On paper, Zymurgy (pronounced zahy -mur-jee, meaning the practice of fermentation) is a familiar concept: beer garden and barbeque.

But in reality, the West Footscray pop-up – a collaboration between Hop Nation and Navi ’s Julian Hills – punches well above its weight. It’s like a summer barbeque at your mate’s place, if your mate brewed boundary-pushing beers and had fine-dining chops.

There’s a focus on all-things fermented and a charcoal-fired menu that Hills cooks on a Brazilian-made grill and rotisserie over red gum and mallee root.

The snacks menu is a mix of meat and veg, but don’t be fooled by the seemingly simple dish descriptions. The hand-cut chips are triple-cooked, dusted with eight different herbs and served with house-fermented miso aioli. The charred-zucchini salad is smoky, citrusy and vinegary, impressing among sexier-sounding dishes. And the grilled sourdough pretzel, lathered in smoked Wagyu butter, is destined for greatness.

More substantial options include an ox-tongue Reuben, warm smoked rainbow trout with horseradish, and charcoal-crusted pork with salted cherries and pickled elderflower.

Ten Hop Nation beers are on pour at the bar, including an organic lager, a tropical mango gose and an oat-cream double India pale ale. There’s also a cocktail tap and a wine tap (serving Negroni and a sparkling white from the brewery’s Site Fermentation Project), plus cans of Hop Nation’s Ray Seltzer and 1.5-litre beer magnums.

The large, laid-back outdoor space is scattered with picnic tables, barrels and newly planted olive trees. And there’s a towering mural of two roosters, inspired by a Hop Nation beer label, by local artist Ling ID.