Lion is joining forces with Marrickville craft brewer Batch Brewing Co to produce a special limited-edition beer to celebrate the day NSW meets its vaccine threshold. 

The initiative follows Lion announcing it will credit pubs and clubs for full, unused kegs that will never see a schooner due to Greater Sydney battling a nine-week lockdown.

Earlier this month ClubsNSW and Australia CEO Josh Landis called on the NSW Government to name the percentage of vaccinations needed to allow us to get back to normal life and pledged a free beer for anybody who has been fully vaccinated on this day.

The “Freedom Day” campaign is the brainchild of Landis and Co-Founder of Batch Brewing Co, Andrew Fineran, who came up with the idea during a catch up with mates over virtual drinks during this latest lockdown.  

“We want to make sure that Australians never have to endure another COVID-19 lockdown again,” said Clubs CEO Josh Landis. “To do that, we need everyone to literally roll up their sleeves and get vaccinated — and what better way to encourage them than with a free beer at their local club!

“Clubs are all about supporting the health and wellbeing of their local communities, and we are so grateful to Lion and Batch Brewing Co for getting behind this campaign and helping clubs do what they do best.”  

Lion Managing Director James Brindley (above) said he was only too happy to get behind such an important initiative – not just for clubs and brewers, but for the entire hospitality industry. 

“When Andrew from Batch Brewing Co called me to see if Lion would be able to provide additional production capacity to make this extremely special beer, I couldn’t say yes quickly enough,” Brindley said. 

“I think we are all looking forward to celebrating when we finally reach this important milestone. These venues are the heart of our communities, and there’s nothing better than a cold draught beer with your family and friends at your local.” 

Andrew Fineran, Co-Founder of Batch Brewing Co said the idea was simply to give us all some hope and something to look forward to. 

“We can’t wait to work with Lion’s team at Malt Shovel, including the legendary Dr Chuck Hahn, to make something really special to mark this milestone,” Fineran said. 

Global drinks industry gets behind vaccination push

Earlier this month, Heineken became one of the first brands to openly position itself as being pro-vaccination. It released an ad showing a group of elderly individuals dancing in a nightclub and then frolicking in the sea while drinking beer.

Meanwhile, AB InBev joined with the US Government earlier this year to help the White House reach its goal of having 70% of adults partially vaccinated by July 4. AB InBev promised to buy Americans a round of beer, seltzer or non-alcoholic beverage to celebrate the milestone.

Other initiatives have included Campari Group collaborating with Gruppo MultiMedica to create a corporate vaccination centre in Milan. The centre is designed to vaccinate to the largest possible number of workers of Lombard-region companies, in the shortest time possible.

Pictured main: Josh Landis, Clubs NSW CEO; Allison MacDonald, Malt Shovel Head Brewer; James Brindley, Lion Managing Director; Andrew Fineran, Co-founder of Batch Brewing Co.

How the drinks industry is driving COVID-19 vaccination