12 June 2008

Best Beer Pub and Bottle Shop in Canberra

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In continuing a Riot-Act tradition of rating the best (and worst) our fair city has to offer, I was wondering where are the best beer pubs and bottle shops in Canberra? My vote goes to Debacle for the best beer pub (60-odd beers on offer), and I would say somewhere like First Choice Liquor in Phillip for the best selection of beers in Canberra. Any thoughts rioters?

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LG said :

sirocco said :

And Plonk! A tiny little shop full of interesting imported beers from around the globe and heaps of domestic craft beers (…and not a single VB).

Although I hear they’re in the process of moving to bigger premises at the moment, anyone heard any rumours about where that might be?

All I know is… they’re closed at the moment (very sad!). The online whitepages listing still shows the same old address but they’re not there any more. Nor is there a sign saying where they are moving to.

Got an email from them last night saying that they have opened in the Fyshwick Markets where the nursery used to be. They had stopped selling Zierholz a few months ago but perhaps they will restart now that they are closer to the source.

debacle is severely overpriced and overrated…. their beers aren’t THAT good and it’s not that great a place – too much wood can’t hear anyone speak so it’s not comfortable. surprisingly, cook shops has a wide variety of international beers you can’t seemingly get anywhere else, whether it’s the best, i couldn’t say. best bet? travel the world and drink the beer from the source.

Yeah Matty s’s.

It is the only place I know where I have to get assistance to collect a trailer from – because guaranteed ill be a little bit “Happier” when ever I leave 🙂

Christoph Zierholz11:05 am 18 Jun 08

just to keep you posted – our restaurant and bar at the brewery in kembla street should only be a couple of weeks away from opening its doors *touches wood*

in terms of other venues for zierholz around canberra i keep knocking on doors and trying believe me… i will be meeting with the canberra southern cross clubs and yacht club manager in a couple of days and hopefully with the labor clubs over the weekend which might (finally) put us northside as well.

you can always help out by nagging for zierholz at your local and letting me know if you find places that aren’t tied to tooheys or carlton!

my own vote for best pub would of course have to go to the wig and pen as richard does a terrific job of creating new and interesting brews. oh that and Matt S’s garage…

Felix the Cat10:34 pm 14 Jun 08

ant said :

These beers with lime and stuff added are an abomination.

Adding weird stuff to beer and then canning it is a Bad Thing.

Speaking of abomination and weird stuff has anyone seen/tasted Jim Beam bourbon pre mixed cans now with Ginger Beer?! I saw it at the shop today and nearly fell over! Does this stuff actually taste any good? Oh, and don’t call them “alcopops” or I’ll scream.

lol danman, taken to read as “I know I’ve got no taste, either in music, food or beer, and I just don’t care.”

good for you, hope you stumble on some magical beer when you’re brewing and you realise what this fresh cold joy is supposed to taste like.

“I want to freeze it into ice blocks and skate on it, then melt it in the springtime and drink it!”

I admitted in an open public forum that I enjoy the music of Michael Bublé – how less caring could I get 🙂

Gotta go move road base for the home brewery footings… Later

Hay man – everyone is entitled to their opinion and so be it if I’m metro sexual or got tits.

Like my musical collection, my tastes are eclectic.

I used to work at 2 chef hat restaurants and get maccas on the way home.

Open my cd case and you will see napalm death next to fear factory and deicide, next to Bublé and aussie crawl, chisel, depeche mode, stevie ray vaughan, muddy waters, next to missy higgins etc.

Why should ones (legal) tastes be held back by the opinions of others.

I have always been a do what you want (within the realms of the law), not what is cool kind of guy.

anyway, beer, Miller Chill is good, as is Zierholz, Matty S’s hombrew stouts and ales and smirnoff vodka varieties (Vanilla, apple, regular) and makers mark, though I do have a soft spot for JB white label, showed me many a good time when I was a kid.

… and people without tastebuds or who really, really hate beer.

Those Miller Chill beers along with “radler” (read: shandy) style beers, are aimed at the female market. And possibly the metro-sexuals

These beers with lime and stuff added are an abomination. It just doesn’t work. there were a few in the US but sold mainly at Wal-mart. Most people hated them, these are the people who’d pay premium for bud or coors, but they still hated beer with lime cordial added. Miller actually made the only national mass produced I found drinkable: Miller High Life. Not a bad supermarket beer and cheap as chips.

Adding weird stuff to beer and then canning it is a Bad Thing.

I cannot believe you are supporting those disgusting excuses for beers that are flooding the market, such as Miller Chill. Those are the biggest insult to the beer world since the founding of the Carlton brewery. Indeed, Carlton does one too, I think it’s called Fusion, and it’s just as awful as Miller’s attempt. Miller Draft is a shite beer to begin with, and they’ve made it worse by adding *lime flavour* and *salt*.

