There's been a fair bit of movement in the WA brewing scene of late, in many cases taking the shape of regional breweries setting up in metro areas, or a range of beer businesses – breweries, venues, retailers – opening or announcing new sites. And now there's one more example to add to the list.
Bailey Brewing Co, which launched in the Swan Valley in 2019, are heading to the state's South West after taking over the site of Clancy's Fish Pub in Dunsborough. The move will see them become part of one of the most populous regions of Australia for breweries.
While it remains business as usual at the brewery's Henley Brook home, the team will make the south-west stalwart – established almost 15 years ago – part of their stable of venues, ensuring independent beer continues to pour there once the venue transforms from the iconic Clancy's brand to that of Bailey.
“Dunsborough has a great community feel," Bailey Brewing Co CEO Tony Williamson told The Crafty Pint. "Steve, Dan and Geoff (the father and sons team behind Bailey pictured above) have ties to the south-west community, and it's their favourite place to holiday.
"When we saw it [Clancy’s] pop up, we thought it would be perfect for us to have a venue in the South West that we can basically do what we do up here in Perth.
“We want it to be really family-friendly, somewhere you can just go with your mates, let the kids run free, and get something good to eat.”
The sale has been in the works since April and, now the deal is agreed, they're aiming for an opening date of June 11. When they're ready to welcome guests, visitors can expect a full tap lineup of Bailey beers, classic pub fare, pizza and snacks – all inside a venue that will have been given a face-lift.
“Down the track we might brew onsite, but for now we’ll bring our Bailey beers across from the Swan Valley," Tony says. "It’ll be all of our beers across the taps.
"Clancy’s has such a good name and it’s a good venue. We’re really just going to tweak things and change it up to replicate what we do in the Valley.
“We know there’s already a lot of breweries down here, but competition is good; it makes us all work a bit harder!”
It's not the only move by the Swan Valley team either: they're opening a fine diner in the form of Bailey’s on the Terrace within Perth’s Fraser Suites. That venue is set to welcome guests on June 10, promising "a refined ambience and an elevated fine dining experience".
The news continues a busy few months in the state's beer scene. Blasta opened their Blasta Collective home in February, paving the way for Fox Friday to open a WA outpost on their former site. Cheeky Monkey took over Sound Brewing in Rockingham at the end of 2023, at around the same time Froth opened a third home for their brand in North Beach, while Rocky Ridge are working on a new taphouse in Duncraig, and earlier this month we revealed FOUND.'s plans for the former home of Golden West in Subiaco.
As for Clancy’s, who have been at the forefront of bringing popular WA beer brands such as Nail, Little Creatures, and Feral to consumers, they announced last week that they'll be moving out of the Canning Bridge venue they launched in 2000, looking "to focus on larger family friendly spaces that fit their popular service model, much akin to their Fremantle and City Beach spaces."
Jono Outred is a food and beverage writer based in WA’s Southwest. He has been involved in craft beer across a variety of capacities over the past 11 years, from beer blogging to production brewing and everything in between. When not immersed in beer, Jono is a cricket tragic, grows grapes and tends to his farm in Nannup.
The beer(s) or moment(s) that turned you on to good beer:
That would be would be BrewDog Tokyo, gifted to me by a colleague for my 18th birthday. Its existence alone as a 12.5 percent ABV beer blew my mind; previously I had only consumed Emu Bitter (in excess) at house parties. Discovering that beer led to a visit to the International Beer Shop where, obviously, many more mind-blowing beers were purchased and consumed.
You've got three beers to turn someone else on to good beer; what are they and why?
-
Rocky Ridge Peach Invasion: For me, it's the perfect craft beer. It's big flavoured but perfectly smashable. Interesting but easy-drinking. Bold but balanced. Naughty but nice. Made entirely out of locally made ingredients in WA, you'd be mad not to give it a crack!
-
Boatroacker Ramjet: Because THIS is what beer can be. It's massive. You might hate it now but you certainly won't forget it. One day you'll understand and you won't be able to get enough. This beer is everything that is right about crazy, "big" beers.
-
Jester King El Cedro: It's American craft beer at its best. A beautiful, bubbly farmhouse ale aged in cedar barrels. We're lucky here in Australia to get our hands on these fantastic American ales and I think Jester King stands for everything we love about beer. Great beer, great story.
The last beer you enjoyed:
Beerfarm Native series Quandong & Samphire Gose.
Name three examples of music/art/culture/sport/travel/other that represent you.
- Cricket – a passion from a young age. A mediocre off-spinner with an U17's club record of 8-30. Currently playing for the Nannup Tigers!
- Punk rock and heavy metal – A passion for over 15 years, from singing in a dodgy death metal garage band as a teenager and being active in Perth's punk and hardcore scene, to mic grabs at Slayer and traveling cross country to farewell I Killed the Prom Queen in Adelaide!
- Food – A chef in a past life, now out from behind the pass and exploring food throughout Western Australia and cooking more at home.
