21 craft breweries and distilleries in Victoria that should be on your must-visit list
From ales to gin and everything in between, these small-batch beers and house-made spirits are in a league of their own — and well worth getting out of Melbourne for.
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Wineries still beckon with cellar doors, but weekend road trips can now have you sipping world-class small-batch beers and house-made spirits.
Artisans skilled in the art of making seasonal ales and specialist gins are meeting demand with paddles and flights, tours and classes, food menus and accommodation.
From the Yarra Valley and Mornington Peninsula to Gippsland and the High Country, you can’t go far in Victoria without stumbling across a craft brewery or distillery.
And these ones should absolutely be on your list of places to stop by for a taste-test:
YARRA VALLEY
FOUR PILLARS GIN
Named 2019 International Gin Producer of the Year at the 50th Annual Wine and Spirits Competition in London, Four Pillars offers a truly immersive experience.
In the purpose-built tasting room, which offers wide-angle views on to gleaming stills, you are invited to sniff the distinctly Australian botanicals (seeds, leaves and roots) that inspire the gin produced and sample the much-awarded range.
The Four Pillars gin and tonic flight is first-class all the way.
2A Lilydale Rd, Healesville.
ALCHEMY DISTILLERS
Tucked down a lane, in an old bakery, Alchemy is fuelled by a vision to “explore distillation in all its forms”.
Expect to find gins, vodkas and whisky ready for tasting, or magically transformed into well-shaken cocktails.
Alchemy’s greenery filled beer garden is the place to savour brisket croquettes and chilaquiles from its friends at Hominy Southern Kitchen.
242 Maroondah Highway, Healesville.
COLDSTREAM BREWERY
The naked “Shivering Man” on the roof of the brewery, and its labels, say it all: This is a place for taking the plunge and doing what you want to do.
Rock up to the pub to sample the brewery’s full range of handcrafted beers and ciders, and match these up with sliders and steaks, ribs or a parma.
694 Maroondah Highway, Coldstream.
MORNINGTON PENINSULA
BASS & FLINDERS DISTILLERY
Ten years young, this family owned and run distillery produces fine brandies and grape-based spirits that express the flavour of its maritime region.
At the distillery door, visitors can savour gins (the berry-coloured Cerise is a wonder) or create their own signature blend by enrolling in a masterclass.
40 Collins Rd, Dromana.
JETTY ROAD BREWERY
Summer never seems to stop at this beachside locale. Informed by “local harvest” and “life alongside the sea”, Jetty Road Brewery is always pumping with live music, butcher’s block grazing plates and sessionable brews.
12-14 Brasser Ave, Dromana.
ST ANDREWS BEACH BREWERY
Racing history runs deep here. The stables that once housed Cup Carnival winners now double as tasting bays for some of the peninsula’s best craft brews.
We fancy the 6 Furlongs pale ale with a St Andrews pizza, and The Strapper lager with a burger and salad. A winner in every way.
160 Sandy Rd, Fingal.
SOUTH GIPPSLAND
LOCH BREWERY & DISTILLERY
Bound for the Prom? Then detour into charming Loch village where traditional ales and gins are made on site at its small red-brick brewery and distillery.
A big copper pot still takes pride of place at the cellar door (housed in what was once an old bank) where visitors are urged to sample Loch Dark Ale or The Weaver, a savoury gin with native overtones.
Don’t miss the single malt whisky either.
42-44 Victoria Rd, Loch.
OCEAN REACH BREWING
Made “on the island”, and managed by “unapologetic flavour junkies”, Ocean Reach Brewing pumps out thirst-quenching craft beers including seasonal releases (a grapefruit IPA, anyone?).
Savour them at the Ocean Reach Taphouse, with its 12 rotating taps, and match your beers with food-van faves — burgers, wings and poppers.
47 Thompson Ave, Phillip Island.
BURRA BREWING CO
This microbrewery was born of dreams of a few lads on a golf weekend. Opened in 2017, owners Phill, Anthony and Luke offer a variety of handcrafted beers on tap.
In the beer garden, kick back and pair your beer with a woodfired pizza, nachos, pretzels, baked potatoes and a selection of salads.
The brewery has happy hour and trivia on Thursday nights and live music on Friday nights and Sunday afternoons.
12 Commercial St, Korumburra.
CENTRAL VICTORIA
KILDERKIN DISTILLERY
Following in a long line of illegal gin joints in the Ballarat region, Kilderkin (the name of an oak cask) is dedicated to making licit, small-batch premium quality whisky and gin.
Red Duck Brewery shares its cellar door digs in Alfredton.
So, after you have enjoyed Kilderkin’s Larrikin gin-tasting flight and inspected its copper stills (small group guided tours are allowed), check out Red Duck’s tasting paddle of four beers offered with local cheese and bar snacks.
