What’s brewing down south? Plenty, it seems. The range of hopped up suds and strong spirits has grown, giving plenty of reason skip the winery and shake things up next time a weekend escape is within reach.
With breweries and distilleries popping up everywhere, the toughest thing you'll need to do is whittle this list down to fit the one trip. Here are all the breweries and distilleries you should have been to down south.
Breweries
CBCo Brewery
Margaret River
Image credit: CBCo Brewery | Supplied
CBCo Brewing (formerly Colonial Brewing Co) opened a second brewery over east in 2015, but WA has been home since 2004—marking an impressive 20 years of brewing. Big shed on the outside, modern architecture on the inside, with a sprawling grassy lawn and kids playground—CBCo's Margaret River brewery serves up good times for adults, kids and your dogs too. But with 20 years under the belt, they're stepping things up, with six new Short Iron Range bays overlooking the dam—there's even floating kegs for those keen for a bit of target practice. Each bay has a dedicated lounge and bar, so groups of four to six can sit back and enjoy pints between golf swings. There's also bottomless beer and golf sessions and an awesome tee off lunch special that'll get you pizza, a bucket of balls and your choice of beer, cider or wine for $35.
Wild Hop Brewery
Yallingup
Beer lovers might have caught wind of the new must-visit brewery down south. Seriously, don’t miss this one, even if you don’t drink the stuff. Wild Hop Brewery is based in Yallingup and its relaxed vibe is totally suited to a day of sunshine, craft brews and some wood-fired bites. A family run brewery, the venue is also family friendly, with a playground good enough to make grown-ups jealous. Stunning views over the water and a rotation of interesting brews are only topped by some tasty feasting; the menu is ideal for sharing so bring the tribe with you. What about the beer you say? Well, as each keg runs dry it is replaced by another one-off creation.
Rocky Ridge Brewing
Jindong
A little further north near Busselton, Rocky Ridge Brewing founder Hamish Coates has been going all out growing his own hops and barley on the family farm. The brewery's motto is ‘everything we brew, we grow’ which is a mammoth task to take on. The brewery is still working on a cellar door for the future, but for now, you’ll have to keep your eyes peeled for the travelling tap house and bar visits.
Beer Farm
Metricup
Image credit: Beerfarm | Instagram
Our favourite thing about the Beer Farm is undoubtedly Dash the greyhound and the fact that it's dog-friendly. But don't worry, if you're not a dog person, there's still plenty to love about this place. The space used to be a dairy farm and the main bar is in the old hay shed, complete with a long jarrah bar, a Ghostbusters pinball machine and windowed roller doors opening up to the paddock. The beer list is sectioned into ‘Session’ and ‘Specialty’ and ingredients are as local as they can get—the Australian Bitter uses nearly 95% WA ingredients, and the western cider is made with Manjimup apples. When it comes to food, the juicy burgers and the crispy fried Mexican chicken wings are our picks.
Brewhouse Margaret River
Margaret River
Close to town, Brewhouse is a laidback brewery with live music, a beautiful outdoor seating area and a toasty fireplace for when it gets chilly. The 1940s cottage has been transformed and the open kitchen serves up good local produce, including a mean lamb shoulder and some moreish pizzas. The beer list covers all the lager and pilsner lovers, but the hop-heavy brews are what shine. The northwest US-inspired Red Tail IPA is an especially tasty concoction of four hops. The brewery also celebrates other brewers, earlier this year they had hopeful homebrewers compete to craft the next best brew in the ‘Backyard Brewing Tournament Awards’ with the winner’s creation brewed by the pros and put on tap.
Bootleg Brewery
Wilyabrup
Almost two dozen years in the heart of Margaret River, Bootleg Brewery was one of the first spots for beer-drinkers in a region surrounded by wineries. There’s a great collection of memorabilia collected over the years and there’s a good selection of drinks, from the pilsner to the summer ale. When the sun’s out, having a beer paddle and fresh chunky chips by the pond with some live acoustic in the background makes for one heck of an afternoon. The Raging Bull, a dark ale with a deliciously strong kick of malt (and alcohol content) is one not to miss if you're looking for something interesting.
