the range. Inspired by the one street town called Federal, that is perched up in the hills, the land around this area of our backyard (once known as Jasper) is rich in volcanic soil that in some parts are the colour of the label and the beer.
Bigger and bolder, we’re stoked to see our Jasper Ale sit alongside Cloud Catcher and our limited release new age lager Big Scrub (coming out in September) by becoming a hoppy red ale.
The tropical fruit aromas of our Northern Rivers backyard come from the generous additions of Galaxy, Enigma and Mosaic hops. These are balanced with a smooth and velvety mouthfeel from the selection of roasted malts that give hints of caramel, toffee and hazelnut, finishing with a firm bitterness.
Tune intoour Facebookthis Thursday, August 3rd at 6 pm. We’ll be going live with our head brewer Caolan and our tasting room manager Cale to discuss all Jasper Ale updates, and the reason behind the new Jasper Ale look and taste.
You can spot a “wood sniffer” by the way their eyes light up when they spot a piece of timber. Their rough hands run tenderly along the fibres and you can see the satisfaction when they take a big ol’ whiff. They have a grounded passion and appreciation in the potential of transforming a lump of local wood into something special…
As a part of The Way It Should Be series, our latest film follows fifth generation wood sniffer, Andy Ceglinski from sawmill to surf.
Profiling people who’ve gravitated to the Northern Rivers for a more conscious lifestyle, the series tells the stories of locals and their connection to our community, the environment and their craft…
“It seemed like such a rewarding idea to be able to mill the wood and handcraft this board then surf it…It’s a combination of all the things I love.”
Andy’s sustainable approach is not to make a heap of surfboards to sell and pocket millions of dollars. He’d rather enjoy the experience of making a quality product, and he’d be stoked if he could after it all, make a humble living from it.
For us, Andy’s story reminds us of our own. Many of our team, have chosen to move to the Northern Rivers for the life it offers, to work with purpose and be a part of this special community. This area has helped us bring to life our philosophies around what was great about village breweries, and what a conscious business should be.
“Like any good honourable business, we’re trying to do good things for the community and for the environment.”
Watch Andy’s humbling story through his approach to doing business and how he sees his responsibility as a leader in the community.
Board Designs: Joel Fitzgerald & Dana Watson. Surfers: Joel Fitzgerald, Dana Watson, Andy Ceglinksi Supported by:Joel Fitzgerald
Joining our comrades across the ditch for a brew or two...
We’re heading your way for Auckland Beer Week, NZ! Come say kia ora at one of the event listings below. We’ll be pouring at Brewers Co Op during our Tap Takeover, sharing a couple of oysters and brews with Brothers Beer Orakei and rolling out the Pilot Batches at NZ GABS Festival to wrap up the tour. Event listings and dates as follows:
14 June| Stone and Wood Tap Takeover,Brewers Co Op, NZ
In the lead up to NZ’s GABS Festival, our mates over at Brewers Co Op have invited us to take over their taps with some beers from our backyard plus, this year’s Stone Beer. Kicking off at 4 p.m., you’ll find us tucking into the best fish and chips in Auckland while sipping back on our Cloudcatcher. Come say hey!
The boys atBrothers Beer Orakeihave opened their doors to us to help us showcase Stone Beer, shucks some two buck oysters and meet the good folk of Auckland.
We are paddling over to NZ to join some of their best breweries at this year’s GABS Festival. Featuring over 300 different beers, GABS NZ will one of the nation’s best weekends. Check out theirwebsiteand come and say kia ora.
There’s something about throwing it back to the way things were that helps us understand the way it should be.
And through the ancient process of brewing ourStone Beer, to the community celebration that isFestival of the Stone, that’s exactly what we’re aiming for.
Have a listen as our Head Brewer Caolan talks about this year’s brew, and the limited-edition 2016 barrel-aged Stone Beer we’ve been keeping very quiet..
