The time has come.
A legendary local crew—tick. Cool, industrial interior—tick. Local beers that taste even greater when poured where they’re brewed-tick. There’s a lot to love about the new Blackman’s Brewery on Lewalan St.
Opening the doors Thursday, April 8, this new watering hole pours a frothy range of refreshing brews from their refurbished warehouse location in the Grovedale industrial area.
The key takeaways
- Blackman’s Brewery’s new venue is complete
- You’ll be able to drink fresh beer straight from the source, as well as watch the brewing process
- The brewery officially opened Thursday, April 8 at 5pm
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Having run out of room at their 12 hectolitre brewhouse on Bell Street in Torquay, the new location includes a 100-person taproom ‘beer bar’ (where we go for drinking) within a brand new production facility – featuring a 25 Hectoliter (2500 litre) brewhouse and canning line with the capacity to brew 1 million litres per year. It’s a huge win for the people of Geelong, and for the dedicated beer aficionados in Torquay, their original brewhouse will remain on-site and continue making beers for their local venues. Winners all around.
“The decision to install a second brewery, rather than just move our equipment from Torquay ensures that we will retain our ability to brew stacks of seasonals because we absolutely love to do so, and also means the original beers will still be brewed and served fresh onsite from our the serving tanks in Torquay.
“And we just love brewing good beer in Torquay, it’s really that simple,” the Blackman’s team revealed.
“And the Tap Room? Beers with your mates, friends and family in amongst the brewhouse and tanks with the Blackman’s hospitality vibe you expect from us. We can’t wait to have a beer with you in Grovedale!”
Knowing that nothing – we repeat, nothing – is more satisfying than drinking fresh beer straight from the source, the venue will feature 16 taps in their container bar. Here, you’ll find an array of their thirst-quenching beers, including their legendary Blackman’s unfiltered lager, the Winnie cider, the Ernie golden ale and the Reginald IPA, alongside the rest of their core range and limited-editions.
You’ll be able to plant yourself on the quirky timber seating, bar stools, and luxurious armchairs scattered throughout the venue for an icy frothy, and with the vibes as good as they are, you’ll most likely end up sticking around to sample some delicious food. With the MULITA BBQ food truck on-site, you’ll find all the burgers, tacos, wings, loaded fries and nachos you know and love from North Geelong right in the heart of Grovedale. There are no wrong choices to be made here.
After all, having a juicy burger without a cold frothy is pretty much like putting on a bathing suit and slapping a sweet zinc stripe across your nose and then staying inside all day.
Alongside the ability to kick back and order rounds of beers for the table, you’ll also be able to get up close and personal with the brewers and watch the magic happen right before your eyes thanks to the all-in-one facility.
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Spoiling Geelong with another location for after-work drinks and Sunday sesh’s, the need for this larger facility is a testament to the sheer dedication and success of the independent Torquay business, who opened back in 2014 with just two beers; an IPA and a Golden Ale. At this stage, they were producing 1,000 litres max a week, with Renn Blackman brewing and packaging everything himself.
After six years of adding new tanks and equipment to various new sheds and containers in Torquay, purchasing a canning line, being one of the first breweries in Australia to put IPA in a can (Reginald), and winning Champion Small Australian Brewery in 2019, it’s no surprise that the Blackman’s crew have truly outgrown their ability to brew all the beer they need in their original space.
And now that the liquid gold is consistently flowing from the taps, there’s the promise of more Geelong-based special events and even more beer — so it’s just going to keep getting better.
The new Grovedale venue officially opens Thursday, April 8 and will be open from 5pm until late on Thursday and Friday, and from 12pm until late on Saturday and Sunday. So, cancel your plans, round up the whole family (it’s family-friendly!) and let those afternoon sessions roll on.
Blackman’s Brewery is located at 29/8 Lewalan St, Grovedale. Check out the Opening Weekend Facebook event here. At this stage, bookings are not required.
