Esker Beer Co

Arriving at The Australian Hotel & Brewery you can't help but be struck with the impression that it isn't a place that does things by halves. This brewery complex in Sydney's northwestern suburb of Rouse Hill is, put simply, vast. Yet once you step inside it becomes quite clear why such scale is required, for it houses much more than just a brewery: restaurant, cafe and occasional coffee roaster, sports bar, kid's activity centre, beer garden, nightclub... the Aussie Brewery is an all-in-one food, drink and entertainment experience aimed at the modern suburbanite.

If you didn't guess from the name, a desire for Australian-ness is prominent here, a literal manifesto plastered on the wall in huge letters: "Fresh, Pure, Australian". It's essentially their way of stating they like supporting local things.

What you get from a local focus are plenty of locals as customers, particularly when the venue is so deliberately family-friendly; a giant water tank houses a children's adventure playground and the long kids menu is a guaranteed winner. And when the kids are happy, the adults invariably are too – more so when they can kick back and relax with a beer that is as fresh as it gets, and as of October 2022 goes by the name Esker Beer Co after the team decided to give the brand a name that better reflected their local Hills Shire community.

And it's that which is the main draw here. For all the variety this complex offers, it's things like the stainless steel fermenters behind the bar and the enormous copper-coloured pipes snaking their way through the dining area which provide a constant reminder that this is a living, breathing brewery. Though if you do need further proof, you can simply perch at the brewery bar and, through the large glass panels, watch the brewers at work. From there you'll have a front row seat of the mechanised magic of the first beer canning machine to be operated by a small Australian brewery, installed at the end of 2012. As of 2021, diners can also look up to see a catwalk with a small batch brew kit, where limited releases come to life.

If you want to get even closer to the action, jump on a half hour tour where the team guides you through the inner workings of the brewery and a taste of their beers. The Esker core range tends towards drinkability rather than outrageous experimentation, consisting of a Pacific Ale, West Coast IPA and Citrus Gose, and with plans to bring popular Australian Brewery brands under the Esker banner too, including the Old Cattle Dog dark ale and Seis Hermanos Mexican-style lager. That said, they'll often collaborate with other brewers and venues on more eclectic one-off beers and their seasonals are always worth hunting down.

When it launched in mid 2010 under the stewardship of founding brewer Neal Cameron, the brewery immediately began collecting an impressive list of accolades at well regarded beer shows. Now under head brewer Dan Shaw, a young and talented team – which includes everyone from Cicerones to a German brewer from the iconic Weihenstephan-Triesdorf University in Bavaria – has been picking up more medals than ever and across a broader range of styles. That's helped as the brewery continues to expand an export footprint which sees their beer carried in countries as far flung as China, Japan and Canada.

But, back at home, as Sydney's suburban sprawl continues towards the west and northwest, The Australian Hotel and Brewery (the venue is retaining its original name even with the beers now under the Esker banner) provides a significant focal point for locals seeking a beer they can call their own. It's a kind of temple to good beer, built for modern times and in tune with the community in which it resides.

Nick Oscilowski

Name
Esker Beer Co
Address

350 Annangrove Road
Rouse Hill
NSW 2155

Phone
(02) 9679 4555
Open Hours

Mon to Sat: 10am to 3am
Sunday: 8am to midnight

Tours

Mon to Fri: 9am to 5pm
Twilight Tours 6pm every Thu/Fri/Sat (Spring & Summer only) $25 inc. beer


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

Esker Beer Co Regulars

Australian Brewery All Star Session IPA

Published March 12, 2015
It was unusual, considering how much Australian drinkers love their fresh, punchy and hoppy beers, that The Australian Brewery declined to brew any form of New World IPA for so long. Perhaps even more so that, when they did finally relent in 2015, they opted for a Session IPA. But they had good reason as the original version of this beer was constructed in consultation with some Sydney bartenders who were after a post-work quencher in the realms of an IPA but without the accompanying high alcohol.… Read more
Style
Session IPA
ABV
4.3%
Bitterness
45 IBU

