Sydney Brewery

There are plenty of breweries in Sydney. But there’s only one Sydney Brewery.

In some ways, the folks at Sydney Brewery have flown under the radar for a while: perhaps because they were comfortably servicing their own venues and a number of Rydges hotels; perhaps because their beers were previously named after Sydney suburbs, building a tight connection with locals but possibly giving outsiders the impression they had a parochial approach to making and selling beer.

But there’s never been anything small town about this big city brewery. Their beers have always been of a high quality, which is proven every time they brush past a beer competition and come away with a swathe of awards. Take the 2021 Royal Queensland Beer Awards as an example, where they went up against 70 breweries submitting almost 500 beers and took home the Grand Champion Beer trophy with a Czech-style Pilsner, as well as a fistful of medals.

When this standard of brewing meets with the Sydney Brewery’s ethos to “make the kind of brews you can enjoy more than one of, with a range that has everyone’s tastes covered,” it’s no surprise that this is an independent brewery on the move. Because despite the name, Sydney Brewery isn’t really about the place so much as it’s about the people.

Sydney is home to all kinds of different characters, and the brewery’s home suburb of Surry Hills is a particularly eclectic area that acts as a microcosm of the diverse city. This has seeped into Sydney Brewery’s DNA, to the point where they look well beyond their backyard and borders to all the weird and wonderful personalities out there and say, “Whoever you are, wherever you’re from, whatever you look like - you’re our kind of people.”

This diversity is obviously reflected in their broad range of core beers and seasonals - light and clean lagers through pale ales and punchy IPAs to the deep flavours at the darker end of the spectrum - but is also captured nicely in the design of their beers. Since the brewery’s brand refresh in 2021, each beer is represented by a memorable character that gives a nod to the stories and spirit of the area that inspired it. You can drink a Pilsner with Kate Leigh, the underworld queen of Surry Hills, or a dark lager with the Irish Seven of Darlinghurst, or a pale ale with the florally-adorned gent of Paddington… or you can simply pick a beer based on which quirky illustration catches your eye and enjoy the easy-drinking flavours.

If you’re after something different again, you’re in luck - the Sydney Brewery team also specialises in ciders, from the champagne-like Sydney Cider to their spicy Agave Ginger Cider, as well as limited releases and collabs that have included pears, cherries, and vermouth in the mix.

It’s up to you how you want to experience Sydney Brewery. You can snag daily specials and tap along to live music at their home brewery in Surry Hills. You can sip nectar after work at The Cidery in Sydney’s CBD. You can spend a whole weekend discovering their production brewery and venue in Lovedale, the beating heart of the Hunter Valley.

Or you can enter a bottle shop in another part of the country, pick one of the colourful cans from the fridge, and befriend the character making eyes at you from the label.

Wherever you’re from, you’ll quickly realise that this is not ‘a’ Sydney brewery. This is Sydney Brewery.

Name
Sydney Brewery
Address

28 Albion Street
Surry Hills
Sydney 2010

Phone
(02) 9289 0028
Regular events

Every day: $15 lunch & $5 beers & ciders 4pm to 6pm
Monday: $15 burgers & $5 schooners
Tuesday: $10 tacos
Wednesday: $15 pizzas & $12 jugs
Thursday: $10 tasting paddles
Friday: live entertainment
Saturday: $20 bucket of beers

Open Hours

Surry Hills

Mon to Sat: midday to midnight
Sunday: 4pm to 10pm


This is a directory listing. To find out more, head here

Sydney Brewery Regulars

Sydney Brewery Dark Lager

Thanks to decades of concerted effort on the part of multinational brewers, lagers have managed to achieve almost complete domination of this country’s (and the world’s) beer consumption. Yet, at the opposite end of the industry, the resurgence of smaller breweries has been almost entirely built by brewing anything except lager. So when a brewery has not one, not two, but three lagers in its core range, it’s worth paying attention.? Why Sydney Brewery’s Lager and Pilsner will fit many people’s… Read more
Style
Dark Lager
ABV
4.9%

