10 Most Popular Australian Beer Brands

Australians love their beer, whether it’s a pot of VB in Melbourne or a pint of Coopers in Adelaide, a can of XXXX Gold in the Sunshine State or a squealer of Young Henrys in Sydney’s inner-west. And here are 10 drops that people all over the country love to drink.

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Australian Beer: #1 Victoria Bitter

Australia’s most famous beer is the one in the famous green tin. VB is the classic Australian lager. Fans call it “Very Best,” “Vitamin B,” and “Victory Beer.” People who don’t like it call it “Vomit Bomb” and other less flattering names. It has become a legend in part because of how it has been marketed. The “hard earned thirst” jingle has been a mainstay since 1968.

Australian Beer: #2 Tooheys

People in New South Wales, which is north of the border, like the beer that has a stag on the can. Irish immigrants, the Tooheys Brothers, started the historic Sydney brand in 1869. They still brew in the blue-collar suburb of Lidcombe, where they make the easy-drinking lager Tooheys New, the dark ale Tooheys Old, and the crisp Tooheys Extra Dry. Oh, and Tooheys also doesn’t mind an old ad.

Australian Beer: #3 XXXX

Why do people in Queensland call beer XXXX? Since they don’t know how to spell beer. This joke is almost as old as Castlemaine’s brewery in Milton, which has been making Queensland’s favorite grog for almost a century. One of Australia’s most popular beers is XXXX Gold, which is a medium-strength beer. However, the XXXX (pronounced “four ex”) brand is strongest in Florida, where it’s as loved as mangos, Powderfinger, and Wally Lewis.

10 Most Popular Australian Beer Brands — The XXXX Brewery in Milton | © Kelly Hunter / Flickr

Australian Beer: #4 Coopers

All of Australia’s biggest beer brands are owned by either the South African company SABMiller or the Japanese company Kirin. This Adelaide landmark is the largest brewery in Australia that is locally owned. Coopers is still mostly run by the family that gave the brand its name. It makes a variety of beers (especially the green-capped pale ale) and the best home-brewing equipment in Australia.

Australian Beer: #5 Cascade

This Hobart institution was founded at the foot of beautiful Mount Wellington in 1824. It has been making its signature premium lager for almost 200 years, making it the oldest brewery in Australia that has never stopped running. James Boag’s, which comes from Launceston and is popular in the north of Tasmania, is another great drop from the Apple Isle.

Australian Beer: #6 Carlton Draughts

Along with VB, Pure Blonde, Wild Yak, and Crown Lager, Carlton Draught is another very popular Australian lager made by Carlton & United Breweries. In the last ten years, Carlton’s popularity has gone through the roof thanks to a series of brilliant advertising campaigns, starting with the viral “Big Ad” in 2006.

Australian Beer: #7 Little Creatures

Still, most people in Western Australia drink beer from the Swan and Emu breweries, but this Fremantle brewery is one of the best in the Wild West. Little Creatures started in 2000 in an old waterfront warehouse. Since then, it has had a beer-flavored fairytale, along with other great craft breweries in Perth like Feral Brewing Co. and Gage Roads.

Australian Beer: #8 James Squire

James Squire, an English thief, was sent to Sydney as a convict in 1788. He broke out of his chains and became the first person to grow hops and open a commercial brewery in Australia in the early 1800s. His name is on a line of beers, such as the Nine Tales Original Amber Ale and the One Fifty Lashes Pale Ale. The names of these beers are based on the stories he told while he was in prison.

Australian Beer: #9 Matilda Bay

This Perth business started making beer in small batches in the early 1980s. It is considered Australia’s first craft brewery. After a decade, it was bought by Carlton and grew a lot. Some of Matilda Bay’s most popular products are Fat Yak, Beez Neez, Redback, and Dogbolter.

Australian Beer: #10 Hahn Super Dry

This Sydney brewery started out making premium beers in 1986. Ten years ago, they changed their strategy and made Hahn Super Dry, which is now Australia’s favorite low-carb beer because it has 70% less carbs than regular beer. That sounds very good for you!

Topic: 10 Most Popular Australian Beer Brands

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