Josh Kerr, International man of Brewery

Words by Morgan Williamson 

It comes as no surprise that Mr Josh Kerr is a beer man. He, along with other notable investors in San Diego’s Saint Archer Brewing Co recently added some fluff to their bank accounts. “Everyone involved did well,” Josh tells Stab. “I don’t know if I’m allowed to disclose the amount but… let’s just say I got paid out pretty well. I’m sure everyone’s wishing they put in more money initially now… I know that I am,” he laughs.

That undisclosed payout, according to Stab’s carrier pigeons is upwards of 1.5 million. St Archer was bought out by MillerCoors back in September; the same folk who bring us Dos Equis, Coors, Miller, Guinness and more. “After Taylor Knox got involved with Josh Landon (the founder) in the early stages they approached me about being a part of it,” Kerrzy says on his share. “It sounded pretty good, I don’t know why I wouldn’t want to be involved in beer.” Josh Landon initially partnered up with Paul Rodriguez and Mikey Taylor in 2013. They had a quick path to success and now the likes of Taylor Knox, Dusty Payne, Eric Koston, Jack Freestone, Todd Richards, Laura Enever and Pat Moore have now have a cushy payout to bask in.

The men behind Balter Brewing Co. Joel, Kerrzy, Mick and Bede.

This is just one of Kerrzy’s first hop-based ventures. “I’d like to play around with some more start ups,” he tells Stab. “My passion is to have a part in more companies and invest in cool opportunities, I’d like to be the founder of a few things.” He, Mick Fanning, Joel Parkinson and Bede Durbidge have their own brewing company, Balter, which will be hitting the market in the next few weeks. “The brewery I’m doing in Australia with Mick, Joel and Bede is my biggest focus right now,” Josh says. “Balter Brewing came into fruition about a year ago, and we’re getting ready to pour our first beers really soon. Originally Bede wanted to put a brewery on Straddie (Stradbroke Island) which is a cool little island off Queensland. It’s where Bede’s from. That idea got us getting the boys involved and putting one on the Goldie.” They teamed up with Scott Hargrave of Byron Bay’s Stone and Wood Brewing Company who’s “arguably one of the best brewers in Australia,” Josh says. “Scotty was a big part of the team that made Pacific Ale for Stone and Wood, which is one of the most loved craft beers in Australia.”

“Our facility and tasting room’s in Currumbin,” Mr Kerr continues. “It’s the coolest industrial area in Oz; three minutes from the beach, three minutes from the beautiful Currumbin Valley and it’s about a minute off the freeway. It’s a perfect stop for anybody heading North or South. The brewery’s amazing and our first kegs will be hitting the market soon. Our first production brew is a XPA (extra pale ale). It’s not safe in a way, but it’s not too aggressive either. It’s just a nice and hoppy beer. That’ll be our initial market product but the tasting room will have a little bit of everything.”

“The original plan with Balter was to start out small,” Kerrzy says. “But we were able to raise a bunch of capital and turn it into something bigger. It’s a destination tasting room at the moment, we have to capability to add a restaurant in the future but we don’t want to get too far ahead of ourselves. It’s just something I really enjoy being a part of. Like I said before, who doesn’t want to be involved in beer? I wish I would’ve got into it sooner.”