Swell Brewing Co to open ‘brewery door’ in McLaren Vale

MCLAREN Vale has always been at the heart of Swell Brewing Co, but next year it will also be the craft beer company’s home.

Swell Brewing Co owner Dan Wright with some of his products in McLaren Vale. Picture: Bianca De Marchi

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MCLAREN Vale has always been at the heart of Swell Brewing Co, but next year it will also be the craft beer company’s home.

Swell co-owner Dan Wright said the company had applied to Onkaparinga Council to build a million-dollar brewery with a cellar door and a 100-seat restaurant on his family vineyard off Olivers Rd.

It is one of three new cellar doors earmarked for the region, with the council also approving plans for tasting rooms at Willunga and McLaren Vale.

Mr Wright said opening his own brewery would be a dream come true.

“It’s been a dream of mine since I started home brewing 10 years ago,” Mr Wright said.

The brand’s range of craft beers are currently brewed and packaged at the Willunga Brewery.

Mr Wright was excited to bring the business back to McLaren Vale, where it started in his back shed.

“Within the industry, there’s a lot of brewers out there fighting for space in bars and bottle shops,” he said.

“If we’ve got our own facility for people to come and visit, that should help our business out.”

Mr Wright and his wife, Corrina, a winemaker, have a long family history in the region.

“I think it’s going to be good for the region and the brand, (and) it’s going to finally give us a home,” he said.

“(Olivers Rd) is a pretty high-use thoroughfare so we thought there was probably no better place to put it.”

Mr Wright said earthworks had already started at the site, and he hoped to have approval for the development's first stage in the next few weeks, so they could erect a shed.

Swell Brewing Co’s North Shore IPA.

“I’m hoping towards the end of 2018 we’ll be open for business,” Mr Wright said.

Meanwhile, Onkaparinga Council last week approved the construction a cellar door and restaurant to seat up to 100 people at Willunga.

Under the plan, the $500,000 development will be built at an existing wine shop and storage building on Main Rd, which is owned by Sirius Transnational.

Sirius Transnational head Julie Cooper said the plan had been in motion since the company bought the site two years ago.

“We’re really pleased however, there are still a number of boxes to tick,” Ms Cooper said.

“We’re hoping to have the business up and running this time next year.”

Under the approval, any event held at the new site – where there are eight neighbouring houses within 500m – would need to be finished by 10pm.

A McLaren Vale site owned by J & J Wines, at 47-67 Rivers Lane, was also given the green light to turn a shed into a cellar door to fit up to 25 people for tastings.

Work at the site – which has most recently been used as a storage shed for farming equipment – will include a 50sq m cellar door, deck and a new 10-space carpark.