Our all-time Favourite Beers & Ciders

Summer is finally here and while we love our vines and wines here at Wine Compass, some days, a hard-earned thirst calls for an ice-cold beer or cider. In our travels through the Mornington Peninsula and Yarra Valley, we’ve been lucky enough to discover some pretty amazing brews. Local breweries and cider houses are a great place to sit back and relax on a sunny summer afternoon. So we’ve decided to bring the brewery to you with a few of our all-time favourite beers and ciders…

Hop Nation The Buzz American Red – 6% ABV

We discovered Hop Nation beers at the cellar door of our good friends down at Kerri Greens on the Mornington Peninsula. A Melbourne based brewing company based in Footscray that started brewing back in 2015. The Buzz is a hop focused American red which features all American hops, including Amarillo, Symcoe and Mosaic. It’s nicely rounded out by some generous malt flavours floral notes.

Napoleone & Co Apple Cider – 4.5% ABV

Take a detour through the acres of vines in Coldstream and head to one of our favourite breweries and ciderhouses in the Yarra Valley. Serving up great tasting paddles so you can sip and sample a few brews, our favourite has got to be their Napoleone & Co Apple Cider. Made from a mix of Pink Lady, Granny Smith, Fuji and Sundowner, this cider is amazingly crisp without being cloyingly sweet. Refreshing and light with a hint of cinnamon. Maybe we like it so much because it tastes a little like wine?

Hargreaves Hill Pale – 4.9% ABV

Just on the main strip of Yarra Glen you’ll find the award-winning Hargreaves Hill brewery. Serving up some cracking meals, and some even better brews. They have some really great seasonal releases, but our fave is from their core range, the Hargreaves Hill Pale. The hops for this beer have been carefully selected and brewed with precision timing to bring you a beer that is bright, bitter and big on citrus and floral characters.

Mornington Peninsula Imperial Amber – 7.5% ABV

Down the backstreets of Mornington’s industrial area is the bustling and buzzing Mornington Peninsula Brewery. They really know their brews here and the big crowds of thirsty punters spilling out the doors each week are living proof. Our pick? The Mornington Peninsula Imperial Amber. Big, bold and rich malty flavours of toffee, caramel and fig that finish with a long and well-rounded smooth bitterness.

Napoleone & Co Pear Cider – 5.4% ABV

So good we had to go back for a second round at Napoleone, this time for their stunningly delicious Pear Cider. Using fresh local Beurre and Packham’s Triumph pears, this cider has an earthy freshness to it that you don’t often get with other ciders. Almost tastes a little like a gingerbread biscuit. Their beers and ciders are clearly a testament to generations of skilled brewing know-how.

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Lucia Guadagnuolo

Lucia has recently completed her WSET Level 3 Award in Wines, enjoys hosting wine tastings, discovering the Melbourne foodie scene, and has a keen interest in the wines, and fried foods, of Southern Italy.