Marrickville: the greatest beer country?
From crafty beginnings to leisure centres, the growth of the Marrickville beer scene can’t be stopped. Nor do we want it to.
Marrickville. The greatest country on Earth.
That is, at least, according to the signage of the Marrickville Hotel, one of the seemingly countless bars, pubs, and breweries that dot the 2204 postcode area.
It also doesn’t hurt that Time Out ranked Marrickville the second coolest neighbourhood in Australia (behind Melbourne’s Fitzroy) and thirty-third coolest in the world.
Marrickville is the boozy backbone of an Inner West Ale Trail that extends through Sydney, Petersham, Newtown, Enmore, St. Peters, and Camperdown. In addition to the seminal Batch Brewing, you’ll find that it’s only a short stroll between Sauce, Philter, Wildflower, Grifter, Mixtape, Stockade, and Hawkes Brewing Co. in Marrickville alone.
From the outside, it seems like it has sprung up overnight. Yet Marrickville has a strong history of retail and industry, following waves of Greek and Vietnamese immigration, its proximity to Newtown, and the iconic Cook’s River (or Goolay'yari in the Dharug language) that runs through it.
Source: Inner West Ale Trail
Why Marrickville?
The short answer, according to Sauce founder Mike Clarke, is that “it's the closest suburb to the city that still has industrial land available.” If you live in Sydney, property and availability occupies 90% of our conversations.
When Batch Brewing opened in the backstreets of Marrickville 2013, it was hailed as the front-runner of a “craft beer revolution” by the press. A decade later and the brewers now have locations in Petersham and Darling Square, riding an amber wave that still looks like a tsunami.
There’s also a healthy beer culture in the #2204, one that extends beyond the breweries themselves. Staple bars like The Henson, up on the corner of Illawarra Road and Chapel Street, always carry a healthy selection of local brews. Gasoline Pony does the same. The Local Drinks Collective (formerly Bucket Boys) is now a collaboration between Batch and Wayward. Hell, even the Marrickville Bowl-o (that’s the local lawn bowling green to our international friends) has Grifter on tap.
A little history
When US expats Chris Sidwa and Andrew Fineran founded Batch Brewing in 2013, it was an attempt to see if the local market had a thirst for the so-called craft beer revolution that was capturing hearts and beards across America. Their original working brewery on Sydenham Road continues today and remains functional as a production centre and tasting room.
Although established as a brewery in 2012, The Grifter Brewing Co. arrived on Enmore Road in 2015, right next to the iconic Vic on the Park pub. A staple of the area, it’s worth a visit for the regularly rotating taps, the original windows still bear the street art of the neighbourhood.
In June 2015, nanobrewery BlackFont opened their Meeks Street address a little off the beaten path. At the time of writing, they have been temporarily closed since some time between pandemic lock-downs, but remain one of the finest unique brews in the history of the ‘Ville.
Mike Clarke opened Sauce Brewing Co. around the corner on Mitchell Street in 2017. In addition to great brews, it has one of the best beer gardens in Sydney. It’s both family and dog friendly too and has a perfect summer vibe at any time of the year.
In the same year, fellow US expat (and ex-Batch) Topher Boehm opened Wildflower Brewing & Blending on Brompton Street, marking the arrival of one of the suburb’s most interesting operations. Using native ingredients, as the name implies, their focus is wild ales and the yeast produced from microflora. Each batch has a different character, earning them a legion of devoted followers.
In 2018, the Stockade Barrel Room arrived in town, although they’d been brewing since 2015. Following contract brewer Brewpack’s rebranding as Tribe, founder Anton Szpitalak opened the venue in the Cadogan Street location. With giant tanks that mirror their colourful cans, the venue also has masterclasses, beer cocktails, brewery residencies and a rotating menu. If it looks familiar, you may have seen it on the Stan streaming series Colin from Accounts.
Wildflower Brewing and Blending is focused on native ingredients.
Self-described “Marrickville Mates” Mick Neil and Stef Constantoulas joined forces with Sam Füss (one of Australia’s first female brewers) to launch Philter in 2017, and opened a brewery and taproom in 2019. Located on the site of an old yoghurt factory on Sydenham Road opposite Wicks Park, they expanded to a rooftop bar in 2021.
By this stage, there were more than half a dozen breweries in the so-called Marrickville Triangle. In 2022, Mixtape Brewing & Bar joined the Marrickville mob. A successor to the CBD-based Spooning Goats, their massive space on Victoria Road is just across the road from Sauce. The Star Wars memorabilia is a nod to their SG roots, the beer fits in with the local culture.
Scott Marsh’s mural of the former Prime Minister on the wall of the Bob Hawke Beer and Leisure Centre.
In March 2022, the closest thing to a beer theme park opened in the neighbourhood. Following the launch of the brand in 2017, Hawkes Brewing – named in collaboration with former Prime Minister Bob Hawke – brought their operation to Sydney Street in 2021.
The following year, they expanded their public offerings to the Bob Hawke Beer & Leisure Centre, which combined their taproom with a throwback 80s Chinese restaurant called the Lucky Prawn and a museum to the late PM simply called The Pool Room. The crowds have not stopped coming.
Which might tell you everything you need to know about beer in Marrickville. It’s a scene with strong ties to the past, a local audience willing to embrace, and several tongues planted firmly in cheek. It also helps that beer is insanely good.
Throughout 2023 (and beyond), we’ll be visiting many of these to get our beer on. Join us here and on our other channels to watch us rate them all!
Want to do your own crawl? Try the Inner West Ale Trail or follow the map above.
Marrickville is located on the lands of the Gadigal people of the Eora Nation.
