Region & History

Tasmania is the cool island south of the Australian mainland, and that explains why good beer is made here. The climate feels more like Northern Europe than the red Outback, so barley and hops grow well. In Hobart, the capital, stands the Cascade Brewery, which calls itself the oldest continuously operating brewery in Australia.

Hobart was founded in 1804 as a penal colony, when the island was still called Van Diemen's Land. The Muwinina people lived in the area of today's city, and the mountain above it bears the name kunanyi in the language of Tasmanian Aboriginal people. The settlers called it Mount Wellington.

At its foot runs the Hobart Rivulet, a small stream where the Cascade Brewery was built. Peter Degraves and Hugh Macintosh are considered the founders, and the brewery itself cites 1824 as the founding year. The first Cascade beer was sold in December 1832. Degraves is said to have hatched the plan while in prison, serving time for an offense from before he emigrated. That's the story the brewery tells.

In the north of the island lies Launceston, where the North Esk and South Esk rivers meet. In 1881, Charles Stammers Button founded the Esk Brewery on the North Esk, and in 1883 James Boag and his son took over the operation. J. Boag & Son became the brand Boag's, known to this day by every Tasmanian.

Both heritage brands now belong to large corporations. Cascade is part of Carlton & United Breweries, and that group belongs to Asahi of Japan. Boag's belongs to Lion, a subsidiary of the Japanese group Kirin. Lion has announced that brewing in Launceston will end in November 2026, though the visitor centre is set to stay open. The name Tasmanian Beer is not a protected designation of origin: the island doesn't appear on the EU's list of protected beer names.