Warners at the Bay

For more than a decade, Warners at the Bay Bottleshop has been a premier craft beer destination for the mid New South Wales coast. It’s become a pilgrimage of sorts for seasoned craft beer drinkers, regularly attracting visitors from Sydney – a two-hour drive away – as well as those from even further afield in all directions. The reason for this is simple: instead of compromising between quality and quantity, it excels in both. 

More than 1,000 beers from all over the world are cold stored in 16 fridges along the long back wall, from breweries as close by as Hunter Beer Co to as far flung as Denmark’s Mikkeller and Belgium’s Brouwerij Boon. Perhaps the most extensive of the international selection, however, are the ranges from New Zealand and the United States. Although there’s close to the full range of the usual suspects, such as Garage Project and Sierra Nevada, the real beauty lies in the rarer finds – those that you’ll unlikely see in many other bottleshops.

As for the Australian selection, the aim is to stock at least one beer from every brewer that sells wholesale thanks to a commitment to supporting local business. That doesn’t just mean stocking breweries large and small from all around the country, but also providing a selection of locally produced cheeses and pastes from the Hunter to match with the beers.

In fact, beer and food matching is something you can explore further at the adjacent Warners at the Bay restaurant. That’s right, this venue is no one-trick pony; rather it boasts bottleshop, restaurant, hotel with 50 motel style rooms and live music space all in the same complex. Better still, the family-friendly restaurant has been transformed into a craft beer destination in its own right, matching cuisine with carefully curated beers.

Here, 26 taps pour something for everybody, from familiar macro lagers to more exciting craft beers, each of which are suggested as match for a particular item on the menu. It’s a menu that includes a range of modern Australian cuisine, as well as a range of authentic Italian wood-fired pizza.

If any of the beers on offer tickle visitors’ fancy, they’re able to walk across the car park to the bottleshop and take some home for themselves. That’s even the case with draught only beers as the bottleshop has its own five-tap growler fill system. Usually, this echoes what’s pouring at the restaurant, although may differ slightly due to the extremely quick turnaround: no keg is tapped for more than two weeks to maximise freshness, although most run dry before a week is out.

The evolution of the twin venues should ensure a trip to Warners at the Bay continues to be a rite of passage for beer lovers, offering both a chance to indulge in culinary delights and quality craft beer as well as browse the renowned bottleshop. After all, thanks to the huge selection on offer, it’s possible to take your palate all over Australia, and indeed the wider beer world, without ever leaving this pocket of Newcastle. 

Marie Claire Jarratt

Name
Warners at the Bay
Address

320 Hillsborough Rd
Warners Bay
NSW 2282

Phone
(02) 4956 6066
Open Hours

Hotel Trading Hours: Mon – Tues 10am – 10pm Wed – Sat 10am – midnight Sun 11am-10pm

This is a directory listing. To find out more, head here

Regularly featured brewers

2 Brothers

2 Brothers

4 Joyner St
Moorabbin
VIC 3189

3 Ravens

3 Ravens

1 Theobald Street
Thornbury
VIC 3071

4 Pines (CUB)

4 Pines (CUB)

29/43-45 East Esplanade
Manly
NSW 2095

Akasha Taproom & Brewery

Akasha Taproom & Brewery

10-12 Spencer Street
Five Dock
NSW 2046

Balter Brewing (CUB/Asahi)

Balter Brewing (CUB/Asahi)

14 Traders Way
Currumbin
QLD 4220

BentSpoke Brewing Co

BentSpoke Brewing Co

38 Mort Street
Braddon
ACT 2612

Big Shed Brewing Concern

Big Shed Brewing Concern

1154 Old Port Road
Royal Park
SA 5014

Blackman's Brewery

Blackman's Brewery

26 Bell Street
Torquay
VIC 3228

Boatrocker Brewers & Distillers

Boatrocker Brewers & Distillers

34 & 51 Macbeth Street
Braeside
VIC 3195

Bootleg Brewery

Bootleg Brewery

Puzey Road
Wilyabrup
Margaret River WA 6285

BrewCult

BrewCult

10 Superior Drive
Dandenong South
VIC 3175

Bridge Road Brewers

Bridge Road Brewers

Old Coach House
Ford Street
Beechworth VIC 3747

Burleigh Brewing Company

Burleigh Brewing Company

2 Ern Harley Drive
Burleigh Heads
QLD 4220

Cavalier Brewing

Cavalier Brewing

Unit 8/2 Derrimut Drive
Derrimut
VIC 3030

CBCo Margaret River

CBCo Margaret River

Osmington Road
Bramley
Margaret River

Dainton Brewery & Taphouse

Dainton Brewery & Taphouse

560 Frankston Dandenong Rd
Carrum Downs
VIC 3201

Eagle Bay Brewery

Eagle Bay Brewery

252 Eagle Bay Rd
Eagle Bay
WA 6281

Esker Beer Co

Esker Beer Co

350 Annangrove Road
Rouse Hill
NSW 2155

Exit Brewing

Exit Brewing

10 Superior Drive
Dandenong South
VIC 3175

Feral Brewing (CCEP)

Feral Brewing (CCEP)

PO Box 3265 Bassendean
WA 6942

Fixation Brewing Co (Lion/Kirin)

Fixation Brewing Co (Lion/Kirin)