Australian Brewery Seis Hermanos Lager

Why did the Mexican put the lemon in the lager? We're not exactly sure, but it does seem to be a growing trend. Not over at The Australian Brewery though because their Seis Hermanos Lager has absolutely no need for such adjuncts. With 20% maize and just a small initial hop addition to keep the bitterness down, they've come up with a recipe that ensures this lager remains very light and clean, yet still retains a lot of natural flavour. The kicker here is the addition of US Liberty hops post-fermentation… Read more
Style
Lager
ABV
4.5%
Bitterness
16 IBU

Australian Brewery Old Cattle Dog

A dark ale called Old Cattle Dog. It’s a beer you want to order at a country pub while you’re sitting next to a bloke that the bartender keeps referring to as Old Joe, but you later find out isn’t named Joe at all. It’s a beer that smells like Lindt chocolate with 85 percent cocoa, but when you take a bite it tastes like cola and a smooth roasted coffee bitterness that’s as soothing as rain on a tin roof. It’s a beer that brought home a gold medal at the 2021 AIBAs and the Champion Draught… Read more
Style
Dark Ale
ABV
4.4%
Bitterness
25 IBU
Awards

Gold – AIBA 2021
Champion Draught Beer – Royal Sydney Beer & Cider Awards 2021

Esker Beer Co Specials

Australian Brewery Southern Land Red IPA & Trans-Tasman XPA

Published May 12, 2022
When the brewery is called Australian Brewery, it shouldn’t be a surprise when a few of the beers make reference to this big ol’ country of ours. Southern Land Red IPA is no doubt a shout out to the red dirt that covers such great expanses of the Australian outback. Once you get the stuff on you – in your car, in your clothes, on your skin – it’s an ordeal trying to get it off. This beer is actually a darker colour than said red dirt, almost pulling up a deep brown. But it’s equally determined… Read more
Style
Red IPA & XPA
ABV
6.7% & 5.0%
Bitterness
58 & 25 IBU

Australian Brewery Amarillo Single Hop & Citra Single Hop

Published May 12, 2022
Five years ago, if a brewery released a series of single hop beers, they were likely to be bitter IPAs. In 2022, Australian Brewery’s series is built instead upon hazy pale ales designed to show the distinct hop characters. How times change. (“Mum, Grandpa is shaking his fist and yelling at the cat about beers again!”) Despite its translucent look and its relatively full-in-the-mouth body, Amarillo Single Hop brings orange and spice without going full juice mode. Meanwhile, an East Coast ale… Read more
Style
Single Hop Hazy Pales
ABV
5.8% & 5.0%

Australian Brewery Mosaic Single Hop IPA

Published January 28, 2022
While the previous couple of entries in Australian Brewery’s single hop series were pale ales, it seems Mosaic beckoned for the brewers to make it the star of an old school IPA. The aromatics are multifaceted, like you’ve tripped and landed face first in a fruit platter. You can’t quite recognise all the sticky orange fruits smooshed on your face, but you think there’s a blueberry stuck up your left nostril. Yet the fruit salad subs out for malty dankness in the mouth. This IPA isn’t quite… Read more
Style
Single Hop IPA
ABV
7.0%
Bitterness
45 IBU

Australian Brewery Chimney Sweeper Smoked MĂ€rzen

Published November 1, 2021
When I think MĂ€rzen, I usually think of the examples I’ve had that present with malt sweetness: a rich honeyed character that sticks with me from sip to sip, even if the beer ultimately finishes dry. I don’t believe I’ve had a smoked MĂ€rzen before. [Blimey – I owe you a Schlenkerla MĂ€rzen pronto, Mick! – Editor] So my brain didn’t know what to do with Chimney Sweeper at first. Straight up, this Bavarian-style smoked MĂ€rzen caught me off guard by being light in the mouth rather than… Read more
Style
Smoked MĂ€rzen
ABV
6.0%
Bitterness
19 IBU

Australian Brewery & Messina Gelato Ale

Published November 27, 2019
On a hot summer’s day, some people say gelato is the way to keep cool. Others say beer’s the way to go. Australian Brewery and Gelato Messina say: “¿Porque no los dos?” The two businesses have collaborated to create a beer called Gelato Ale using Messina’s in-house dulce de leche, a sweet caramel-like sauce that’s hugely popular in South America. Dulce de leche is the base of one of Messina’s most popular gelato flavours; they take it so seriously that, when Australia banned the import… Read more
Style
Dulce de Leche Beer
ABV
5.5%
Stockists

