Love a good beer? We have chosen ten great homegrown breweries from around Australia to profile. Which one is your favourite?

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Aether Brewing

Queensland-based Aether Brewing was founded by Dave (who began brewing beer young) and Jimmy (who loves drinking but not making beer). The duo always wanted to own a bar and brewery. Over the years, the brew recipes kept evolving and at the start of 2016, they signed a lease for a venue on Railway Terrace in Milton in Brisbane and they opened Aether Brewing in 2016.

Endeavour Vintage Beer Co

Sydney-based brewery Endeavour Vintage Beer Co was started by three guys, Ben Kooyman, Dan Hastings and Andy Stewart. Ben who worked in liquor sales approached Dan from corporate and Andy a winemaker in 2007 with an idea to make beers with a fresh angle. He wanted to source the best hops and barley from every harvest direct from Australian farmers. From that moment on, three years of research took place and they released their first commercially brewed beers in 2010. The trio carefully construct their own recipes and partner with quality facilities to deliver some of their beers in high volumes.

Captain Bligh’s Colonial Ale and Cider

Hobart-based brewery Captain Bligh’s Colonial Ale and Cider was founded by Steve Brooks who is the head brewer, owner and ‘chief bottle washer’. Captain Bligh’s produces a range of colonial ales, a heritage cider and even beer jams. Steve has taken his love of ale and history and combined them to produce small batch specialty ales for Tasmanian drinkers. Captain Bligh’s brew weekly.

Bright Brewery 

Victorian brewery Bright Brewery was founded in 2005 by Scott Brandon, his late wife Fiona Reddaway and their friends David and Julia. It was driven by a desire to ‘make beer great’ and to share Bright’s incredible environment with people passing through the town. Between 2006 and 2011 their brewery and adjoining bar was housed in two small tin sheds, with limited outdoor seating. However, these days Bright Brewery have an upgraded brewery and bar. Today, Bright Brewery still continues to run as a independent family business, owned and managed by Scott Brandon. Known and loved for their specialised beers using natural ingredients and experimenting with unique beer flavours.

Akasha Brewing Company 

Sydney-based Akasha Brewing Company was founded by Dave Padden and Wesley White in early 2015. Head brewer Dave has forged a reputation for brewing award-winning, hop-centric ales. The Akasha team is made up of like-minded, passionate beer enthusiasts and the name ‘Akasha’ refers to the ‘fifth’ element. The ‘unknown factor’ that combines the four elements of Earth, Water, Fire and Air. They say it is the ‘fifth’ element, the Akasha, that instils the spirit, the soul and the magic to create beer.

Himmel Brewing Co. 

Melbourne-based Himmel Brewing Co. is run and owned by Annabel. After spending a few years on exchange in Germany and travelling around Europe, she moved back to Port Phillip in Melbourne. That’s when she decided to start making exceptional beers for the locals of Port Phillip.

Exit Brewing

Melbourne-based Exit Brewing was founded by Frase and Grum. The duo worked who originally in IT in Europe fell in love with many interesting beer styles and started homebrewing. They moved back to Melbourne with the intention of starting a brewery. They got a good deal on a fermenter and released their first beer, a Saison, in 2014. In 2015 Kaiju! invited them to join and share their fantastic new brewery in Dandenong South. After moving in to the new brewery and having a much larger capacity the duo established a core range of beers. Their best beers? Aa unique West Coast style IPA, an American style amber, a Milk Stout and a Belgian style Saison.

Bentspoke Brewing Co

Canberra-based BentSpoke Brewing Co was founded by brewer Richard Watkins and Tracy Margrain. They travelled around the world drawing inspiration for their ideal brewpub. They open BentSpoke on June 6, 2014 to the local community in Canberra. More than 50 different beers have been brewed at BentSpoke. Next is creating a production scale brewery in Canberra.

Eagle Bay Brewing Co

Western Australian-based Eagle Bay Brewing Co is a microbrewery, restaurant and vineyard tucked away on the family farm, in the northwestern corner of the Margaret River. Eagle Bay Brewing Co has been owned and operated since 2010 by third generation local farming siblings Nick, Astrid and Adrian d’Espeissis. The property has been in the family since 1950 and the farm is still operational with the trio’s father John still farming the land that the building overlooks Cape Naturaliste. Their beers are handcrafted and brewed in small batches and made with only four ingredients – freshly harvested rainwater, malted barley, yeast, hops and sunshine to power the brewery.

Big Shed Brewing Co

South Australian-based Big Shed Brewing Co was founded by Craig and Jason back in 2002. They began brewing in Jason’s shed and the two beer lovers would talk about creating their own beer business. They rented a small warehouse in Royal Park and began designing and refining their starting line-up in September 2014. Craig and Jason launched their tasting bar and kitchen with six tap beers.

3 pieces of St Patrick’s Day trivia (to talk about over a beer)

1. Did you know that drinking was banned on St Patrick’s Day when locals were indulging a little too much. In 1961 beer began flowing once more.
2. St Patrick wasn’t Irish. He was born in Britain and the story goes he was once kidnapped by Irish pirates.
3. An estimated 13 million pints of Guinness is consumed worldwide each St Patrick’s Day.

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