Arabic version: زجاجات بواغز الأخيرة تنهي صناعة الجعة في لونسيستون

According to ABC News, the last Tasmanian-brewed Boag’s beers were bottled at the Launceston factory, ending 145 years of local production. The final longnecks left the packaging line ahead of the brewery’s planned closure on November 6, which will take 42 local jobs. Brewing at the site finished in September.

Lion, which bought the brand in 2008 for $325 million and is owned by Japanese beer company Kirin, announced in June that it would end brewing operations in Launceston. The company cited inflation and long-term declines in beer sales. Much of Boag’s production had already moved interstate the previous year, leaving the Launceston operation working at one-fifth capacity.

Boag’s began as the Esk Brewery in 1881, founded by Scottish migrant James Boag and his son, James Boag II. The brand will continue to be brewed in Victoria, New South Wales and Queensland, making Tasmania an importer of its long-established beer icon. Tour guide Phil Crowden said technology could replicate water from particular places, while Lion plans to match Tasmanian water’s mineral count as closely as possible.

Decommissioning of the brewing equipment is expected to begin after the November closure and take about 12 months. Lion is considering whether equipment from the Launceston site could be used at other locations. The Tasmanian government has expressed interest in buying the large central Launceston site, while the Boag’s Brewhouse taphouse and museum will remain open beyond November.