By Leigh O’Connor.
Two Doors Brewing is where people come together to enjoy camaraderie with great beer – and all for a good cause!
Located on High Street in bustling Ashburton Village, Two Doors is the first wine bar and brewery in the area since the ‘dry zone’ was declared in the 1920s.
Inspired by Melbourne’s COVID lockdowns and the lack of watering holes within walking distance, owners Andy and Rach Yates established the brewery as a place run by locals for locals.
In a previous life, Andy lived in East Africa for four years, spending most of his time in Tanzania doing anti-poaching and conversation work, while Rach grew up on a dairy farm in Victoria, playing music and singing at various community events with her siblings.
Translate that to the present and the couple is dedicated to giving back to the community through their Community Taps program – where special nights at the brewery raise money for local schools and kinders.
"Community Taps came about when we started talking about how we could give back to our local community, who have been instrumental in supporting our small business over the last year,” they say.
"It is our version of how the Trappist Brewery in Belgium which would brew beer to feed to the local community and fund charitable works. Initially, we are supporting local schools and kinders within walking distance of the brewery; there are lots of young families in the area and improving playground equipment seems to be a common theme coming through.”
Groups can book in for a fund-raising night at the brewery and the feedback so far has been extremely positive. Check Two Doors’ socials for updates on the next Community Taps nights.
Named after the two doors on the yard brewing shed, Andy brews small batch handcrafted beers such as his own favourite stout – best enjoyed with a stout pie – while Rach can only enjoy gluten-free options such as almond stout as she is a coeliac, along with one of the couple’s twins.
"It’s great when a customer is a coeliac and comes to the bar because we can provide them with lots of options – everyone deserves a great beer and why should coeliacs be any different,” the couple says.
"We bring in great gluten-free beer from Two Bays and O’Brien’s and our own GF beer is super good, so it’s definitely one to try when it is on tap.”
Having lived in Ashburton for 11 years, there were only so many times the couple heard ‘someone needs to open a bar’ before they decided it would be them to take the plunge.
Andy has always been interested in exploring different beer styles and would spend his spare time at home creating different brews as a hobby which soon grew into something more during COVID lockdowns and they decided to give the brewery idea ‘a crack’.
"We’re just getting started and have so many plans for the future. It revolves around creating a friendly place where locals feel like it’s an extension of their home. We’re both from rural Victoria, so creating a friendly community feel is really important to us.
"It reminds us of going to the pub when we were younger; you walk in and see a stack of people you know.”
In the meantime, you’ll find the Yates family at home growing vegetables, fruit and looking after five cheeky chickens!