Cheeky Monkey Brewery
Margaret River
Image credit: Cheeky Monkey | Instagram
There’s a jetty by the lake outside so you can sit and enjoy the sun, or head to the raised deck overlooking the vines of the attached vineyard. Cheeky Monkey's beers on tap have people frothing as of late, with the Australian Lager winning awards at the Perth Royal Beer Show and their West Coast IPA scooping up a gold medal too. Grab a tasting paddle and you’ll get to taste the two ciders the brewery makes as well. Makes sure to grab some to take home, all the cans have had a cool makeover.
Black Brewing Co
Wilyabrup
Black Brewing Co is part-brewery, part-distillery and part-winery and we love it. The food menu has a strong Indonesian influence but keeps local with its produce. It's all made to be shared and it's far more delicious than you'd expect, plus the servings are huge. Most of the beers are session-style, sitting around the 4.5% alcohol content, and lighter in intensity, though there’s also a nice, chocolatey stout as well. Do yourself a favour a pick up a six pack of their, Honest Ale, made in conjunction with Taj Burrow, Jay Davies and Dino Adrian. For spirits, there’s an in-house, copper-stilled gin that is one of the best we've tasted in a while and they also do wine.
Eagle Bay Brewing
Naturaliste
Eagle Bay Brewing is a stunning microbrewery run by three siblings who’ve taken the family property to make quality, preservative-free beers. Sit outside and bask in the view of the green grounds until the late afternoon while digging into modern Aussie lunch, with wood-fired pizzas, sharing plates and seafood mains. If you want to wander around, the kitchen has its own garden of herbs and veggies you can take a peek at as well. While Eagle Bay also has its own Cabernet Sauvignon, Shiraz and Semillon vines, it’s not big enough to warrant its own winery. Not to fret though, the restaurant and the brewery’s provisions store sells bottles, as well as growlers if you want to take some of the beer home fresh.
Distilleries
Margaret River Distilling Company
Margaret River
Image credit: Margaret River Distilling Co
The sister distillery to Limeburners Single Malt Whisky of Great Southern Distilling Company, the Margaret River Distilling Company is all about gin. Out of the three gins on offer, the Botanical gin is an incredibly flavourful drop, with hints of lemon myrtle and eucalyptus. Sign up for the Giniversity masterclass, where you’ll get to learn how gin is made and conjure up a recipe of botanicals to whip up your very own gin. There are smaller tanks so visitors can infuse the botanicals into the alcohol and have a half-litre bottle to take home.
The Grove
Wilyabrup
There are equal parts passion and fun behind The Grove in Wilyabrup and you’ll undoubtedly have a good time tasting the range of liqueurs here. A lot of the liqueurs are sweet—from White Chocolate to Limecello—but don’t be discouraged if that’s not your thing. There’s gin, absinthe, and rum, as well as single malt whiskies. The corn mash maple whisky is fairly sweet and not too harsh taken straight. There’s an eatery serving up pizzas too to help break up the handful of different spirits you’ve had a taste of.
West Winds Discovery Centre
Cowaramup
As if you didn't already have enough things to get to in Margaret River, the legends behind West Winds—aka Australia's most awarded gin distiller—have opened a massive multi-purpose space in Cowaramup. The space features a distillery, tasting room and tavern, with plenty of room inside the chic Industrial-style warehouse and out in the breezy courtyard to enjoy. Plus, they've even repurposed an old fishing boat, turning it into a cool outdoor play space for anyone bringing little punters along. On the premises, you'll also find the brand's laboratory, production facility, cellar door, restaurant and cocktail/wine bar.
Need more inspo? Check out:
Main image credit: Wild Hop | Instagram