Here’s a sentence that doesn’t immediately sound like a recommendation: this beer tastes sour. And yet people order them constantly. Lines form for them at craft beer festivals. Breweries age them in barrels for years. They are, genuinely, some of the most fascinating and delicious things being made in Australian brewing right now.
What Makes a Beer Sour?
Traditional sour beers use wild fermentation – exposing the wort to wild yeast and bacteria (particularly Lactobacillus and Brettanomyces) rather than controlled commercial yeast strains. These wild microorganisms produce lactic acid, acetic acid, and a complex range of flavour compounds that standard brewing yeast simply can’t achieve. The result is a beer with tartness, complexity, and a wildness that rewards attention.
Modern Australian craft breweries often produce “quick sours” using kettle souring – a faster, more controlled process that delivers pleasant tartness without years of barrel ageing. These are the accessible entry point: gently tart, often fruit-forward, and very easy to enjoy.
The Range of Sour Beer
From a lightly tart Berliner Weisse (low alcohol, wheat-based, refreshing) to a complex Belgian Lambic aged for two years in oak barrels, the sour category spans an extraordinary range of flavours and intensities. In Australia, the most popular styles currently are fruit sours – beers brewed with passionfruit, mango, raspberry, and other tropical or stone fruits that complement and balance the tartness beautifully.
Best Australian Sours to Try
- TWØBAYS Pulp Fusion – a 3.5% gluten-free sour loaded with passionfruit; approachable and refreshing
- Bridge Road Brewers Free Time Raspberry Sour – award-winning, fruit-forward, beautifully balanced
- Wildflower Brewing & Blending – Sydney-based wild ale specialists producing genuinely world-class sours
- Feral Brewing Watermelon Warhead – tart, fruity, and wildly popular; a great gateway sour
The Takeaway
Don’t let the concept put you off. A great sour beer is like a great sparkling wine – refreshing, complex, and endlessly interesting. Start with a fruit sour and work your way deeper into the wild side.
Other Articles in this series:
- Lager – The Beer That Built Australia
- Pale Ale – How One Fremantle Brewery Changed Everything
- IPA – The Hop Head’s Handbook
- Wheat Beer – Cloudy, Soft, and Summer-Ready
- Stout – Dark Beer for Bright People
- Pilsner – Lager’s Sophisticated Upgrade
- Sour Beer – Tart, Wild, and Worth It
- Amber & Red Ale – The Best Beer You’re Not Drinking Yet
- Porter – The Original Dark Beer
- Session Beer – Great Taste, Easy Does It