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Beer jug to quench all thirst

Doug Gowers. Picture: Simon Santi/The West Australian

Perth's craft beer revolution has entered its next stage, with bottle shops offering take-home tap beer to thirsty drinkers.

Using hefty jugs known as "growlers", beer aficionados can now bring home some of the State's rarer craft brews.

The 2L jugs allow the boutique breweries to showcase beers they may not otherwise bottle and release them commercially.

Cellarbrations Willagee manager Douglas Gowers said the growlers had become very popular since they were first sold last year.

"The craft segment has really been increasing in sales for the past five years," he said.

After the first purchase, the growler can be brought back for a refill costing anywhere from $10 to $18, depending on the beer of choice.

Popular brews include limited release ales from Mash, Colonial and Nail breweries, as well as international offerings from the US and Denmark.

While it's the smaller bottle shops providing the service in Perth, growlers have begun to attract the interest of bigger players. Woolworths is trialling the jugs at two of its Dan Murphy's stores in Victoria.

"As a beer lover, I felt we needed to do more to showcase quality craft beer," Woolworths beer category leader Ian Kingham said.

"We have a great relationship with the guys in WA and we'd definitely be thinking about offering growlers somewhere like the Sail and Anchor in Fremantle."

But he said the cost of the installing the equipment and the desire to keep the growlers as a premium product meant any national roll-out would be a gradual one.