Murray's Heads To Manly

April 19, 2011, by Crafty Pint

Murray's Heads To Manly

Murray’s brewery owner Murray Howe has never been one to hold back when it comes to taking aim at the lack of craft beer outlets in Sydney – or the unwillingness of the city’s bar owners to walk away from the lucrative contracts on offer from the country’s brewing giants. And now he’s put his money where his mouth is. On May 16, the brewery will open a new venue in Manly, offering the full range of Murray’s beer in a 250-seat restaurant on the beachfront. It promises to make Manly quite a craft beer destination with 4 Pines already based just a short walk from the ferry terminal.

Describing it as Murray’s “first” Sydney venue – more to come, perhaps – Murray says: “We hope to create an iconic craft beer venue right on the beach at Manly. It’s taken months of looking, but we’ve finally decided on the El Poco Loco site at 49 North Steyne in Manly. Manly is a tightly held restaurant precinct and to secure 700 square metres of beachfront space is a real coup for our company.

“A key part of our offering will be to replicate the great success of our brewery restaurant in Port Stephens, where beer and food matching is an integral part of the Murray’s experience. We’ll be introducing a new, modern menu with an emphasis on quality seasonal ingredients cooked simply, but done well, and designed to match beautifully with craft beer.”

The move is a continuation of the success of the Murray’s story that began only a few years ago when they set up a small brewery at the iconic Pub With No Beer. Once word of the quality of brewer Shawn Sherlock’s beers got out, they moved their headquarters to a winery at Port Stephens where they’ve become one of the very finest breweries in Australia, crafting such beers as the ever popular Icon 2IPA and pushing the envelope in every direction, with their 11% Imperious at one end of the potency scale and the recently released 2.8% Retro Rocket at the other. All will be on tap at Manly, although the intention is also to promote other small Australian craft brewers by providing an opportunity to showcase their beers on tap.

“The big brewers control most of the taps in Sydney, but the time is right for a major change in the way Australians drink beer,“ adds Murray. "Flavour and fun is what great craft beer is all about – handcrafted with love and passion, and presented to people in an authentic way.”

Initially, Murray’s At Manly will continue operating the existing restaurant with a full lineup of Murray’s beers available from day one. Once winter arrives, it will undergo a complete refurbishment and the introduction of a new menu. It opens on May 16, trading seven days a week from 7am until late.

(Pic above: Murray Howe (left) with head brewer Shawn Sherlock)

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