11A Michaels Drive, Alfredton.
HOLGATE BREWHOUSE
An indie trailblazer, Holgate has been making “traditionally crafted” beers that are “bold and balanced” for 20 years.
From humble beginnings, it now operates out of a handsome “brew pub” with bar, restaurant and accommodation.
Twelve Holgate beers (including the classic Norton lager) are on tap and ready to buddy up with a Binderee scotch fillet or Moroccan stew.
79 High St, Woodend.
ANIMUS DISTILLERY
Piper St in Kyneton is renowned for its foodie attractions.
Animus ups the ante with a cellar door and cocktail lounge furnished with ferns and Chesterfield sofas.
The star attraction is small-batch handcrafted Australian gin, with many of the botanicals grown on site.
Enjoy a Macedon dry gin while the team charge the boiler and collect the distillate.
On Friday nights you can also sip on a tipple while enjoying a pizza from the neighbouring Piper St Food Co.
1/89A Piper St, Kyneton.
BELLARINE AND SURF COAST
THE WHISKERY
Russ Watson (he of the whiskers) and Lorelle Warren were so inspired by the Scottish Highlands, they opened the Bellarine Distillery at Drysdale in 2015.
At the Whiskery, a farm shed cunningly converted into the cellar door, they invite visitors to “have a yarn” over a gin or whisky, slinging simple pizzas when they’re not pouring a wee dram.
2102-2120 Portarlington Rd, Drysdale.
GREAT OCEAN ROAD GIN
The coast with the most now boasts a gin tasting room and gin garden.
Anchored at Aireys Inlet, the distillery offers gin tastings, gin cocktails and G&Ts in a garden bar, with snacks and jaffles in the colder months.
32 Great Ocean Road, Aireys Inlet
QUEENSCLIFF BREWHOUSE
Dreamed of making your own beer?
At Queenscliff Brewhouse, you can. Its Brewer for a Day experience includes beer tasting, a hands-on session with the master brewer and Bellarine produce in the “regional tasting room”.
A one-stop shop opposite the bay, the Brewhouse also boasts an on-site distillery, bistro and beer garden.
2 Gellibrand St, Queenscliff.
ALPINE REGION
REED & CO DISTILLERY
Dwarfed by Alpine peaks, Bright is beloved for its glowing autumn colour but Reed & Co is a drawcard in itself.
This small, family owned distillery — boasting a bar and restaurant — has a neighbourhood bar vibe where rustic food is partnered with cocktails and craft spirits.
Remedy Gin, with pronounced juniper, eucalyptus and pine notes, is the distillery’s signature tipple.
15 Wills St, Bright.
BRIDGE ROAD BREWERS
No, not Tigerland! “Brewland!” That’s what the good folk behind Bridge Road Brewers call their home base in the historic gold mining town of Beechworth.
Founders Ben and Maria Kraus are proudly independent and marry pretzels and pizzas with their “creative” farmhouse beers.
Tours of Brewland are conducted daily.
50 Ford St, Beechworth
BRIGHT BREWERY
Overlooking the Ovens River, solar-powered Bright Brewery uses fresh mountain water, High Country ingredients and sustainable brewing techniques to create what it calls “Mountaincrafted” beers.
Find them on tap at the brewery — not just the famous core range but seasonal “Backcountry Brews” — and pair these with hearty grazing fare.
121 Great Alpine Rd, Bright
BLIZZARD BREWING COMPANY
Come off the slopes and visit Victoria’s highest altitude brewery (1550 metres).
At Blizzard’s Lift Line tap room, a Powder Pale Ale or a Summit Stout — brews all crafted from snow melt-fed water — can be enjoyed on the Overlook Tasting deck with farm fresh snacks.
5 Cattle Pen Drive, Dinner Plain
FURTHER AFIELD
TIMBOON RAILWAY SHED DISTILLERY
Portland’s Twelve Apostles have got some competition.
At Timboon Railway Shed Distillery, not far from crashing waves, visitors can taste premium whisky and spirits, enjoy a ‘Walk the Talk’ lunch tour, and dine on the deck.
Owner Josh Walker has his beautiful Tassie made copper pot bubbling and steaming most days.
1 Bailey Street, Timboon.
ECHUCA DISTILLERY
On the Murray, in everyone’s favourite river port town, Echuca Distillery is a small-scale outfit with a big heart.
Founders David DeVries and wife Fiona have a shared background in the science of flavours and fragrances and bring that knowledge, and passion, to their ‘100 per cent natural spirits’ (gin, flavoured vodka and liqueurs).
Take a gin flight on the distillery’s picturesque balcony before exploring the Echuca River Trail.
555 High Street, Echuca.
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