Port Macquarie friends and co-workers shake off tax hike to toast International Beer Day

Today (August 5), the Port Macquarie-Hastings community is raising a glass to International Beer Day, despite the industry facing its largest tax hike in more than 30 years.

International Beer Day was kicked off in 2007 by a group of craft beer lovers in San Francisco, California, who felt that it was necessary to pay homage to the almighty beer on a global scale.

The purpose is to gather with friends and enjoy the deliciousness that is beer, to honor the dedicated men and women who brew and serve our beer and to bring the world together by toasting beers of all nations and cultures.

Port Macquarie's Wicked Elf Beer employee Dan Kelly said International Beer Day is a great day to celebrate and support local breweries.

"It's always good to celebrate local beer," he said. "It's great that it landed on a Friday as well so people can come for a a beer and celebrate our industry."

Tax in beer increased by more than $2 a litre on Monday (August 1), from $53.59 per litre of alcohol to $55.73.

Tax on cartons has also risen by 80 cents to $18.80, while tax on the cost of a keg jumped by $4, raising the cost to almost $74.

While the tax hike has been devastating for some businesses, Mr Kelly said their business has managed to escape the worst of it.

READ MORE: Beer drinkers to be slugged biggest tax hike in 30 years

"We're lucky that we're a local brewery, so we get a lot of advantages from that," he said. "While we're producing local beer that is coming out of Port Macquarie, we manage to do our our best when it comes to tax increases."

Mr Kelly said the difference between a good beer and a bad one is "passion".

"It's really about the passion in what you do and in your craft, that really makes all the difference," he said.

Meanwhile, Finnian's Irish Tavern barista Ebony Finn has her own secret recipe for a good beer.

"A good beer is always made with love, care and a smile," she said.

Beer lover Dan Perry said although the drinks taste bittersweet today after hearing the news of the recent tax hike, he prefers to not think about it too much.

"I think the more I drink the more I'll forget about that to be honest," he said.

"When you go to buy a beer, you don't want to know how much it costs, you just want to hand the card over and take the beer... I think that's what I'll be doing from now on."