Beer with the Brewer — Shambles Brewery

Dec 3, 2025

By Nisha Vashisht

We sat down for a beer with

Cornel Ianculovici
Shambles Brewery

1. How was the brewery named?

After almost a year of looking for the perfect venue for the brewery and taproom, we finally found a vacant building in the heart of Hobart. When we first laid eyes on the venue (former Mundy’s and Sons Butchery), it was like stumbling into a treasure trove of decades-old knick-knacks. We’re talking butchery machines, forgotten whitegoods, endless boxes of tools and spare parts, mattresses, bikes, a framed picture of Julia Roberts, shelves of old paint, phones, TVs, VCRs (remember those?) multiple cars and… let’s just call the rest “misc”. It was a glorious mess, and the first words uttered were “What a shambles!” Little did we know that this word, “shambles,” had a fascinating history. Back in Old English times, it referred to a meat market or a slaughterhouse. In York, there was a street called “The Shambles” where the butchers reigned supreme. The messiness of the area led to the word being colloquially used to describe disorder, chaos and mess. And wouldn’t you know it: our building had a 50+ year history as a meat processing factory, so we couldn’t think of a more fitting name for our brewery

2.What beers do you have at home in your fridge now?

Dances with Hops is my usual go-to, but our latest IPA Fear of a Dank Planet has been my go-to for when I want something bold, and Singularity Hazy Mid for during the week, when I don’t want to go overboard.

3. . Best tip for visiting the brewery?

Just come! We have a different meal deal, trivia or some sort of event every day (from Wednesday to Sunday). If you wanna catch the brewers on site, Friday lunch time is your best bet.

4. Pineapple on pizza, YES or NO?

Fruit in beer? Of course! So why not pineapple on pizza? I’m a fan.

5.. If you can only use one hop for the rest of your life, what is it?

Tough question, but probably Mosaic.

6. If you could collaborate with one other brewery, who would you choose?

Any of the Belgian Trappist breweries. Westvleteren, Rochefort etc..

7.Some occasions call for the ‘perfect’ beer, what are you reaching for:

I love to try new beers all the time, but I’ll answer as if I’m recommending our different beers for different occasions:

a a beach beer? Shambles Summer Ale – Afternoon Delight, the name says it all!
an airport beer? Shambles Larga!
the end of the day beer? Shambles Dances with Hops (our IPA).
the ‘best beer with dinner’ beer? Depends on the dinner! Shambles The Big Guy with red meat, Shambles IPA for curries (and almost anything else… )
to kick back and watch sport with? Shambles Baggy Green Session IPA, full of flavour but lower abv so you know you are in for a great session.

8.What’s the future of craft and can Craft Cartel beer lovers get on board?

mmm… have you seen the news? The future appears to be voluntary administration. Craft Cartel fans can help out by drinking twice as much craft beer and spreading the good word of good beer!

Cheers!