Adelaide has a strong reputation for wine, but their brew culture is just as old. Coopers Brewery is the largest Australian-owned brewery and has been operating since 1862. While Coopers has fuelled Adelaide’s brew scene for a long time, craft breweries have boomed across Australia, with Adelaide being no exception.
The CBD has a couple breweries to check out, with most of the brewhouses based further out in the wine regions and transplanting themselves in the city for your convenience. Mismatch Brewhouse is one, bringing their beers from the Adelaide Hills to Whitmore Square. They craft limited releases on site, in their small-batch brew-kit, alongside their awarded core range. Their rooftop beer garden is perfect for trying the brews with their elevated pub fare menu. Silver Brewing Co. offers interesting Serbian-inspired food with their brews, and Crafty Robot has Detroit-style pizza to pair with core favourites or even experimental brews like plumberry sour. Lady Burra is another cool option, with a gruesome story behind their name, and convenient proximity to Adelaide Oval if you’re pregaming the game.
Pirate Life Brewing Co. has established venues across Australia, but typically calls Port Adelaide home. If you’re looking to try it out without the travel, they’ve partnered with SkyCity Adelaide to start a microbrewery on North Terrace. Their core range goes straight from tank to tap, but their beers are available right through the SkyCity building to the casino.
The inner suburbs have some great spots for beer. Bowden Brewing Co. is found north of Adelaide, where their 14 tap bar is accompanied by Masa, a Mexican/Central American restaurant. A 15 minute walk from there is Brightstar Brewing, based in former Adelaide University labs. Here, they utilise traditional techniques like spunding to brew their Central-European style beers, best paired with their Rueben sandwiches. Another 15 minute walk brings The Wheatsheaf Hotel, a no-nonsense, 100 year-old pub hosting craft beers from around the world right next to their own creations. The Wheaty is home to food trucks, live music and several local Adelaide clubs, and has truly cemented its place as an Adelaide icon.
The wine regions have so many high-quality breweries on offer that a tour is the best way to experience them—just know what amount of travel you’re up for. The best breweries of the Adelaide Hills region are rather spread out and require a lot of driving to visit them all in one day. To experience the best of both worlds in terms of regional views, South Australian brews and a single trip, the Inglewood Inn is the perfect stop. It’s about a 35 minute drive from Adelaide, in the Hills region. The Inn is home to 1857 Distillery and Gin Bar, which is a bit of a misnomer, so don’t be alarmed if you’re not a spirit fan. Although they serve a large variety of spirits, their craft beer and ciders on tap are plentiful. The best part is that they all hail from South Australia’s craft breweries. That way you can try the top brews in one stop. Think beers from Adelaide and its inner and outer suburbs, paired with Hills favourites on one convenient tap.