Sunshine Coast brew named best beer in Australia

A small brewery has taken out the title of the best beer in the country.

A Sunshine Coast brewery has taken out the title of Australia’s best beer for the second year in a row, beating out entries from across the country in the annual RNA Royal Queensland Beer Awards.

Moffat Beach Brewing Co claimed top prize in the gongs, after winning last year and in 2020, this time claiming the accolade of Grand Champion Beer of Show with their Trilogy Best Coast IPA.

“It’s amazing; we’re over the moon, especially with that beer,” said the brewery’s Matt Wilson, who founded the business with his wife Sharynne in 2015.

“It holds a special place in the hearts of all the brewers. It’s our favourite beer to drink.”

Moffat Beach Brewing Co owners Matt and Sharynne Wilson have won Australia’s Best Beer at the Royal Queensland Beer Awards. Picture: Lyndon Mechielsen

The winning beer, which has been described by judges as “fresh, aromatic, hoppy”, had to undergo three rounds of judging by 48 experts.

“Moffat Beach Brewing Co has demonstrated in this competition they can make a good beer year after year,” judge Steve Henderson said.

“The fact they won Grand Champion in 2020 and 2023 and have backed it up again this year shows they’re a high-quality brewery consistently outperforming the rest of the industry.”

The Grand Champion trophy was just one of four awards for the Sunshine Coast brewery which also picked up Best Queensland Beer, Best Session Beer and Best Small to Medium Brewery.

“I can’t thank my brew team enough,” said Mr Wilson, with the prize a $5000 Lion bursary and the opportunity to be served and showcased during this year’s Ekka.

“Their attention to detail is just amazing, their work ethic is amazing and we really did put a lot of effort into this beer.”

Judges said the competition was among the best ever, with the quality of the whopping 622 beers entered across 18 categories exceptionally high.

Other big winners in the gongs included Brisbane brewery Hiker Brewing Co in Salisbury, which scored Best New Brewery and Champion Brewpub, and Daniel Thomsen from Brisbane’s Slipstream Brewing, who took out The Star Brisbane Emerging Queensland Brewer award.