Victorian Breweries Worth a Weekend Road Trip

Bridge Road Brewers is located in the historic gold mining town of Beechworth, which is a town stuck in the 19th century in the most picturesque of ways (and a reason for a visit in itself). But the biggest draw for us is the beer, and Bridge Road is constantly turning out something new. While visiting, seek out the Chevalier series and the Mayday Hills collection — this new line of barrel-aged and wild-fermented farmhouse beers are the best to come out of the brewery yet. Another reason to visit the brewery is the menu. The kitchen — under co-owner Maria Kraus — churns out Austrian–Italian-inspired pizzas and chewy pretzels that are baked daily.

Bright Brewery is a mountain town brewery, so, naturally, it only uses fresh mountain water in its brews. Being able to say your brews are ‘mountain crafted’ is pretty badass, not to mention extremely picturesque. The brewery door is open daily and features a 24-tap bar, which is especially impressive — even for a brewery. The Fainters Dubbel or Razor Witbier are our recommendations. Take them out onto the brewery’s sprawling terrace, where you can settle in for the afternoon with a pizza or snack from the bar’s extensive pub menu. The brewery’s proximity to Mount Buffalo and Alpine National Park also means you can make this one a double road trip and sneak in a hike between pints.

You’ll find Nagambie Brewery & Distillery just a 90-minute drive out of Melbourne, perched right on Lake Nagambie and boasting some primo water views. The site, once home to the town’s police camp, has been transformed into a bright, sophisticated venue, at the hands of Melbourne architecture firm Six Degrees. It’s an impressive space, featuring floor-to-ceiling lakeside windows, a bar crafted from brass, steel and concrete, and a sprawling deck over the water. The focus here is on bespoke beers and spirits, crafted on ingredients sourced as locally and sustainably as possible. Nagambie Brewery & Distillery already has three house beers under its belt, with plans to launch a gin, vodka and whisky later this year. To match, is a food offering inspired by the smokehouses of America. Prepared by Executive Chef Dan Hawkins (Mitchelton, The Prince Hotel), the lineup includes burgers, woodfired pizzas and a selection of barbecue meats.

Images: Gareth Sobey.

Twøbays is the Mornington Peninsula’s own gluten-free brewpub. The public tasting room in Dromana is set amongst the production brewery, and its stainless steel tanks are visible from the brewpub side, and the entire facility overlooks the picturesque Arthur’s Seat. Founder and beer enthusiast Richard Jeffares was diagnosed with coeliac disease in 2016 and became inspired by similar gluten-free taprooms found in The States. While most beers use gluten-containing malted barley, Twøbays instead uses gluten-free millet, rice and buckwheat — imported from Colorado and California — in all its beers. The brewpub launched with a range of seven core and specialty tap beers, including an easy-drinking pale ale; an English-style extra special bitter dubbed Local Knowledge; Gose Against, a German-style gose brewed with coriander, salt and lime; and a mid-strength ale called Little Arthur. To try a few at once, patrons can nab a four-pony tasting paddle. Apart from brews, there’s locally produced Quealy wine and Ten Sixty One cider to enjoy. And, adding to theme, there’s also a woodfired oven slinging gluten-free pizza.

Holgate Brewhouse is one of the most popular craft breweries to come out of Victoria and its brewhouse is the spot to taste their award winning brews. Situated in the village of Woodend (about an hour our of the city), the brewery has been around since 1999 and was set up in Paul and Natasha Holgate’s backyard. The bar is very much a country corner pub, with eight taps, classic pub grub and live music every Friday night. If you’ve overindulged, no worries — grab a room upstairs for the night, with a dinner and beer tasting package while you’re at it.

Image: David Hannah/Visit Victoria.

When it’s wombat spying season, there’s no better place to see the little bundles than down Wilsons Prom way. A perfect detour for quenching the native thirst is a stop at Loch, a wee town of under 700 people in South Gippsland with its own distillery and brewery. The boozy establishment creates ales, single malt whisky and a few gins. The cellar door opens during weekends. But somebody has to drive, so take home The Weaver, a big gin that martini lovers will appreciate for its savoury finish. Think cinnamon myrtle, anise myrtle and wattle seed – the native botanicals are locally sourced and sustainably harvested.

Image: Rob Blackburn/Visit Victoria. 

Blackman’s Brewery is located in Torquay, off the Great Ocean Road and just back from the beach — an ideal location for a surfer’s brewery. But apart from the location, the Wildcard series is the main draw here as you can only get the single keg batches at the brewery. It doesn’t get more small batch than that. The kitchen is open until late, with a pizza and seafood menu that is crafted around the brews. If you’re in Geelong, it’s also got a small brewery bar in Dennys Place.

Drinking some of the finest brews on the Mornington Peninsula while sitting inside the reclaimed stable of a champion racehorse may sound like an odd pairing, but at St Andrews Beach Brewery you can do just that. The brewery has been constructed inside a former racehorse training centre. In 2017, the 92-acre property became a fully functioning brewery, with the 1200-metre race track replaced by 8000 apple and pear cider trees. So far, the brewery has created five award-winning beers — with appropriately equestrian names, such as the Race Day Czech pilsner and 6 Furlongs US pale ale — which are packaged on site with with facility’s own kegging and bottling line. In addition to a variety of beers there is also a diverse menu with pizzas, seafood, salads and desserts with dairy-free, gluten-free, vegetarian and vegan options. St Andrews Beach has live music every Friday from 4–7pm.

Red Hill Brewery doesn’t just invite you to stop on by for a beer, it invites you to stay the night too. The Brewer’s Cottage is a three-bedroom house located on the grounds, the self-contained unit features an open fire, barbecue area and even a trampoline. You can join the brewers for Friday arvo brews and really get the full Red Hill experience. The brewery focuses on European styles and the farmhouse-like cellar door has the entire range, including the Wee Heavy scotch ale and Belgian Blonde that we especially recommend. If you’re hungry, you can also tuck into some fine barbecue from resident eatery Bovine and Swine.

Images: Peter Tarasiuk/Visit Victoria. 

In early 2016, Little Creatures opened a large-scale brewing operation — its second in Australia — in Geelong, occupying the structure that was once home to the Old Valley Worsted Wool Mill. Keeping the rustic character of the mill and adding its own creative touches, the team — which has since acquired White Rabbit Brewery and launched Furphy — has adapted the property into three distinct sections: The Canteen, White Rabbit Barrel Hall and Furphy Hall, all with unique menus and — most importantly — a range of in-house brew options.

The Canteen sits at the end of an old laneway which has been brightened up with colourful stools and flags, while old wooden crates have been repurposed as seats and bar tables to complete the thrown-together space. The kitchen does a classic brunch from 8am on the weekends and otherwise serves pizza and plates to share — think mac ‘n’ cheese, kangaroo skewers and beef sliders. Just around the corner from The Canteen you’ll find White Rabbit Barrel Hall. Stacked wooden barrels and towering brewing tanks invite the visitor down a long hall to explore the internal workings of the nationwide operation. It’s also is home to a fully stocked pantry and a menu featuring refined treats like open sandwiches and cheese and salumi options.

Both spaces can be booked for events, but the site’s premier and newest event venue is the Furphy Hall. Opening its doors in January of this year, Furphy Hall was created in sorts to give back to the Geelong community and celebrate the Furphy Ale: a brew made with 100 percent Victorian hops and malt.