Normally, I’m a huge proponent of living super-frugally both while traveling and even when I’m at home (though that’s purely so I can save as much as possible for my next adventure!). But before I headed off to Australia, I had a LOT of people reach out to tell me two things about visiting Australia:
While I was well aware already that Australia was on the pricier side, I had no idea about their beer. Now, I’m not a drinker by all means, but I do know a good beer when I have one. So while I was there, I made sure to try out quite a few brews in order to give you guys a list of the beers I thought topped the list so you could skip the bad ones and get right to the good ones. Of course, though, this is my objective opinion so YMMV.
This was the very first beer I had after I arrived in Sydney. Fact-wise, it’s a little weird because it’s not even from the state of New South Wales where Sydney is located – it’s actually native to Victoria. The first sip, I must say, I didn’t really enjoy too much. It’s a very, very strong-tasting lager and took me by surprise. But after a few,I got used to the heaviness of the flavour and ended up really enjoying it. Let me say… it wasn’t the only one I had during my trip!
After spending a day around the Sunshine Coast and stopping by to check out the Big Pineapple, I took an opportunity to stop and have an icy-cold Great Northern Super Crisp to cool down. A refreshingly light taste, it’s very easy to drink – its alcohol content is lower than other beers. Established in Cairns (in Queensland) way back in 1927, their long brewing history has allowed them to manufacture some seriously awesome beer.
The Big Lobster was an absolute blast, and on the way back from Kingston SE I was chatting with a fellow traveler who was on his way to the Coopers Brewery in Adelaide for a tour. I decided it sounded like it might be fun so I tagged along – and I’m glad I did. The tour guide did a super job and made it all a really fun experience well worth the money, and at the end of the tour I tried my very first Coopers – a Pale Ale (the one with the green label apparently, though mine came from a tap).
I enjoyed the taste quite a lot. It had a cloudy appearance and the taste wasn’t too strong, either.
I didn’t unfortunately make my way down to Tasmania during my trip to Australia. Although, you might say I went there in spirit when I tasted a James Boag’s Premium Lager. It’s really refreshing as a lager beer, and paired really (like, really) well with pretty much every one of the cheeses on the cheese platter we made in the hostel in Sydney.
I wasn’t sure what to expect going into this beer. It was actually bought for me by a random local who decided I had to taste his favourite beer while I was in Australia (he was a great guy who actually let me stay on his couch for a couple of nights which was nice!).
I noticed in Australia that many of their pale ales had a cloudy appearance when you poured them into a glass, and this wasn’t any different. The James Squire One Fifty Lashes was quite fruity in aroma and had a really invigorating flavour.
