In 1877, the Fitzgerald brothers of Castlemaine, Victoria bought the site of a failing distillery in Milton and created a brewery, which they named after their home town and its eponymous brewery. They began to brew beer there in the following year and the brewery continues production to this day.
Castlemaine's signature beer, XXXX Bitter (despite its name a lager), was introduced in 1924. The XXXX had been used for a sparkling ale since 1878.
Castlemaine Perkins was acquired in 1992 by drinks conglomerate Lion Nathan.
XXXX (pronounced four-eks) is a brand of beers brewed in Milton, Brisbane by Queensland brewers, CastlemainePerkins.
The XXXX brand was launched in 1924 by then Castlemaine Brewers, later merged to form CastlemainePerkins.
XXXX has been brewed in the CastlemainePerkins Milton Brewery since its introduction and from the start has featured an artist's sketch (later very stylised) of this brewery on the label.
The brew was met with strong approval by the local newspaper, the Brisbane Courier, as it was called then, which described the beer as “a delicious ale, of the brightest amber, pleasant to taste, with a peculiarity of flavour not easily described, and an aroma of an appetising nature by itself”.
Although a “Castlemaine (XXXX) Sparkling Prize Ale” had been produced at Milton from the early 1880’s (it won a “Special Prize ” at the First International Exhibition in Sydney in 1883), it was not until the financial crash of the early 1890’s that the first trade mark showing four X’s was applied for.
CastlemainePerkins continued to grow, as did the sales of XXXX Bitter Ale, until 1970 when the range was expanded with the introduction of XXXX Draught.
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