Australian Brewery

You can find other stockists and watch a video of the making of the beer here

Australian Brewery Trans-Tasman XPA

Published April 25, 2019
It’s not uncommon for an Australian brewery to release a commemorative beer around Anzac Day. What is unusual, however, is when that beer is actually brewed by a former Anzac. That's the case here, however, after ex-Rifleman Jamie Howie made the interesting career move from Australian Army to Australian Brewery, joining the team at Rouse Hill in late 2018. Trans-Tasman XPA is the first beer he’s designed and the brewery’s first XPA too. Pale gold in colour and with aromas of citrus and tropical… Read more
Style
XPA
ABV
5.0%
Stockists

Australian Brewery

Australian Brewery

Minsky’s Hotel

Mt Annan Hotel

Leumeah Hotel

Willoughby Hotel

Figtree Hotel

Wattle Grove Hotel

More stockists...

Australian Brewery & Sydney Beer Week 2018 Festival Beer – Table Beer

Published October 25, 2018
Ahead of the opening of festivities, the official Sydney Beer Week beer has been shipped out to the venues preparing to unleash a torrent of good feels and great times at events across the city. For 2018, the festival beer was brewed by the team at Rouse Hill's Australian Brewery in collaboration with the festival’s general manager Liam Pereira. And, for the first time, it’s been packaged in cans, wrapped in the kind of colourful artwork that characterises the festival program – of which more… Read more
Style
Grisette
ABV
5.0%
Stockists

Find the beer across Sydney Beer Week 2018 events

Australian Brewery Revenge Of The Pith IIPA

Published May 3, 2018
For a brewery that makes a lot of beer, The Australian Brewery doesn’t necessarily make a lot of beers. This is a brewery that’s essentially made its name knocking out a tight range that’s brought them regular success at competitions at home and abroad. As for the latest crazes? Well, it’s just not really been their thing. Sure, if the right collaborator comes along they’ll bang out a big Belgian tripel or a New England milkshake IPA but, as a matter of course, they tend to stick to what… Read more
Style
Citrus Imperial IPA
ABV
8.0%
Stockists

Australian Brewery

Native Rose

And select venues in Sydney, Newcastle & Perth

More stockists...

Australian Brewery & Bucket Boys If You Like Pina Colada

Published October 19, 2017
New England IPAs are passĂ©; all hail the hazy cocktail IPA
 For their second collaboration, The Australian Brewery and Bucket Boys have thrown caution to the wind and released a beer under the banner of a New England Milkshake IPA. For those unfamiliar with the hazy IPA trend that’s been both sweeping and dividing the beer world of late (presumably those people who call home the underside of a rock), the concept of a milkshake beer probably sounds only slightly more appealing than drinking the… Read more
Style
New England Milkshake IPA
ABV
6.7%

Australian Brewery Fire and Brimstone Smoked IPA

Published August 11, 2017
Barbecue and beer go hand in hand. But barbecue in beer? Well, yes, it turns out that concept can work too – at least, it does if the latest release from The Australian Brewery is any evidence. It’s called Fire and Brimstone, it’s a smoked IPA and that style as descriptor gives a pretty good indication of what this beer smells and tastes like. Beers dealing in smoked malt can be notoriously divisive; some drinkers can’t get enough of the puff while others find the character offensive even… Read more
Style
Smoked IPA
ABV
6.0%

Australian Brewery Seis Hermanos Lager

Published November 2, 2016
Since opening in 2010, The Australian Brewery hasn’t been afraid to put out the occasional beer in a style that beer geeks would have so little interest in that you'd be surprised if they noticed them at all. You’d gave to say that one of those is the Mexican lager, a beer that’s been around at the brewery since the early days, has always proven popular out at Rouse Hill and which even got a few runs through the canning line back when The AB was still the only small microbrewery to be packaging… Read more
Style
Mexican Lager
ABV
4.5%
Bitterness
16 IBU

Australian Brewery Ice Ice Baby

Published August 3, 2016
The team at The Australian Brewery has never been afraid to eschew the cries of some among the beer cognoscenti who believe lagers are boring. Indeed, sometimes you think they might even be goading them; after all, this is a brewery that, at a time before many had even considered canned beer, filled some of theirs with a light Mexican lager. The point is that you couldn’t call their journey through lagerland boring. Their New World pilsner is a fine beer, fine enough that Feral founder Brendan… Read more
Style
Eisbier
ABV
7.0%
Bitterness
50-plus IBU
Stockists

