The last few weeks here in Brisvegas we were lucky enough to get a reprieve from the ghastly EKKA westerly winds and have even managed to nab ourselves a decent chunk of sunshine and warm weather.

While cut-off skinny jeans show off the vitamin D starved winter legs of those unsure if its yet time to actually purchase shorts, we find ourselves tucking our slow cookers back in their hibernating cupboards and WD40-ing up our BBQ hinges.

Cricket whites hang fancy-free off hill hoists, and our neighbours don their floppy hats proudly, cutting their grass and cursing out the frangipanis clogging up the lawn. And while Gay Waterhouse is undoubtly getting her prime brood ready, us beer and food lovers prepare ourselves for the onslaught of the Spring Tasting Carnival.

Fresh local caught seafood, tender lamb cutlets, shoots, herbs and micro greens lend themselves to us on an array of colourful, vibrant dishes and our craft beer bars stock up on session-able ales, pilsners, wheat beers and super hoppy IPA’s to relinquish our thirsty palates with remnants of citrus, pine and banana.

It’s almost time Australian beer lovers to trade our domestic cooking confines and break free. Flood ourselves into parks, backyards, beaches and grassy Knowles. Swap the pots and pans for webbers, flat grills, chargrills , wheelbarrows anything that will conduct enough heat to grill our lamb burgers and brulee our mangoes.

So, Gay Waterhouse and craft beer lovers, I proudly raise my Nogne Batch 500 and toast to what is gearing up to be a thoroughbred of a spring and offer up a spring seafood salad and beer match.

Spring Sandcrab Salad

• 100g fresh sandcrab
• ¼ cup toasted coconut
• ¼ cup roasted peanuts
• 1 bunch coriander
• 1 bunch Vietnamese mint
• 100g snow pea tendrils
• ¼ carrot julienne
• ¼ red capsicum julienne

Salad dressing

• ½ fresh lime squeezed
• ¼ cup good quality olive oil
• 1 fresh birdseye chilli

Perfect beer pairing : Garage Project Death from above Indo-chine pale ale.