In Mackay last week, the biblical Queensland floods almost brought to life Slim Dusty’s dystopian vision of a “pub with no beer”.  The Mackay Daily Mercury reported yesterday (Stocks run low in city):

IT could have been “the pub with no beer” at Harrup Park Country Club this week with stocks running low and floodwaters cutting off main roads and rail lines at Rockhampton.

However, club manager Michael Jones called in last-minute supplies of XXXX Gold and other draught beer from Townsville.

“We were getting low on beer stocks; however, we’ve managed to purchase some from a different location and we’ve been in conversations with our national supplier about making sure that we don’t run out,” Mr Jones said.

Other Mackay businesses are also going to great lengths to ensure demand for supplies are met, with predictions that the Bruce Highway, which is cut at Rockhampton, will not reopen until Thursday.

Cairns appears to be ok for beer, however, based on a feature yesterday in the Cairns Post on the Cape York Hotel, which is part of a series on “52 Pubs in 52 Weeks.”  Be sure to check out the slide show on the hotel.  It presents a real slice of Australiana, including images of the hotel’s spacious upstairs verandah, which would be perfect for whiling away a rainy afternoon with your mates and a few schooners of XXXX.  Well done to the Cairns Post for this series celebrating an important part of Queensland’s social history and economic development.