Scenic drives on country roads, a sun-bleached Californian surf mecca and a fiercely protective Australian bird. What do they all have in common? They’re namesakes and inspiration for some of the Northern Rivers’ most exciting new breweries and distilleries. Among them, you’ll find old mates brewing boozy kombucha, a female-led distillery shaking up the status quo, and a Byron Bay favourite that’s enjoying an above-average amount of ‘buzz’.
WRITTEN BY CHRIS ASHTON
VENTURA BREWING
From school friends to travel buddies and now owners of a brewery, Dom Hurley and Shanu Walsh from Ventura Brewing have a lot of history. Now, they’re creating an exciting future, with the addition of a tap room for good times, drinks from the source, and enjoying the sunset over Wollumbin-Mount Warning taking their business to the next level.
Founded in Shanu’s garage in 2018, Ventura walks a different path from most craft breweries. For starters, there are no crisp lagers or fruity IPAs here. Instead, it’s all about boozy kombucha, made using a natural double fermentation (not spiked with alcohol, as with others in the market) and infused with fruits, herbs and botanicals.
“It’s a clean and fresh alternative to drinking beer, wine or cider,” explains Hurley. “It’s also lighter on your stomach than beer, as it doesn’t have all the grain that’s found in beer,” meaning they’re gluten free.
The Murwillumbah industrial estate tap room – open since August 2024 – has quickly found its tribe, thanks to its chilled vibe, leafy courtyard and impressive outlook over the cane fields, backed by a delicious array of up to 12 seasonal, limited release and core drinks.
Favourite drink: Lavender Lemonade, a limited release that’s been upgraded to the core range.
BIRDS OF ISLE
Murwillumbah is a key hub in the Northern Rivers’ sugarcane industry, with trucks bouncing on dusty roads hauling freshly harvested cane stalks common sights from June to December. Naturally, this homegrown bounty also makes the town prime territory for another hot commodity: rum.
Several distilleries, including Husk and Cabarita Spirits, are turning local cane juice into liquid gold, and amassing a devoted following in the process. One of the latest is Birds of Isle, from Chanel Melani and Sally Carter, which is not only adding a female perspective to a typically male-dominated industry but embracing one of the region’s lesser-known Indigenous ingredients.
Dotted along Australia’s East Coast, the Bunya Pine is recognisable for its bullet-like shape and mammoth pinecones, the latter regularly tipping scales at 20kg. And inside, a hundred or more smooth, buttery-flavoured nuts, which act as the signature element in Birds of Isle’s debut rum.
This first release, a light and dry column-distilled rum with notes of burnt sugar, roasted nuts and creme brulee was unveiled in December 2023, while their second will emerge in around 18 months, as a three year-aged rum.
Favourite way to drink: On ice, or in a classic daiquiri of Bunya nut rum, fresh lime and some simple syrup.
BYRON BAY SPIRITS CO.
No, Byron Bay Spirits Co. is not new. The distillery from Luca Bolzoni and Marshal Rubinstein has been concocting spirits and ready-made cocktails since 2019, many of them gracing shelves in bars, restaurants and bottle shops around the region.
Though best known for honey vodka, gin and liqueur, all of which were inspired by the owners past careers working with bee keeping innovators Flow Hive, their full lineup including a naturally flavoured triple sec, arancello and delightful dry gin is worth diving into.
What is newsworthy, however, is the brand-new cocktail venue: Byron Bay Spirits Lounge, which opened in October 2024. Years in the making, the lounge and adjacent distillery and canning facility are a natural progression for the brand, having long outgrown their original distillery.
Housed in the appropriately named Hive precinct of Byron Arts & Industry Estate, next door to Stone & Wood, visitors can swing by for tastings and tours, enjoy lunchtime or after-work cocktails, and leave with a bottle or two under their arm, of course. It’ll soon offer cocktail masterclasses, alongside distilling and liqueur-making classes.
Favourite drinks: Limoncello and Coffee Liqueur, both created in honour of Bolzoni’s grandparents.
SPANGLED DRONGO
The name ‘Spangled Drongo’ is an evocative one. A generation of Aussies will likely hear the voice of TV staple Home and Away’s Alf Stewart when they read it. But it’s not an insult – it’s a bird, one known for its protective nature and willingness to take on predators twice its size.
It’s also the namesake of a craft brewery in Murwillumbah, just around the bend from Ventura, and a rather fitting one at that, given the owners are independents ‘taking on the big guys'. It works with the branding too, which co-founder and brewer Brian Kiss von Soly describes as “very punk rock, skating and anti-establishment, but with a heart of gold.”
Cutting his teeth at well-known breweries like Balter and Stone & Wood, Brian’s passions are beer and sustainability, and Spangled Drongo combines both. A percentage of all beers sold goes to Australian Wildlife Conservancy, which works to protect native animal species and the habitats in which they live.
Since relocating to their industrial estate location in June 2023, following the devastating 2022 floods that damaged their original downtown Murwillumbah venue, the boys have been brewing a range that includes a Pale Ale and a Lager, with plans to introduce a third beer in the new year. A tasting room is also in the works.
Favourite drink: With just two beers in the current range, you can’t go wrong.
WINDING ROAD DISTILLING CO.
“We’re always tinkering; always doing things”, says Mark Awad of Winding Road Distilling Co. who, alongside wife Camille, has been producing small-batch whiskey, rum and gin from their humble distillery in Tintenbar, near Ballina, since 2017. And they must be doing something right, given the glittering trophies and awards now lining the office shelves.
On that noble list are accolades for the Coastal Cane Pure Single Rum, made from first-press Northern Rivers cane juice and awarded Best Rum at the 2023 Australian Distilled Spirits Awards, and the highly coveted Hinterland Single Malt Whiskey.
As for the constant tinkering, a couple of unique whiskey expressions and a vodka will soon enter the mix, with these imminent arrivals falling under a special ‘50 Mile’ label, as a nod to the radius in which all ingredients were sourced.
Winding Road will also launch a new era with its long-awaited tasting room mid next year, which Awad says will be ‘a jewel in the crown for the Northern Rivers’. In the meantime, their spirits can be found online and at local farmers’ markets.
Favourite drink: A Rum Old Fashioned, with simple syrup, angostura bitters and an orange peel garnish.
MIXING OLD & NEW
We can’t forget to mention some of our long-time favourites:
Cape Byron Distillery
Sample their award-winning Brookies Gin and Whisky straight from the tasting room at Cape Byron
Common People Brewing
A Bangalow-based craft brewery where you can try a variety of locally made beers in their inviting tasting room
Husk Farm Distillery
Visit Tumbulgum for hand-crafted rum; make sure to try their Ink Gin, great food and a welcoming tasting experience
Stone and Wood
Experience locally made, carbon-neutral beers with a focus on quality ingredients
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