Salt should accompany beer, not end up in it. That’s a mistake. Obviously these breweries are trying to cash in on the Corona and lime fad, but are producing an inferior but similar product that people don’t have to get their hands dirty to drink.

Danman, you’ve hereby lost all the man points you gained by setting up your own brewery in your backyard. If you think Miller Chill is beer, I’d hate to imagine what your homebrew ends up like (although admittedly, anything is better than that overpriced, overmarketed bilgewater).

Felix da House Cat I believe you are talking about Denman (Danman) cellars.
Thats where I discovered Miller Chill – a chilada style beer with a twist of citrus… Yummm

Mess said :

First Choice (bro) in Phillip have Vintage Ale. If you like Tui so much head to Rotorua in NZ, while I was there I had so many vouchers giv for free pints of Tui given to me, I couldnt drink them all!

<—— droools

I would like to make special mention of the bottle shop at Erindale between Pizza Hut and the Cheesecake shop. The service there is excellent. Nothing is too much trouble for the owners, in fact im sure if you asked them to break a bottle over their heads for your amusement they probably would. the ber selection is decent for a shop that size, and they also stock the best Jerky in Australia. I recommend the Honey Pork Jerky, its excellent.

Felix the Cat7:59 pm 13 Jun 08

The bottle shop in Gungahlin TC, down near the pizza shops and McDonalds gets my vote.
Dan Murphy at Belconnen Mall is good too.

As for pubs, I’ve only been to George Harcourt a couple of times, not overly impressed with it, can’t swing a kitten inside and meals are average. I quite like O’Neil’s Irish pub in Dickson.

First Choice (bro) in Phillip have Vintage Ale. If you like Tui so much head to Rotorua in NZ, while I was there I had so many vouchers giv for free pints of Tui given to me, I couldnt drink them all!

I like the Wig and Pen as well. I reckon Canberra is big enough to support another brewpub. Zierholz brewpub anyone? I love the ones in Sydney. Lord Nelson and Redoak are two of my favourites. Redoak makes probably the best beer ever, Im drooling thinking about their Honeyale now…..

Clown Killer3:10 pm 13 Jun 08

Peterh, last couple of places I saw Coopers Vintage Ale in Canberra was Dan Murphy’s in Tuggeranong, that would have been a couple of weeks ago.

in this forum, does anyone know where I can get a-hold of coopers vintage? my local liquor has stopped selling it, and I am too long between care packages from SA…

Devon?? what the hell is that? Try bung fritz – devon will be nothing more than a nasty memory….

LOL isn’t there a famous tagline about the watering hole in Kambah..?

As the weeks go by and I lay the slab down for my shed I get closer to brewing in kegs at home.. Then Ill have my own bee-ah on tap Even going to make an illuminated solar powered automatic sign that says “Bar Danman” in old english font 🙂

Clown Killer2:43 pm 13 Jun 08

I actually meant the home brew store around the back of the shops, but yes coming to think of it the chaps at the tavern will probably set you up with anything you need – or if they don’t have it, they probably know a guy who can get his hands on one … just meet back here in two hours …

Danman said :

George Harcourt for cheap good grub and bulmers.

A DUI bike ride away from home too

except when I was more adventurous and walked home on a thursday night, back when foxy was playing the oldies and goodies – stuff you could sing to….

Clown Killer said :

Dan Murphy’s in Tuggers has a good range of Australian and imported beers – not all of it cold. Anywhere with Zierholz on tap is ok with me. If you’ve got the patience try making your own. The guys down at Kambah Village will set you up with everything you need.

both at the bar or the bottle shop. great free entertainment when some patrons have had a skin full as well…

Danman said :

George Harcourt for cheap good grub and bulmers.

A DUI bike ride away from home too

except when I was more adventurous and walked home on a thursday night, back when foxy was playing the oldies and goodies – stuff you could sing to….

Clown Killer2:17 pm 13 Jun 08

Dan Murphy’s in Tuggers has a good range of Australian and imported beers – not all of it cold. Anywhere with Zierholz on tap is ok with me. If you’ve got the patience try making your own. The guys down at Kambah Village will set you up with everything you need.

wig and pen – best beer in canberra, maybe the known universe. maybe not, but’s good but. small but too but. so stay away. stay. 😉

i have a good source of ansa – pints (500ml) for $17 a six pack, but not telling where. big jim usually has a good range, but too far for me just for a bottle of beer.

@Meconium – yep, thats right. If a proprieter of a booze purveying venue *cough* the Durham *cough* were to put Tui on tap, he’d increase his patronage by a whole heap.

Then Ingee would complain because neither would he be able to get a seat, the menu would only have ‘fush and chups thunkscuz’ on it.

