If you ask us, the drinks taste better when they come with a carbon-neutral certification.
You and me, we don’t shop like we did in the carefree old days. Whether it’s a bottle of wine or a bar of soap, the research shows we care more than ever about the environmental impact of our buying. Sustainability is up there with health, safety and affordability in terms of what we look for when purchasing, which makes claims like being carbon neutral a big draw – if we actually get what we’re looking for.
You’ve probably heard of greenwashing, where brands make it seem like they’re doing more for the environment than they really are. It’s a dodgy way to take advantage of our good intentions (the ACCC is on the war path, thankfully), but there are some great drinks brands with carbon-neutral policies backed by genuine certification.
Climate Active is Australia’s government-led certifier of carbon-neutral practices and they’re very clear on what it means. To put it plainly, it confirms that the making of your product results in no net release of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere. It’s not the same as zero emissions – which means you emit no carbon at all (and is basically impossible when it comes to manufacturing anything). What it does mean, in terms of Climate Active’s certification, is that the greenhouse gas emissions that a business is responsible for (and with three types of emissions, it’s quite a complex calculation) need to be reduced as much as possible, and anything remaining needs to be offset. Carbon offsets are themselves a complex topic, but basically it’s about investing in activities that prevent, reduce or remove emissions. Climate Active requires that certified companies purchase offsets equal to any emissions they themselves can’t cut down, otherwise it ain’t carbon neutral.
Thankfully, the process of getting certified by Climate Active is no box-ticking exercise, so shoppers like us can rely on the trademark to let us know if it’s the real deal or not. While there are plenty of green brands out there with the certification, we’ve picked out a few of our favourites.
Bodriggy Brewing Co.
The Melbourne suburb of Abbotsford is thick with quality breweries but, with its recent carbon-neutral certification (the first brewery in Victoria with that distinction and second in Australia), Bodriggy has just about put itself over the top. From its auto mechanic workshop-turned-brewery bar home, Bodriggy has made its reputation on the back of psychedelic can art and inventive beer styles (we love the Cosmic Microwave NEIPA), but it's doing itself no harm with some added enviro credentials. The team (pictured above) purchased carbon offsets for its emissions in 2022 and intends to cut emissions by 30% by 2030.
Capital Brewing Co.
Craft beer has always been about great beer and pushing boundaries, and it’s fair to say that Canberra’s Capital Brewing Co. has a hefty dose of both. Australia’s first certified carbon-neutral brewery has, in its own words, ‘gone the whole hog’ in reducing its carbon emissions at every conceivable point, from packaging and freight to office paper and the daily commute. Add that to a line-up of brews like the flagship Coast Ale (AKA #18 in the last GABS Hottest 100) and it’s hard to go wrong.
LARGO
The indie rock brothers behind Lime Cordiale – AKA Oli and Louis Leimbach – aren’t content with Triple J Hottest 100 victories and sold-out tours. As they told Dan’s Daily, “It’s every kid’s dream to grow up to have their own beer,” (mine was actually to play full forward for Richmond, not that you’re asking) and, with LARGO, consider it another dream fulfilled. The two LARGO brews – Clean Lager and low-carb The Dawdler – are light, easygoing and, best of all, certified carbon neutral. And they’re not just off-setting carbon for the social credits, either, with the brothers reducing the energy use of their brews all across the process, from using cans instead of bottles to powering their brewery with solar panels.
Hither & Yon
Leask brothers Richard and Malcolm are the brains behind Hither & Yon, South Australia’s first certified carbon-neutral winery. Since kicking off in 2011, the McLaren Vale winery has had a dual focus on producing bloody delicious wines that express its region, and doing so in a way that doesn’t harm the environment. It’s fair to say that the Leasks are kicking goals on both fronts, with wines like their rustic, full-bodied shiraz and juicy touriga tempranillo, and a carbon-neutral certification since 2021 to go with regenerative agriculture and promoting biodiversity in the vineyard.
Lark Distillery
Lark Distillery founder Bill Lark is a proper legend in Australian spirits, just about single-handedly paving the way for the big, beautiful scene we have now (it wasn’t even legal to distil in Tasmania before Lark got the go-ahead in 1992). It’s another feather in the Lark cap, then, that the distillery has been certified carbon neutral by Climate Active, a step to preserve the natural beauty and whisky-making resources of the distillery’s Tassie home. After all, without cool-climate barley and crystal-clear local waters, drams like Lark’s Symphony Malt Whisky might not be around forever.
Four Pillars
It should come as no surprise that Four Pillars is certified carbon neutral. Walk into the distillery’s massive, upgraded Healesville home in Victoria’s Yarra Valley and little touchpoints of sustainability are everywhere. The site is 100% run on renewable energy that is enhanced by an energy-saving copper veil around the whole venue, gin-flavouring botanicals are planted everywhere and the building is made from recycled concrete. It’s a credit to the business that, even as it continues to grow, sustainability has remained top of the to-do. And that gin is still as great as ever BTW, with classics like the Rare Dry and Bloody Shiraz joined by an endless list of one-offs and collabs.
