Former Exeter Hotel staff Jade Flavell, Liz O’Dea and the late Emily Trott bought the rundown Wheatsheaf Hotel in Thebarton 2003 and set about making it a leading pub for edgy beers and whiskies from around Australia and the globe.

After 11 years playing a major role in advancing Adelaide’s emerging craft beer scene, the trio decided to start brewing their own beer and the Wheaty Brewing Corps was launched in July 2014 in the form of a 600-litre Brewhouse with three single-batch fermenters.

“It had always been our plan to build a brewery and we had to make a decision whether we would put in a kitchen or a brewery – we made the right decision,” head brewer Flavell said during the Australian Craft Brewers Conference at the Adelaide Convention Centre yesterday.

“The brewery was part of the evolution for us.

“I’ve got plenty of dubious beer theories that I’ve been testing out over the past 14 years and to be able to subject paying customers to them is a lot of fun.”

The Wheatsheaf – commonly known as the Wheaty – has 13 taps in its front bar, of which six are typically pouring its own brews. It has also recently installed a shipping container bar for weekend use featuring a further six taps of house beers.

The bar still features many authentic pub attributes such as a pool table, dart board and regular live music.

“We also have a beer truck on the way, which we hope to be on the road by summer,” Flavell said.

Since it opened three years ago the brewery has produced 80 different beers from about 170 batches.

Some of the more offbeat brews produced alongside regulars such as IPAs, stouts, saisons and bitters include an anchovy IPA and a whisky-barrel-aged breakfast stout.

Flavell said the in-house retail model was the only way a brewery of its size could be profitable, and took the complications of logistics and distribution out of the equation.

However, she said while there was no intention to enter the wholesale market, the brewery was looking to add a couple more fermenters to stabilise its own supply.

“If we like them and if the punters like them then we brew them again – market research is the front bar,” she said.

“If someone wants a beer they give me money and I put it in the till; I’m not chasing customers for three months to pay their bills.

“We figure it doesn’t get much fresher than drinking it in the shadow of the brewery in which it was brewed.”

Another SA craft brewery to shine at the awards, presented at Adelaide Oval, was Pirate Life, which produces its hoppy brews just down the road from The Wheaty in Hindmarsh.

Released in 500ml cans nationally in June, Pirate Life’s Mosaic IPA has quickly become a regular in the stable and was last night crowned 2017 Australian Champion in the hotly contested IPA category.

Pirate Life CEO Michael Cameron said the IPA, made using Mosaic hops, had a defined intensity that showcased the variety.

“We’ve got a rock-star team of brewers and to be able to produce a single hop variety like Mosaic with such balance and intensity of flavour is fantastic,” he said.

The success follows on from a strong showing in 2016 by Pirate Life when it was awarded Champion Large Brewery and Champion Pale Ale.

The Dainton Family Brewery’s Cherrywood Smoked Baltic Porter from Victoria was named 2017 Champion Australian Craft Beer at the awards.

Other best-in-category award winners were: Champion Pale Ale, Philter Brewing’s XPA; Champion Amber Dark Ale, Eagle Bay Brewing Company’s Black IPA; Champion Wheat, Feral Brewing Co’s Watermelon Warhead; Champion Specialty Beer, Rocks Brewing Co’s Conviction Pale Ale; Champion Lager, Australian Beer Company’s Yenda Crisp Lager; Champion IPA, Pirate Life’s Mosaic IPA; and Champion French & Belgian Styles to Black Font Brewhouse’s Organic Saison de Ville.

4 Pines Brewing Co (Sydney) was named Champion Brewery – Large, while Fixation Brewing Co (Byron Bay) was named Champion Brewery – Medium.

The Service to Craft Beer Awards gong went to Blair Hayden from the Lord Nelson Brewery.

About 400 delegates attended the three-day Australian Craft Beer Conference at the Adelaide Convention Centre.

The Royal Adelaide Beer & Cider Awards will be presented tonight to kick off the Beer & BBQ festival at the Adelaide Showgrounds.

Andrew Spence is a journalist at The Lead.