If and when this wretched lockdown finishes, and you feel the need to blow the froth off a cold one, then indulge all five senses with hoppy, malty goodness.
We’re at the stage now where you could probably try a different Sydney-made craft beer every day for a year and not repeat yourself. But there’s something to be said for the few breweries that open their doors to the public and allow them to see, smell, and most importantly, sip their product straight from the source.
As such, Sydney is now awash with spots where garage brewers and craft beer giants alike are flogging their wares direct to the public, often with good food and good entertainment on hand to accompany. These Sydney breweries, some of which are newcomers, some of which have stood the test of time, are the ones you should be looking at for your next summer session.
Inner-City & Eastern Suburbs
Atomic Beer Project
Address: 158 Regent St, Redfern
Joining a growing number of breweries expanding out of their warehouse birthplace and into the hospitality sector, Gage Roads are launching a brand-new space that goes way beyond the not-so-simple art of brewing great beer. Setting up shop in Sydney’s Redfern, their new digs, dubbed the Atomic Beer Project, completely expands the concept of a simple hospitality space, incorporating not only a south-east Asian-inspired restaurant (headed up by Longrain alumni Jordan McLeod), but a co-working space for people to hang out in during the day.
Frenchies Bistro and Brewery
Address: The Cannery, 6/61-71 Mentmore Avenue, Rosebery
Frenchies is a restaurant of conflicting realities: both an eatery thoroughly dedicated to the art of ‘bistronomy’, and a thriving microbrewery whose beers are some of the most coveted in Sydney. Dining and drinking here is undoubtedly a slightly posher affair than most of the other breweries on the list, but with food and beer this good, we think it’s all the better for it.
frenchiesbistroandbrewery.com.au
Lord Nelson Brewery
Address: 19 Kent St, The Rocks
Lord Nelson was pumping out top-drawer craft beer before craft beer was even a thing, bringing old-school English style pub brewing to one of the oldest hotels in The Rocks. Truly the best place to buy a beer in that part of the city.
One Drop Brewing Co.
Address: 5 Erith St, Botany
Botany’s One Drop brewing co has already stolen much of the limelight in Sydney’s east, taking home a bevy of awards and medals for approachable beers like their Botany Bay lager and XPA.
Rocks Brewing Co.
Address: Building 2, 160 Bourke Rd, Alexandria
Yes, they’re named after The Rocks, but the brewing company, have been long-time residents of Alexandria’s industrial-chic wonderland, supplying many pubs throughout its surrounds with beer. Their brewery-come-pub is a sight to behold though, a metal and glass-clad wonderland that looks like a little slice of a far bigger operation.
Slow Lane Brewing
Address: 30 Byrnes St, Botany
Despite the distinctly clean appearance of its beers and its taphouse, Slow Lane’s beers are far from simple. All of their brews, from their ever-popular pale ale to their special editions, ooze creativity in their craft. Incredibly, their Botany location is about as far east as breweries get in sydney.
Yulli’s Brews
Address: 75A Burrows Rd, Alexandria
Yulli’s is already a bit of a Sydney cult icon thanks to its quirky can designs and its acclaimed vegan restaurant in Surry Hills, but the true Yulli’s experience is still to be found at its Alexandria brewery, which hosts night markets, live jazz evenings and exclusive pours: all accompanied by a menu of mouth-watering vegan comfort food.
The Inner West
Akasha Brewing Company
Address: 10-12 Spencer Street, Five Dock
Another small-scale operation, Akasha is a simple little brewery, with a small group of passionate brewers making quality beers. And it shows, with Akasha taking home medals at the much-coveted Ratebeer awards.
Batch Brewing Co.
Address: 44 Sydenham Rd, Marrickville
Much like their neighbours at The Grifter, Batch focus mainly on small-scale specialty brewing. Their bar is a delightful place to enjoy a pint though, generally bursting with small-batch beers and accompanied by food trucks out the front to feed the locals.
The Grifter Brewing Co.
Address: 1/391 Alexandria Road, Enmore
Named after the larger style of bottle that you can use to take home brewery-fresh beer, The Grifter’s small-scale operation churns out a ton of inventive micro-brewery style beers that you’d be hard-pressed to find anywhere else. Beers like The Grifter’s Serpent’s Kiss Watermelon Pilsner have earnt them particular acclaim.