414 Smith Street
Collingwood
VIC 3066

Fox Hat Brewing

Fox Hat Brewing

252 Blewitt Springs Road
McLaren Flat
SA 5171

Grand Ridge

Grand Ridge

1 Baromi Road
Mirboo North
VIC 3871

Green Beacon (CUB/Asahi)

Green Beacon (CUB/Asahi)

26 Helen Street
Teneriffe
QLD 4005

Grifter Brewing Company

Grifter Brewing Company

1/391 Enmore Road
Marrickville
NSW 2204

Hargreaves Hill

Hargreaves Hill

Factory 60
64-86 Beresford Road
Lilydale 3140

Hawkers Beer

Hawkers Beer

167 Henty Street
Reservoir
VIC 3073

Holgate Brewhouse

Holgate Brewhouse

79 High Street
Woodend
VIC 3442

HopDog BeerWorks

HopDog BeerWorks

2/175 Princes Highway
South Nowra
NSW 2541

Illawarra Brewing Company

Illawarra Brewing Company

4/83-85 Montague Street
North Wollongong
NSW 2500

KAIJU! Beer

KAIJU! Beer

27 Hume Street
Huntingdale
VIC 3166

Kooinda Brewery

Kooinda Brewery

28 Culverlands St
Heidelberg
VIC 3081

La Sirène Brewing

La Sirène Brewing

2 Wingrove Street
Alphington
VIC 3078

Little Brewing Company

Little Brewing Company

Unit 1, 58 Uralla Road
Port Macquarie
NSW 2444

Little Creatures (Lion/Kirin)

Little Creatures (Lion/Kirin)

40 Mews Road
Fremantle
WA 6160

Lord Nelson

Lord Nelson

19 Kent St
The Rocks
NSW 2000

Mash Brewing

Mash Brewing

10250 West Swan Rd
Henley Brook
WA 6055

Mildura Brewery (unlisted)

Mildura Brewery (unlisted)

20 Langtree Avenue
Mildura
VIC 3500

Modus Beer

Modus Beer

14 Harkeith Street
Mona Vale
NSW 2103

Moo Brew

Moo Brew

76a Cove Hill Road Bridgewater
TAS 7030

Moon Dog

Moon Dog

17 Duke Street
Abbotsford
VIC 3067

Mornington Peninsula Brewery (Tribe)

Mornington Peninsula Brewery (Tribe)

Mountain Goat (CUB/Asahi)

Mountain Goat (CUB/Asahi)

80 North Street Richmond
Victoria
3121

Murray's

Murray's

3443 Nelson Bay Rd
Bobs Farm
NSW 2316

Nail Brewing

Nail Brewing

323 Collier Road
Bassendean
WA 6054

New England Brewing Co

New England Brewing Co

19 Bridge Street
Uralla
NSW 2358

Newstead Brewing Co

Newstead Brewing Co

67 Castlemaine Street
Milton
QLD 4064

Nomad Brewing

Nomad Brewing

5 Sydenham Road
Brookvale
NSW 2100

Pact Beer

Pact Beer

Paragon Mall Lane
Fyshwick
ACT 2609

Pirate Life (CUB/Asahi)

Pirate Life (CUB/Asahi)

18 Baker Street
Port Adelaide
SA 5015

Prancing Pony Brewery

Prancing Pony Brewery

42 Mt Barker Road
Totness
SA 5250

Prickly Moses

Prickly Moses

10 Hoveys Road
Barongarook
VIC 3429

Red Duck Brewery

Red Duck Brewery

11a Michaels Drive
Alfredton
VIC 3350

Red Hill Brewery

Red Hill Brewery

88 Shoreham Rd
Red Hill South
VIC 3937

Riverside Brewing Company

Riverside Brewing Company

Unit 3, 2 North Rocks Road
Parramatta
NSW

Rocks Brewing Co

Rocks Brewing Co

Building 2
160 Bourke Road
Alexandria
NSW 2015

Shenanigans Brewing

Shenanigans Brewing

66 Marian St (OFFICE)
Enmore
NSW 2042

Six String Brewing

Six String Brewing

4/330 The Entrance Road
Erina
NSW 2250

Stockade Brew Co (Tribe)

Stockade Brew Co (Tribe)

25 Cadogan Street
Marrickville
NSW 2204

Stone & Wood (Lion/Kirin)

Stone & Wood (Lion/Kirin)

100 Centennial Circuit
Byron Bay
NSW 2481

Sydney Brewery

Sydney Brewery

28 Albion Street
Surry Hills
Sydney 2010

Temple Brewing

Temple Brewing

122 Weston Street
East Brunswick
VIC 3057

Two Birds Brewing (Lion/Kirin)

Two Birds Brewing (Lion/Kirin)

136 Hall Street
Spotswood
VIC 3015

Vale Brewing

Vale Brewing

252 Blewitt Springs Road
McLaren Flat
SA 5171

Wayward Brewing Co

Wayward Brewing Co

3 Gehrig Lane
Camperdown
NSW 2050

White Rabbit (Lion/Kirin)

White Rabbit (Lion/Kirin)

221 Swanston Street
Geelong
VIC 3220

Wolf of the Willows

Wolf of the Willows

39 De Havilland Road
Mordialloc
VIC 3195

Young Henrys

Young Henrys

Units D & E, 76 Wilford St
Newtown
NSW 2042