What a weekend it was for Byron Bay Surf Festival – the surf was on, the sun was out and the sea folk were frothing! It was three fun-filled days with the sun greeting us each morning, rising over The Bay.

We were stoked to support it and be a part of the energy that radiated around the town from the local community and surf crew who were keen to connect, celebrate surf culture as inclusive, creative and conscious.

Saturday 24 March, Byron’s local community and surf lovers from all over rolled onto the foreshore of Main Beach. The morning air was filled with good vibes and stoke, as stall owners flocked to their sites to set up for the salty crowds and a weekend of fun! Byron Bay Surf Festival was back, the sun was out, the beach was dreamy…surf culture was alive and well!
The event schedule during the days was packed with an eclectic mix of markets, yoga retreats, arts, good food, community talks, and of course, surfing. The balmy nights full of magic, film, live music, art shows, fun and a few cold frothies…

Friday night, kicked off with The Sunset Cinema. Setting the tone for the weekend, the screening attracted a few hundred of the community, who gathered on picnic rugs under the stars for the Australian premiere of award-winning film, Given, alongside our short film, Where We live. The good vibes carried throughout Saturday at the Tipi markets and into the night as the world renowned G. Love graced the stage at The Beachy, jamming to a smiling crowd of friends and family who sung and danced to his funky tunes!

Early Sunday surf sessions kicked off the next morning as the waves pumped at Wategos Beach. Comps ran all day, open to young and old, experienced and inexperienced. Everyone was there for a good time and to enjoy the sport that brought the community together. The day was filled with pure happiness, freestyling your own creativity through any choice of surf craft. New friends were made as boards were swapped and wax rubbed various longboards, fishes, shortboards and anything that floated.

As the sun set over the hinterland that afternoon, and the festival came to a close, the same stoke lingered in the air…
Until next year Byron Bay Surf Fest, you were epic!

We captured the vibes over the three days and found out what the festival meant to our local community and the salty sea folk, check out our wrap-up video.

Have you ever heard the tale of the Murwillumbah Swamp Beer?  It’s a story that’ll make you smile and thirst for a beer.

Good Friday 2001 – a day that will go down in history for the community of Murwillumbah, and the birth date of the infamous Murbah Swamp beer.

At 2.00 a.m a truck carrying over 40,000 bottles of beer ran off the road and crashed into a river along Tweed Valley Way. The load of beer was cut loose to pull the truck from the water but the salvage operation was postponed by police due to the heavy Easter traffic along the highway.

As the word spread across town, the locals of Murbah took the clean up into their own hands with a mission to rescue every last beer that entered their river. The amateur rescue operation consisted of anything that floated; canoes, bodyboards, boats, eskys and jetskis to surface and save the beers. By the time the police salvage divers came to the crash site, there was not a beer to be seen, and the small town of Murbah celebrated the Easter long weekend over many cold brews and stories about their involvement in the great Murbah beer salvage.

The news made national headlines putting the town of Murwillumbah on the map. The mini doco above features key characters of the Murbah community telling the story of the greatest event to hit the small Northern Rivers town.

Here at Stone & Wood, we love a good story, especially one that brings the community together. So to celebrate the epic occasion, we’ve brewed an exclusive Pilot Batch to commemorate the Murbah Swamp Beer which will be tapped at our Murwillumbah Brewery Open Day, March 4.

Come along with the family to the Murbah Open Day and support the community’s charity of choice, The Wedgetail Retreat and Tweed Palliative Support with a gold coin entry donation. Enjoy brewery tours, entertainment (Dos Loona, Holly Tapp and Tim Schou), food (JR’s Smokehouse, The Backyard Chef, Keith Coffee & Barber) drinks ($5 beers, water and soft drinks) and some fun for the kids. Gates open from 11am-5pm (NSW time). We’ll see ya there!

Check out our Murwillumbah Open Day details.

We’re all visitors…

Profiling passionate people who’ve gravitated to the Northern Rivers for a more conscious lifestyle, The Way It Should Be series tells the stories of locals and their connection to our community, the environment and their craft.

Our latest video, featuring coastal custodian Dave Rastovich, reminds us that we are all visitors on this Earth and so we have a collective responsibility.

Rasta’s message is that by being conscious and treading lightly, we can move forward as individuals, as conscious businesses and as communities.

He shares his passion for the ecology of the Northern Rivers, its eclectic community and the growing number of businesses doing good.

For us, it’s about walking the path together. It’s a long journey and undoubtedly we will continue to make some mistakes but it’s about taking steps in the right direction and helping others along the way.

We’re so lucky to call the Northern Rivers home and we hope you can share the stoke and be inspired by this special place and its people too.

Learn more about some of the steps we’re taking through our B-corp accreditation.

At Stone & Wood we are building a sustainable brewing business that the good people of the Northern Rivers can be proud of.  We are also determined to build the best brewing team in the country, and are really proud of the dedication and enthusiasm of our crew. This is your chance to join our team and learn to brew with a great bunch of people who’ll be there to help coach and mentor you along the way.

Whether you are a graduate who’s recently discovered a passion for beer, a hobby home brewer thinking about going pro, or a seasoned brewer looking to take their experience to the next level, we’d love to hear from you!

What’s on offer?

The right candidates will be offered a full-time role adapted to suit their current skills and experience and where they would then sit within our brewing team.

Stone & Wood offers a brewer’s development program, which is in place to provide a pathway for individual professional and personal development.  We provide on the job mentorship as well as fully funded education and training in order to help our team become the best brewers they can be.

What to do?

Have a look around our website and social platforms to get some insight into what makes us tick…

Write a concise cover letter that includes:

• an example or two of how you fit with the culture and ethos of Stone & Wood
• which Stone & Wood beer is your favourite and why, and
• what you really love about brewing beer or the beer industry

Send your application with cover letter and resume to jobs@stoneandwood.com.au

Applications close midnight on the 2^nd of November 2016