Australian Brewery

Australian Brewery Tripel Threat

Published June 27, 2016
When The Australian Brewery flicked the ‘on’ switch to its canning line in 2012 it became the first independent Aussie brewery to start canning its beer. And it was done with a point of difference too, their slimline 355ml cans being a different shape to any other beer that followed, domestic or foreign. With canned beer having since caught on like a bout of the winter flu, the AB has changed a few screws on its canning machine (at least, we assume it’s that simple
) and reconfigured things… Read more
Style
Tripel IPA
ABV
10.5%
Bitterness
50 IBU

Australian Brewery Holy Union

Published March 3, 2016
Have you ever wondered what it would taste like if you mixed the All Star IPA with the Saison D’Heretique? The brewers at The Australian Brewery did, so they did. The result is a draught-only release called the Holy Union. It uses the exact same strain of French/Belgian saison yeast the Rouse Hill brewery uses to such great effect in its Saison D’Heretique and combines it with the generous hopping regime of their session IPA. While there’s yeast spiciness on the nose, it’s the latter hop… Read more
Style
Belgian Session IPA
ABV
4.5%
Bitterness
36 IBU
Stockists

Australian Brewery

Other venues TBC

Australian Brewery & Feral Brewing Storm Trooper Imperial Pilsner

Published May 7, 2015
We've long felt that the Australian Brewery brews one of the country’s finest pilsners. And when The Crafty Pint was making this point while enjoying a family BBQ with Feral and Nail Brewing at the start of the year, we discovered that Feral head brewer Brendan Varis felt the same. Indeed, he felt so strongly about it that he had made plans to brew an imperial version with his Australian Brewery counterpart, Neal Cameron. It was something that had been mooted for a while but which only raised its… Read more
Style
Imperial Pilsner
ABV
8.1%
Stockists

Keg:

Australian Brewery

Spooning Goats

Bitter Phew

Rag & Famish

Brewski

The Blind Monk

Firestation Hotel

More stockists...

Australian Brewery Saison D'Heretique (Retired)

Published March 3, 2015
Brewer Neal Cameron's take on the French / Belgian farmhouse style crosses borders by blending French and Belgian yeasts to create a suitably complex beer – one with a big character too. For while the saison style is one that's typically subtle and not "big" in the sense of, say, a hopped up IPA or big stout, this one holds little back. The aroma coming from its towering, fluffy white head is awash with herbal characteristics, and with green peppercorn and clove too, while the malt sweetness… Read more
Style
Saison
ABV
6.2%

Australian Brewery Heisenberg Crystal Hef

Published November 28, 2014
It's not blue, it won't keep you up for days on end and you won't get in trouble with the feds for indulging, but the Australian Brewery's latest seasonal release is still a rather smart play on Breaking Bad. The beer is inspired by southern German wheat beers – aka hefeweizen – and also uses a fair amount of Crystal malt, which can add a deeper amber hue and caramel flavours to a beer, among a plethora of other grains. Hence Crystal Hef. Hence Heisenberg. It's a draught-only release described… Read more
Style
Crystal Hefeweizen
ABV
5.0%
Bitterness
24 IBU
Stockists

Australian Brewery

Select tap points around Sydney

Australian Brewery Mexican Lager (Can)

Published April 15, 2014
Now this should prove interesting in beer geek land. It almost feels like rolling a hand grenade into the midst of a group of beer aficionados and waiting for them to spot it and cry out in horror. Why? Well, the latest beer to appear in cans from the Australian Brewery is its Mexican Lager, "inspired by the hot plains of Mexico", decorated with psychedelic skulls, and essentially the lager designed with the brewery's home crowd in NW Sydney in mind - those who might shirk from the brewery's… Read more
Style
Mexican Lager
ABV
4.5%
Stockists

In cans nationwide

Australian Brewery Extra Hoppy Ale

Published September 25, 2013
Australia's craft beer in cans pioneers have been busy of late. They've made a successful trip to India, where they will soon be sending their Pale Ale and Pilsner, and are exploring other overseas markets too. They've also been busy touring the bars and bottleshops of Melbourne looking to spread the word about what they've got going on in Rouse Hill rather closer to home too. The tour of Melbourne has been carried out with a few cases of their latest seasonal release, entitled "The Extra Hoppy… Read more
Style
American Amber
ABV
5.8%