Philter Brewing
Address: 92-98 Sydenham Rd, Marrickville
If you’ve become a new-found XPA enthusiast in recent years, it’s possible you have Philter’s XPA, which was the most popular beer in the City for a while, to blame. They’ve since used that momentum to open up a new public bar and taproom in Marrickville, joining the bevvy of breweries making the Inner-West suburb the craft beer capital of Australia.
Wayward Brewing Co.
Address: 1 Gehrig Ln, Camperdown
Perfectly placed to catch the masses of thirsty revellers who Camperdown and its surrounds on any given weekend, Wayward is also establishing itself as one of Sydney’s most acclaimed breweries, earning plaudits for beers like its Raspberry Berliner Weisse.
Willie the Boatman
Address: 202/75 Mary St, St Peters NSW 2044
Willie the Boatman gives off a proper homebrew vibe, with their brewery (which is built into a small section of an old paint factory) more closely resembling someone’s shed then a proper brewery. Their beer though? Absolutely delicious.
Young Henrys
Address: 76 Wilford St, Newtown
The archetypal Newtown brewery, Young Henrys has completely transcended the craft brewing scene and ingrained itself in Sydney’s mainstream beer mindset. That’s not to say their brewery isn’t worth a visit though, where you can try everything from their ever-popular pale ale, to the lager they made for The Foo Fighters, to their Noble Cut craft gin.
The North
4 Pines
Locations: Manly, Brookvale
4 Pines is Manly in a bottle – a long-standing brewer putting out a range of beers to be enjoyed in as beachy a setting as possible. For optimum enjoyment, their brew pub sits on Manly’s esplanade, with their basement Keller Door slinging out small batch brews for more discerning palates. Now one of Australia’s biggest craft beer names, 4 Pines also has a pub in Surry Hills, and a new sports bar/brewpub on King St Wharf that it opened with The Sporting Globe.
Hawkesbury Brewing Co.
Address: 1/10 Belgrave St, Manly NSW
Inspired by the sights, smells and views of its eponymous river, Hawkesbury Brewing Co. is a hoppy ode to the wilderness of Sydney’s North, brewing their beers on the Central Coast and in the Kuring-Gai Chase national park. Their taphouse is perched in the more accessible surrounds of the lower northern beaches.
Modus Operandi Brewing
Address: 14 Harkeith Street, Mona Vale
Occupying a spot even further North than most of the other Northern Beach’s breweries on this list, MO have been a point of pride for Mona Vale residents for some time now — their beers in some of the trendiest restaurants, bars and bottle shops around Australia.
Nomad Brewing Co.
Address: 5 Sydenham Rd, Brookvale
Another brewery adding to the Brookvale area’s rich pool of craft brewers, Nomad focuses mostly on producing summery beers to suit its Northern Beaches surrounds, with draughts, pale ales and a rotating selection of native-inspired limited-edition brews on tap. They even got the nod of approval from heavy metal giants Iron Maiden, who commissioned them to brew an XPA in honour of their latest Australian tour.
http://www.nomadbrewingco.com.au
Sutherland Shire
Hairyman Brewery
Address: 10/12-14 Northumberland Rd, Caringbah
The Shire’s industrial hub of Taren Point was long crying out for a brewing operation before Hairyman moved in, and thus arose the passion project of Brewer Andy Orrell. Five years later, Hairyman is firmly entrenched as one of the Shire’s favourite spots to taste fresh beer, with a rotation of food trucks feeding the hungry across the weekend.
Shark Island Brewing
Address: Unit 8, 29-33 Waratah Street, Kirrawee
The OG craft brewers to set up shop in the Shire, Shark Island have been brewing beers inspired by Cronulla and its beachy surrounds since 2015. Shark Island is a distinctly small operation, but they produce beers with big bite.
Sunday Road Brewing Co.
Address: 147 Bath Rd, Kirrawee
A relative upstart in the Shire’s rapidly expanding brewing community, Sunday Road have already established themselves as perhaps the slickest operation in the inner south, combining gorgeous branding with a state-of-the-art brewery and tap room. For additional cred, their beers were developed with help from the lads at Wayward.
