Lion has revealed plans to build a new brewery in Geelong this year for its White Rabbit brand. The new brewery is expected to be open to public by summer this year.

The company says the move and expansion will help meet growing demand for the craft beer brand.

The new brewery will be located at Lion’s Little Creature site, also in Geelong and will feature a unique barrel hall. The unique barrel hall will house new and old wine and spirit barrels that will be used to barrel ferment, sour and develop beer at the brewery. White Rabbit will be the first brewery to use such techniques on a large commercial site in Australia.

The company has also put in for permission to build a cellar door into the site; plans are currently with Geelong City Council. The cellar door will be used to host beer and food tastings with visitors, where visitors will also be able to purchase other White Rabbit products from.

Lion Craft Director, Gordon Treanor said: “Whilst we will greatly miss the charm of Healesville, we are very much looking forward to calling White Rabbit Brewery and Cellar Door, Geelong our new home. It will allow us to grow the White Rabbit brand, increase production and further explore our ethos of “Fermentation with Imagination”.”

Mr. Treanor also said that there are hopes to grow the White Rabbit portfolio now with the additional space and tools to do so. In the meantime, Healesville will remain open until Friday 29 May.

Another brand in the Lion portfolio, James Squire, has also expanded its portfolio this week with the release of a limited edition brew – Red Handed Red Ale. The beer is being served at James Squire Brewhouses around Australia, offering customers a take on the traditional red ale style beer.

Malt Shovel Head Brewer, Chris Sheehan said: “The team at Malt Shovel wanted to play with a traditional style we hadn’t tried before. Red ales can be tricky to balance because you need to find the right malt sweetness and colour, plus we wanted to include a dry hop tweak. That said, we see it as a perfect autumn release.”

James Squire Red Handed Red Ale has been made with Citra and Cascade hops for a mandarin and pine flavour. The rich malty palate also gives flavours of caramel and toffee, as well as a firm bitterness.

Brewhouses serving the beer include The Squire’s Maiden in Newcastle; The Charming Squire, Brisbane; The Generous Squire, Perth; The Squire’s Fortune, Scarborough; The Curios Squire, Adelaide; and The Portland Hotel, Melbourne.