Canberra Beer History

Six British colonies united to form the Commonwealth of Australia, creating a new nation and the need for a national capital. The Constitution required the seat of government to be in New South Wales, but at least 100 miles from Sydney. The search for a suitable location would eventually lead to Canberra.

Beer was still a long way from the picture, but Federation set in motion the creation of the Federal Capital Territory and the liquor laws that would shape Canberra’s early drinking culture.

Before Canberra even had its name, prohibition came into effect in the Federal Capital Territory. Canberra’s early development therefore took place without the licensed drinking culture that was common in other Australian cities.

The effects on local brewing lasted well beyond the prohibition years. Early Territory liquor laws did not provide for brewers’ licences, and when a brewery was proposed for Braddon in 1933, changes to the law would have been required. Cabinet declined to make them. For many years, the beer consumed in Canberra continued to be brewed elsewhere.

Canberra was still subject to prohibition when newspapers reported a proposal for a bar at Parliament House.

The idea highlighted the tension between the Territory’s liquor restrictions and Canberra’s growing role as the nation’s political centre. Parliament was due to move from Melbourne to Canberra the following year, and the rules around the sale of alcohol in the capital were becoming increasingly difficult to ignore.

By 1980, Canberra had grown considerably, but it still did not have a significant local brewing industry. Canberra Draught and Canberra Light Ale were introduced as beers made specifically for the Canberra market.

They were not actually brewed in Canberra. The South Australian Brewing Company produced them in Adelaide at the request of local liquor merchant Canberra Wine Supplies.

Putting Canberra’s name on a beer was an early step towards a local beer identity. Canberra finally had beers intended specifically for its drinkers, even if they were still being made interstate.

Parsons Pint Tavern opened in September 1989 as part of the Glebe Park a la Carte international food hall associated with the National Convention Centre. It became the first commercial brewery located on ACT soil.

Its first brewer, Donald Outterson, had studied brewing at Chicago’s Siebel Institute and helped establish the brewery’s licensing and excise arrangements. After Outterson returned to the United States, English-born homebrewer Richard Pass took over the brewing. Pass would later be associated with the Wig & Pen.

Parsons Pint was relatively short-lived, but it holds an important place in Canberra’s brewing history. For the first time, commercial beer was being brewed within the Territory itself.

The Wig & Pen Tavern & Brewery opened on Alinga Street in Civic in June 1994 and went on to become one of the most influential names in Canberra brewing.

Over the following two decades, the Wig & Pen developed a reputation for brewing expertise and experimentation. Future BentSpoke co-founder Richard Watkins spent much of his professional career there as head brewer and became a twice-crowned Australian Champion Brewer.

The Wig & Pen also earned major brewing accolades and became an important meeting point for brewers and beer enthusiasts. Its influence can be seen in several of the breweries and brewers that followed.

After more than 15 years at the Wig & Pen, brewer Richard Watkins and co-founder Tracy Margrain opened the BentSpoke Brewing Co brewpub in Braddon in June 2014.

Canberra’s response was immediate. BentSpoke’s history records around 3,000 litres of beer and cider being poured over opening weekend, while another contemporary account puts the figure across the first three days at about 3,500 litres. Whichever figure is used, the queues outside the brewpub showed there was a strong appetite for locally brewed beer.

BentSpoke also continued some of the experimentation Watkins had begun at the Wig & Pen, including barrel ageing and mixed-culture fermentation. The response to the opening showed how far Canberra’s interest in local craft beer had come, with the audience extending well beyond a small group of enthusiasts.

BentSpoke took a major step beyond its Braddon BrewPub with the opening of their Cannery in Mitchell. The new production facility gave BentSpoke the capacity to package its beer for the first time, with Crankshaft IPA and Barley Griffin Canberra Pale Ale becoming the first beers released in cans in November 2016. Equipped with a high-speed canning line, The Cannery helped take locally brewed beer from Canberra taps to bottle shops and homes across the region, marking an important moment in the growth of Canberra’s modern brewing culture.

Capital Brewing Co began as a contract-brewed brand before establishing its own brewery in Fyshwick.

The company was founded by Canberra hospitality figures Laurence Kain and Tom Hertel together with Batlow Cider founders Rich and Sam Coombes. The Fyshwick brewery brought a large production facility, taproom and beer garden to Canberra’s growing craft beer scene.

Also around 2017, Guv Toor, owner of the Pot Belly Bar in Belconnen began brewing beer specifically for the bar. Having since dialed in a core range, many of Guv’s beers are named in honour of local musicians that have performed at the venue.

Ale Mary Brewing Co was founded in late 2022 by three Canberra locals who shared an interest in straightforward, approachable craft beer.

Head brewer Andrew Gordon-Douglas had been homebrewing since his teenage years and spent more time experimenting during the COVID lockdowns. He joined Marc Grainger, formerly associated with Pact, and Josh Gray at a small Fyshwick operation using three 600-litre fermenters.

The brewery focused on recognisable beer styles and began getting its beers into local venues, including the Durham Castle Arms. Like several Canberra breweries before it, Ale Mary grew out of the city’s strong homebrewing culture.

Jeremy ‘Jez’ Burton began brewing under the name Beerded Bro Brewing, selling his first keg to Cartel Tacos in October 2023. While he had dabbled in homebrewing from a kit, Jez quickly moved to all-grain due to his fascination with the process and craft. His homebrew received a positive response and he was encouraged to take it further, which he eventually did.

Tim ‘Box’ Boxall and Sam ‘Axel’ Axelsen began brewing as Ambush in November 2023, adding another small independent producer to Canberra’s beer scene.

Both came to commercial brewing through homebrewing, although their paths were different. Boxall spent the pandemic experimenting more seriously with fermentation before gaining commercial brewing experience. Axelsen’s interest began years earlier with a ginger beer kit he received as an anniversary present.

The two friends eventually decided to turn their shared interest into a brewery. Their path reflects a familiar theme in Canberra beer: homebrewers building their skills, gaining experience and eventually deciding to brew professionally.