Fremantle’s exciting partnership with Pirate Life has gone to the next level, with the brewery releasing a special edition Wharfie Draught on the eve of the Club’s return to finals in the AFL.
The beer’s first official tasting will be at Thursday’s ‘Power of Sport’ luncheon at Crown Perth, with retail purchases available online from Thursday via the Pirate Life website, as well as all Liquor Barons outlets, Pirate Life’s Perth venue, and a selection of local bottle shops from Friday.
While Pirate Life was established in South Australia, their founders all hail from WA with close ties to the Fremantle Dockers.
Don't miss out! Get your hands on the special edition Wharfie Draught NOW
Founder Michael “MC” Cameron worked at Fremantle between 1997 and 2003 in the Club’s marketing department and his son and co-founder Jack is close childhood friends with Nat Fyfe, with Jack bringing Fyfe on as an early investor in the company.
His daughter Kayte also worked at the Club for five years and his wife Andrea was one of the first administrators of The Derby Club.
“To come back and unite with Fremantle again is really exciting,” MC said.
“I’m looking forward to the launch of the beer and also looking forward to watching Freo’s return to finals and seeing how it all works out together.
“In life, relationships are really important and to have a long-term relationship with Fremantle that can come to fruition by producing the first ever Fremantle Football Club beer is very exciting. Not only from our family’s point of view but for Pirate Life.”
MC strongly believes that the beer can create something that is both meaningful and enjoyable to Freo fans.
Just looking at the can takes you on a virtual journey around the port city, featuring landmarks including the cranes, the ‘containbow’, Freo Markets, Monument Hill, the lighthouse, the Freo Oval grandstands, the John Gerovich statue and a sunset over Bathers Beach.
Don't miss out! Get your hands on the special edition Wharfie Draught NOW
“We’ve put together a beer that’s easy drinking and looks fantastic,” MC said.
“There are so many iconic places around Fremantle on the can. It will give people something to look at as a prompt to tell the story of how great Fremantle really is.
“That’s the key for me, to continue to tell the story about Fremantle, how good a place it is and how much the Fremantle Football Club means to the community.
“The timing couldn’t be better for it to be released for the first finals game. I just want to have fun with it, beer is about fun, enjoyment and bringing people together and hopefully it will do all of those things.”
As a beer designed to tell the story of Fremantle, it’s only fitting that the early seeds of Pirate Life and its relationship with the Club started over two mates sharing a beer in Freo.
Nat and Jack became close friends at Aquinas College, with Jack occasionally staying with the Fyfe family in Lake Grace as well as playing a lot of footy together at school and East Fremantle.
The pair reunited years later after Jack returned from Scotland, where he learnt to be a brewer with co-founder Jared Proudfoot.
“I reconnected with Jack when he was back in Freo and working at Little Creatures, I was living on South Terrace at the time and we’d hang out at a few bars around Freo talking about beer,” Fyfe said.
Don't miss out! Get your hands on the special edition Wharfie Draught NOW
“He was clearly passionate about brewing, and he was keen to start his own business. We were spitballing ideas over a few beers.
“I was keen to support him in whatever way I could…it was about seeing someone’s dream come to life and having a few beers along the way. I couldn’t have anticipated the success the company went on to have.
“There was a lot of enjoyment but also struggle and trial and error in building a brand of counterculture that is Pirate Life. The initial pitch really resonated with me and I’m glad I took it up.”
Fyfe believes both Freo and Pirate Life are coming together at the perfect time.
“Pirate Life and the Fremantle Football Club started from really humble beginnings,” Fyfe said.
“To now see both organisations unite at a time when there is real popularity around them and we’re starting to drive towards September, there’s real synergy and alignment in that. I think our stories go really nicely together.”
While it’s true a lot of draught beers are lagers, the term ‘draught’ actually refers to the method of delivery ie. from the keg to the tap. The Wharfie Draught is in fact a Pale Ale! It's crafted using quality malted barley, wheat, citrusy hops, and a clean fermenting ale yeast.
The result is a super refreshing beer with low bitterness and a gentle fruity lift – ideal for game day or a BBQ with the mates.
As well as being available from Liquor Barons, Pirate Life will be available on tap at these venues from Friday 26 August:
- Pirate Life Perth, CBD
- The Federal Hotel, Fremantle
- 8 Knots, East Fremantle
- The Gate Bar & Bistro, Cockburn
- The Pen, Mandurah
- South Beach Hotel, South Fremantle
- The Local, South Fremantle
- Clancy’s Canning Bridge, Applecross
- Picabar, Northbridge
- The Henley Brook, Henley Brook
- Carringtons Bar and Grill, Hamilton Hill
- Public House, Perth