Sydney Brewery Pale Ale

Like a great many pales these days, Sydney Brewery’s Pale Ale is based on the hop forward US interpretation of the style. Yet, despite the addition of Cascade, Galaxy and Amarillo, it feels like more effort has been put into chasing balance than it has to overwhelm the drinker with lashings of fruity flavours. So while you do get those, starting with citrusy and floral aromas, it’s all relative. The malt is a feature, but not the star. The bitterness is big, but not too big. Those hops are pronounced,… Read more
Style
American Pale Ale
ABV
5.0%

Sydney Brewery Pilsner

A century ago, Surry Hills was home to Kate Leigh, the shady underworld madam who traded in booze and cocaine, ran gambling syndicates, and kept Sydney’s notorious razor gang wars going strong. Today, Surry Hills is home to an old Czech fellow who brings his own glass into Sydney Brewery for his regular beer at his local watering hole. I’ll let you decide which Surry Hills character you’d rather have a drink with. If Sydney Brewery’s Lager tries to win drinkers over by showing off all the… Read more
Style
Pilsner
ABV
5.0%

Sydney Brewery Lager

When Sydney Brewery moved the bulk of its production from Sydney to the Hunter Valley, it seemed only right to dedicate a beer to its second home. But while this beer is no longer named ‘Lovedale Lager’, it’s now attached to an image of the one of the eagles that soars majestically above the Hunter Valley. It’s a faithful interpretation of the classic German beers that, along with those inspired by Czech pilsners, took over the world. But don’t take our word for it; ask the judges from… Read more
Style
Munich Helles
ABV
4.7%

Sydney Brewery The Original Cider & Agave Ginger Cider

Sydney Brewery is one of the few breweries around that also takes cider seriously, with both core range and seasonal offerings, not to mention a fair few gold medals garnered along the way. The Original Sydney Cider is crystal clear and sparkles like a diamond, with just a hint of yellow in the light. It's a little like liquid bling – made from fresh crushed apples from Adelaide Hills, fermented with champagne yeast and best served in a wine glass. But, if fancy isn’t your thing, it can be as… Read more
Style
Apple Cider & Agave Ginger Cider
ABV
4.5%

Sydney Brewery East Coast IPA

If you want to go straight to the fruit bomb end of Sydney Brewery's range, it’s time to hit the East Coast IPA. In these oh so hazy days, don’t let the lack of opacity fool you into thinking you won’t get much juiciness here. This beer gives just a wink to its cousins from New England with a little natural haze, yet as soon as you’re within an arm’s length of this beauty you’ll get it. It positively jumps out of the glass, filling your face with huge, sticky aromas of mango and pawpaw.… Read more
Style
East Coast IPA
ABV
7.0%

Sydney Brewery Specials

Sydney Brewery Smooth Talker, Speak Easy & Lumberjack

Published June 30, 2021
In the thick of winter, and in the beginning of lockdown, Sydney Brewery has dropped three seasonal beers to keep our spirits high. The cool cat crooning on the Smooth Talker Porter can doubles down on the beer's ‘smooth’ vibe and suggests that some Coltrane playing in the background wouldn’t go astray. It’s surprisingly dark even for a porter - it’s opaque unless you shine a light directly through it, in which case you can see a red glow peeking through the black curtains. Gentle chocolate… Read more
Style
Various
ABV
5.5%, 6.0% & 6.5%

Sydney Brewery Blue Swimmer Summer Ale

Published April 20, 2021
Life’s pretty good out in the East of Sydney. From Bondi to Bronte through Tamarama, it’s all about blue skies, beaches, buff blokes and babes... and anthropomorphic blue swimmer crabs in budgie smugglers, apparently. Blue Swimmer Summer Ale is the definition of crisp and refreshing. It’s hopped with Citra, which gives a touch of passionfruit and other tropical fruits, but really it’s all about being light, bright and breezy. This is the kind of quencher you want in your hand as soon as you… Read more
Style
Summer Ale
ABV
4.6%

