After water, beer is the second-most famous drink of all time. Annually, almost 190 billion litres of this icy brew are consumed globally – making beer the most widely consumed alcoholic drink on the planet.
On Friday, April 7, it’s time to toast all things ale with National Beer Day…no matter how you pour it, make sure to celebrate the day in 1933 when prohibition was reversed in the United States.
Here are five of our favourite spots to celebrate Hoppy Hour with a schooner or two, order online, or take your beer home with you:
Nestled on the west end of St Georges Terrace in the heart of Perth’s CBD, Rusty Fig is an oasis from the hectic pace of city surroundings. Named after a more than 130-year-old Port Jackson fig tree that is the centrepiece of the outdoor deck, perhaps start with drinks at one of two bars with inviting leather stools, before checking out the action in the open kitchen; then head upstairs to the restaurant where elegant décor and plush armchairs await.
Pair an ice-cold IPA beer with plates like beef fillet, fondant potato, onion horseradish gel, caramelised shallot and red wine jus, or veal, truffle mash, sweet corn, semi-dried tomatoes and veal jus.
Bringing beer back to its roots, drop by Eden Brewery on Cavendish Street in Mittagong for a cold one and boozy burger with your mates. More than just another brewery, Eden is built on the foundation of doing good and being a positive influence on the community, donating 10% of profits to Oxfam as a way of providing clean drinking water to those in need.
Stop in to celebrate with glass of Joshua Tree Lager – a clean, lightly grainy and crisp beer with a soft nuttiness from the NSW-grown malt – or special release Ghost Gum Hazy Pale with a tropical fruit punch to the face.
For gastro pub fare bringing the best of traditional British classics to Belgrave, local foodies head to Micawber Tavern on Monbulk Road. Recently renovated and nestled within the beautiful Dandenong Ranges, this is not your average country pub; think a beer garden surrounded by ferns with a creek running through it, a log fire indoors for chilly months and live sport on TV in the bar.
Stop in over Easter and celebrate National Beer Day with a cold pint and a bite to eat, such as beer-battered fish, chips, salad and tartar sauce, or prawn and chorizo linguine, with preserved lemon, chilli and cherry tomatoes.
Gold Coasters looking for a beer fix can head to Lost Palms Brewing on Oak Avenue. Escape from reality, get lost and take a moment to enjoy that well-earnt brew at this craft beer taproom and takeaway bottle shop, whether chilling out alfresco with mates or indoors, where an onsite kitchen dishes up snacks and burgers to appease hunger.
Perhaps a Get Together Hazy Pale Ale takes your fancy – gentle tangerine notes swirl effortlessly into lime and melon nuances, which are soft on the palate but juicy enough thanks to the generous dry hopping of citra and cashmere.
Dangerously good beer with bite is what you’ll get when your order online from Venom Beer, based on High Street in Year. Established by the Drysdale family in 2015, this well-loved household name in the independent beer scene in Australia began its journey with the Venom Golden Ale – it didn’t take long for the unforgettable snake logo and delicious amber liquid to appear in pubs, clubs and homes all over the country.
Legend has it the Venom concept was originally born when founding father Johnny was bitten by a Tiger snake in the outback. Waiting for the ambulance to arrive, he cracked an average beer and realised life was too short for sub-par beer – he wanted a deadly good brew and the plan was born!
However you celebrate the ale in your life, cheers to National Beer Day!
