Barley grown in Adelaide Botanic Garden is a key ingredient in a new limited edition beer being brewed today by Coopers Brewery and the Lobethal Bierhaus.

Botanic Ale is a collaboration between Coopers, the Lobethal Bierhaus and the Botanic Gardensof South Australia. It is the first time Coopers has collaborated with another brewery in the development of a new beer.

Only 1200 litres of Botanic Ale will be produced, with proceeds from sales going to the Botanic Gardens.

Navigator barley grown and harvested in Adelaide Botanic Garden has been malted by Joe White Maltings, now part of Cargill Australia, and forms the basis for Botanic Ale, which is being developed by brewers from Coopers and the Lobethal Bierhaus.

Navigator is a barley variety developed by the University of Adelaide’s barley breeding program.

The beer will be sold through the Lobethal Bierhaus and the Botanic Gardens Restaurant and is expected to be available in bottle and keg from 29 October.

Coopers’ Managing Director, Dr Tim Cooper, said Coopers had sponsored the barley crop in Adelaide’s CBD to further the objective of the Botanic Gardens to connect the community with plants, agriculture and food.

“The Botanic Gardens successfully grew the barley crop and we agreed to work with them to turn the barley into beer,” he said.

“The amount of barley available was too small for us to process through our brewery, so we lookedfor alternatives and our friends at the Lobethal Bierhaus had the right equipment for the job.

“We approached them about collaborating with us on the project and Alistair Turnbull, the owner and brewer of the Lobethal Bierhaus, was happy to help.”

Mr Turnbull said Botanic Ale would be craft pale ale using some “fun” hops to create a unique beer.

“I’m delighted to be working with Coopers and the Botanic Gardens on what is a unique project,”he said.

The Director of the Botanic Gardens of South Australia, Stephen Forbes, said Botanic Ale was an opportunity to demonstrate how plants are utilised in daily life and connect urban communities to the farming industry.

“Our visitors watched the barley crop grow, experiencing agriculture in the heart of the city, and through the production of Botanic Ale are able to make the link between cultivating a crop and creating a great product,” he said.

Botanic Ale is expected to be bottled later this month, with a special label having been designed tomark the collaboration.

Coopers Brewery is the largest remaining Australian owned brewer and last financial year produced a record 75.3 million litres of beer.

Lobethal Bierhaus is a craft brewery which opened in May 2007. It produces about 150,000 litres of beer a year sold through its cellar door and on-site restaurant on the main street of Lobethal, as well as in 150 local and interstate venues.

The Botanic Gardens of South Australia manages Adelaide, Mount Lofty and Wittunga Botanic Gardens and undertakes a range of scientific, education and community programs to connect people with plants.