Sydney Brewery Single Hop Blonde

Published April 12, 2019
What looks like a wine, smells like a wine, tastes like a wine, but isn’t a wine? An American blonde ale hopped with Hallertau Blanc. The Single Hop Blonde from Sydney Brewery pours a pale, almost powder yellow, suggesting the wine characteristics of the Hallertau Blanc hops. Swirl and sniff, and get those white wine aromatics of lemongrass, citrus, and green grapes. Take a sip, and the low body and crisp finish could almost have you fooled into thinking you were tasting a dry riesling. But the… Read more
Style
Blonde Ale
ABV
4.6%

Sydney Brewery Light Rail Ale

Published December 28, 2016
Brewer's notes: A session beer that still appeases the need for flavour. A copper hue runs through this Californian common, with balanced additions of Northern Brewer and Galaxy hops on the pallet and a hint of Amarillo on the nose.… Read more
Style
California Common
ABV
3.5%

Sydney Brewery Coogee Kolsch

Published December 2, 2016
Brewer's notes: Brewed with traditional Kolsch yeast, this beer combines a soft malt profile with a balanced and crisp noble hop character.… Read more
Style
Kolsch
ABV
5.1%

Sydney Brewery Pyrmont Double Rye IPA

Published October 21, 2016
Brewer's notes: Brewed with Chinook, Enigma and Columbus hops this new world Rye IPA has all the old world character of traditional German malts, combined with pure hunter valley water.… Read more
Style
Double IPA
ABV
8.0%

Sydney Brewery Belgian Saison

Published October 1, 2016
Brewer's notes: Belgian Abbey and French Saison, offering a complex yeast character complimented by a Rye and Marris Otter malt base.… Read more
Style
Saison
ABV
8.0%

Sydney Brewery Pyrmont Rye IPA

Beginning life as a one-off collaboration between the Sydney Brewery and Pyrmont’s Quarryman’s Hotel, the Pyrmont Rye IPA proved so popular at the pub that it became part of the brewery’s core offerings and has gone on to spawn a bigger sibling. This is comfortably the most robust beer of the brewery’s regular range, a hop-forward drop based on five American hop varieties which bring big licks of pine and fruitiness. There’s a touch of residual malt sweetness before the rye chimes in with… Read more
Style
Rye IPA
ABV
6.5%

Sydney Brewery Pittwater Bitter

Given events of the 1700s, Sydney will forevermore have a connection with England. It therefore makes some sense that the Sydney Brewery should have a beer in its range which has a nod to that connection and they’ve opted to do so with the Pittwater Bitter, their take on the classic Extra Special Bitter style. Upon first introduction you’re met with aromas of caramel and dried fruits before the first sip takes you away on a wave of earthy hop character – courtesy of the traditional Styrian… Read more
Style
ESB
ABV
5.5%

Sydney Brewery Potts Point Porter

Potts Point is a creature of the night. It stretches right out into the black water, leaving the city behind and contemplating the depth of the darkness. And yet, back in the thick of things, it’s known for nightclubs, the dancing, and the bouncing and the neon lights. Potts Point Porter shares this tendency for the darkness. It sits in the glass a thick brown, with just a glint of red around the edges. It's surprisingly nimble for a porter, neither heavy in the mouth, nor inert and one dimensional… Read more
Style
Porter
ABV
5.5%

Sydney Brewery Oxford XPA

Sydney Brewery's Oxford XPA is all about the hops. It's a beer that brings all the colours of the hop rainbow to the nose and mouth – tropical fruits, citrus, some pine, a hint of flora underneath, and a solid punch of bitterness to boot. There’s just enough malt to sweeten the body and carry the fruits along, but not so much to distract from the bitter assertiveness. Mick Wust… Read more
Style
XPA