Australian Brewery Breakfast Ale

Published March 20, 2013
"We wanted to see whether we could generate enough orangey character from US Cascade hops to make a beer that was like having a beer and orange juice together," says brewer Neal Cameron. "In other words like a normal breakfast but in one glass. Whether we succeeded or not doesn't matter: it's hoppy."… Read more
Style
Hoppy Ale
ABV
5.6%

Australian Brewery The Smoked IPA

Published February 27, 2013
According to the team at AB, this beer was brewed "to celebrate the historically warm relationship between the English and the Germans over the decades. This is a Rauchbier/IPA hydrid. A striking smoky bacon aroma seasoned with spicy English challenger and Target hops; rich dark malt flavour and oodles of hoppy bitterness to finish."… Read more
Style
IPA / Rauchbier
ABV
5.7%

Australian Brewery The Motherlode

Published October 15, 2012
The first ever craft beer from a small brewery in Australia to appear inside a can! This ESB is inspired by the "deeply flavoursome strong bitter ales of England". According to the brewers, it's "brewed to be darker and richer than the day to day 'ordinary' bitter ales" yet be "oh so drinkable". Expect "complex dark stonefruit aroma on a full-bodied rich caramelised toffee palate, distinct spicy hop aroma and bitterness from Target hops."… Read more
Style
ESB
ABV
6.0%

Australian Brewery Pilsner (Retired)

If you're setting out to make a Pilsner, chances are it's going to have some pretty strong ties to the classic European versions of the style, and so it is with The Australian Brewery Pilsner. By using the most pale of pale and wheat malts, this has all the lightness and clarity you'd ask for in a Pils. And of course it has the quintessential crisp, refreshing bitterness from US and New Zealand hops - but not too much though. And therein lies the key to this beer: balance. With the bitterness being… Read more
Style
Pilsner
ABV
4.8%

Australian Brewery Dark Lager (retired)

If advertising has taught us anything, it's that lagers must have perfect clarity with a glowing golden hue (not to mention being served cold to the point of blandness). In that case, to many, the concept of a dark lager might seem a total juxtaposition. The Australian Brewery Dark Lager firmly shuns the concept of a light lager, preferring to play in the shadows with more flavourful friends. Those friends are roasted and caramel malts which give this beer a rich, round flavour and reddish-brown… Read more
Style
Sbwartzbier
ABV
5.1%

Australian Brewery Steam Ale (retired)

The steam ale style harks back to the good ol' days of Wild West USA, which tends to mean they aren't all that common 'round these parts. The Australian Brewery, however, brews a good 'un. Steam ales themselves are a hybrid style of beer; not quite lager and not quite ale. Here, they take a lager (i.e. Kolsch) yeast and ferment it at a temperature more suited to an ale (i.e. warm). While the resulting beer may look every part your classic lager with a bright gold colour and having been filtered for… Read more
Style
US Steam Ale
ABV
4.5%

Australian Brewery Australian Pale Ale - RETIRED

If any one modern beer style has the right qualities to take Australia by storm, it's probably what's being termed the Pacific Pale Ale. Typically light and easy drinking but full on flavour, beers within this style are the epitome of crowd pleasers, welcome at any beach, barbecue or Backyard Cricket across the nation. And if such a trend towards these kinds of beers does catch on, it's good news for The Australian Brewery because their Australian Pale Ale is a cracking version. The cloudy appearance… Read more
Style
Pacific Pale Ale
ABV
4.8%
Bitterness
26 IBU

Australian Brewery Into The Void Oatmeal Stout (Retired)

The sole dark beer in the Australian Brewery’s core range is an oatmeal stout named Into The Void. And should you manage to find it on tap or, more likely, in a can, you’ll enjoy a beer with flavour as deep as the void it suggests. That said, being made in a classic English style, it’s not a barnstorming beer in nature, but a balanced one. Fuggles and Willamette hops offer up a very gentle bitterness but on the palate it’s all about a roasted malt flavour that’s topped off with a teasing… Read more
Style
Oatmeal Stout
ABV
5.1%
Bitterness
30 IBU