Overview
Back in 2019, Scottish craft beer giant BrewDog finally made the leap to Australia, setting up its first local brewery by the river in Brisbane. But its reputation had preceded it to our shores, and not just due to its yeasty brews. When you make craft beers for dogs, launch the world's first craft beer airline and open the world's first craft beer hotel, you're bound to garner plenty of global attention.
If you're a beer-drinking dog owner who loved the idea BrewDog's boozy, pooch-friendly place to stay — which is fitting called The DogHouse — that's understandable. Still, making the trip to Columbus, Ohio in the US with your four-legged best friend mightn't have topped your to-do list. Thankfully, BrewDog has just announced that it's opening its second craft beer hotel, and on our own shores. Ideally, by the end of 2022, Aussies will be able to bunker down for the night at The DogHouse Brisbane.
An exact site hasn't been confirmed as yet, but it's likely that the hotel will make its home right next to BrewDog's existing Brisbane brewery DogTap, which is located in Murarrie. It'll feature up to 30 rooms, which'll each come decked out with shower beer fridges — because why wash without a brew in your hand? — and in-room draft beer taps filled with Aussie-brewed Punk IPA. And, taking your pupper along is 100-percent on the agenda at this eco-friendly place to stay.
The DogHouse Columbus
Plans for The DogHouse Brisbane were revealed as part of BrewDog's new blueprint for its operations Down Under over the next two years — and the company has much more in store. As previously announced, it's looking to ramp up its local presence, with a new bar slated for the Brisbane CBD, and new venues on the cards in Sydney, Melbourne and Perth. The latter sites will also include their own microbreweries, so they can make their own beer on the premises. While 2021 was previously announced as a launch date, it is now expected they'll be up and running between now and 2023, with further locations on the Gold Coast and in Newcastle also being considered.
In Brisbane, BrewDog's beer campus is also undergoing a few more changes — including adding a bigger outdoor seating area with shaded seating to its riverside terrace, and expanding the brewery by installing a pasteuriser. In great news for lovers of hangover-free brews, that new piece of equipment will help the company broaden its alcohol-free beer range, which'll soon include Punk AF, Hazy AF and its raspberry AF sour, Faux Fox. The taproom is also getting an extra 100 square metres of private event space, the walk-in takeaway shop will be expanded and there'll be a larger kitchen.
Brewdog DogTap Brisbane
Announcing the news, BrewDog's ANZ CEO Ed Bott said: "we are extremely grateful for the outstanding support we have received in Australia since we landed Down Under. It's been a pretty wild ride so far, but we have ambitious plans for Australia and New Zealand, building a fast-paced sustainable business that can be a force for good. We can't wait to bring our relentless obsession with incredible craft beer to the rest of the country and for our Punks to be able to head to their local BrewDog bar and get their paws on our freshly brewed Aussie beers".
BrewDog is also keeping its crowdfunding initiative, Equity for Punks, in place in Australia until Wednesday, March 31. Pledging your support can help speed up the company's plans to open a bar in your city, too — with the brewer noting that if more than 500 Equity Punks join from the same city before the current deadline, it will open a BrewDog bar there within the next three years.
The DogHouse Brisbane is expected to open sometime in 2022, while new BrewDog sites in Sydney, Melbourne and Perth are on the cards between now and 2023. We'll update you when further information come to hand. For now, you can keep an eye on BrewDog's website for details.
Top image: The DogHouse Columbus.