Do any of them have Cafferys on tap ?

mouthface – he’s defintely closed at his Manuka location. Shame.. a very friendly fellow. Hope he does reopen somewhere!

I also heard it from the proprietor a few months ago that he was considering moving to Narrabundah or some other (non Manuka or Kingston) inner south location. Said the parking situation was pretty ordinary for his patrons in the current location and he could get better rent and larger premises elsewhere, but as mentioned earlier, no indication that’s happened.

I think Plonk might have closed down. I am going through there today so I will check, but i did here it closed.

Danman said :

George Harcourt for cheap good grub and bulmers.

A DUI bike ride away from home too

I second the George. Good for a few pints and a good cheap meal. Good atmosphere and friendly service. Best pub available for Gungahlin area. I also don’t mind the G Lakes if you count that as a pub.

My favourite grog shop is Dan Murphys in Belcompton Westfield. Great range of booze and it is always cheap. Probably better for their wine selection though. As for a convenient bottle-o for Gungahlin, Denman Cellars is quite good.

oh sorry, forgot to add Plonk! to that list, they had a pretty average range when they started but now they’re selling a pretty solid range of small NSW microbrewery beers. Worth a look.

List of bottle shops with a decent beer range:

•Vintage Cellars Oaks Estate (not affiliated with the Coles chain)
•First Choice Phillip
•Cox Kelly, Uni Ave Civic
•George’s Liquor Stable Phillip
•Braddon Cellars
•Dan Murphy’s Belconnen (especially when you can get a six pack of Tui, the greatest beer ever brewed, for only $15, right Mael?)

Pubs with an unusually good range of beers on tap:

•Wig and Pen
•Debacle
•Belgian Beer Cafe
•Transit Bar (only place in town with Matilda Bay’s Alpha Pale Ale)
•Harmonie German Club
•and Filthy’s/Durham between them have a few unusual ones.

As for bottled beers, notable mention goes to Kremlin Bar on Northbourne, which has a range of Baltika beers from St Petersburg. There are many different styles in the range, many of which are awful, but worth a try for something different.

I’m pretty sure I’ve seen all the places for decent beer in Canberra, but maybe there’s a gem somewhere that I’m missing out on. You’ll never find me in a pub or club that doesn’t serve either Cooper’s or Zierholz. Fortunately there are a few southside venues not too far from home that have Zierholz on tap – Deakin Soccer Club, Woden Tradies and the Hellenic Club. Thanks for that Christoph; when I feel like a beer at 3am and I have to go to the Tradies, finally I can enjoy a pint of something decent and not have to settle for Pure Blonde.

sirocco said :

And Plonk! A tiny little shop full of interesting imported beers from around the globe and heaps of domestic craft beers (…and not a single VB).

Although I hear they’re in the process of moving to bigger premises at the moment, anyone heard any rumours about where that might be?

All I know is… they’re closed at the moment (very sad!). The online whitepages listing still shows the same old address but they’re not there any more. Nor is there a sign saying where they are moving to.

canberracafe.com10:59 pm 12 Jun 08

yeah I was referring to King O’Malley’s.. Great pub, lots of room.

PJ’s on West Row is just as good as Kingos and has better beer prices.

Best grog shop is George’s Liqour in Dundas Court, Phillip.

I have spent enough time at the Wig and Pen to have worn a VicePapal groove into some of the furniture. The beer is good – if you can’t find something that suits, you really shouldn’t be drinking. The food is, perhaps, a bit one-noteish – pretty well done, but some change would reward the regulars.

lumnock said :

]
Wig & Pen is also fantastic for the beer, but the shop itself is far too small, and the layout does not do well with the limited space provided.

Oh, true, the Wig&Pen is small – but when I said Plonk I meant a beer shop called Plonk in Manuka…

🙂

Debacle is a joke. The beer there is so over-priced, that anyone other than people in the high income bracket, or people just there for a couple of pints find it unaffordable.

I’m presuming the Irish pub near the Civic bus interchange you are referring to canberracafe.com is King O’Malleys? If so, then I agree, it has a great atmosphere, and the beer is reasonably priced also, which probably makes it my overall favourite.

Wig & Pen is also fantastic for the beer, but the shop itself is far too small, and the layout does not do well with the limited space provided.

You gotta love the Wig & Pen in Civic for the best, freshest and most interesting tap beer in Canberra.

And Plonk! A tiny little shop full of interesting imported beers from around the globe and heaps of domestic craft beers (…and not a single VB).

Although I hear they’re in the process of moving to bigger premises at the moment, anyone heard any rumours about where that might be?

George Harcourt for cheap good grub and bulmers.

A DUI bike ride away from home too

canberracafe.com9:01 pm 12 Jun 08

Can’t go past the Irish pub in Civic near the bus interchange – just a nice atmosphere and they server Guiness.

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