Craft beer & breweries in Sydney

Tours & trails

Don’t know your IPA from your pilsner? Take a tour and learn from the experts. Dave’s Brewery Tours runs fun-filled, half- and full-day expeditions to discover Sydney’s hipster haunts and independent breweries in the western suburbs. Or join a Rocks Walking Tour to learn about the history of Sydney over a beer at some of the country’s oldest pubs. If you have a few days in the city, plot your own course on a self-guided gourmet trail that takes in eight microbreweries across the town. Cheers to that! Urban Legends also offers a tour around the oh-so-cool breweries of Sydney’s Inner West. Some of the highlights are listed below.

Grifter Brewing Co, Marrickville

Inner West

As the undisputed craft beer capital of Sydney, the Inner West Ale Trail boasts 18 independent breweries within a 5km radius, with many of them just a short stroll in between. Sampling their award-winning beers is a must, but the trail offers so much more too. Enjoy awesome eats – from juicy burgers to fresh oysters, tasty vegan dishes to deep-fried Viennetta – and non-beer options including cocktails, wine, ciders, seltzers and more. 

Plus, there’s always something on with an exciting array of free events and deals happening across the trail. Don’t miss rock ‘n’ roll den Young Henrys (the original brewery to blaze the trail back in 2012), soak up Sauce Brewing Co’s giant beer garden or explore Wayward Brewing’s unique taproom which was once a winery in the 1940s. And that’s just the beginning, with so many more breweries to explore.

Wayward Brewing Co., Camperdown

Northern Beaches

Over the bridge on Sydney’s North shore, 4 Pines in Manly offers a glimpse into the intricacies of brewing when you visit. Otherwise, sample the full range at the brewpub upstairs. The establishment also manages a ‘truckbar’ in Brookvale, where you’ll find a great selection of brews on tap from some of Australia’s top makers, including Nomad Brewing Co, 7th Day Brewery, Bucketty’s Brewing Co and Dad & Dave’s Brewing.

4 Pines Truck Bar, Brookvale

The Rocks

Head to the city’s oldest neighbourhood, The Rocks, for Sydney’s oldest pub, the Lord Nelson Brewery, which concocts 100 per cent natural beer with no added sugars, preservatives or additives. And it has kept up that tradition for a quarter of a century. Nearby, the Endeavour Tap Rooms has a petite but powerful brewery on-site, and a roster of rotating beers on tap.

Endeavour Tap Rooms, The Rocks

Southern calling

North or south, Sydneysiders need a thirst quenched. In the later part of the city, you’ll find Sunday Road Brewing in Kirrawee, a place dedicated to its community and thoughtful beverages, like Cryotherapy Hazy IPA and Over the Bridge Pale Ale. Nearby is Shark Island Brewing Company, which has food trucks from Friday through Sunday to sate cravings while you sip an Apple Cider Howler or Shark Island Ale.

And on the shores of Botany Bay is Hairyman Brewery, a small family-run craft brewery with cans that are almost as cool as the beverages: Ginger Pop Ale or Salt Dog, anyone? Dave’s Brewery Tours also offers tastings around Sydney’s southern reaches.

Sunday Road Brewing Co, Kirrawee

Pubs with character

If you’d prefer to just drop in for a drink, many of Sydney’s pubs and bars have a good selection of craft beer on tap or in bottles. Try the Keg & Brew in Surry Hills, with more than 30 beers on tap; Harts Pub in The Rocks, championing Indie beer for decades; Bitter Phew and The Taphouse in Darlinghurst; or The Noble Hops in Redfern. 

The Noble Hops, Redfern