South Africa offers an exciting array of craft brews to sample for beer lovers. The craft beer scene in South Africa has exploded in recent years, driven by a thirst for full-flavored, locally produced beer. Small-scale artisanal breweries are popping up across the country to meet demand. Craft beer encapsulates a return to traditional brewing methods and ingredients while experimenting with new styles and flavors.
Beer brewing in South Africa stretches back centuries, with the first brews believed to be made by early European settlers in the Cape Colony during the 17th century. British, German, and Dutch colonists all contributed brewing know-how and traditions during this early colonial period. At the same time, indigenous tribes including the Xhosa and Zulu were developing their own unique sorghum and maize-based beers, which shows the diversity of traditional brewing practices across different cultures in the region.
A Brief History of Craft Beer in South Africa
In the late 19th century, Castle Brewery opened in Johannesburg, eventually becoming South African Breweries (SAB). By the 1950s, SAB had grown to dominate commercial beer production in the country, focusing mainly on economical lager-style beers like Castle Lager and Carling Black Label that were easy to mass produce. In response to the homogenization of beer happening under SAB’s umbrella, home brewing started to gain popularity in the 1970s and 80s among beer lovers seeking more diversity and flavor complexity.
This growing homemade craft beer movement set the stage for the rise of professional microbreweries in the 1990s, with enthusiastic amateurs turning their passion into careers by establishing the country’s first proper craft breweries. Mitchell’s Brewery became South Africa’s pioneering commercial microbrewery when it opened in 1983 in Knysna, thereby kickstarting the growth of craft beer in South Africa. The fledgling industry saw relatively slow but steady growth over the following decades as more microbreweries gradually opened and found a niche market.
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In recent years, the popularity of craft beer has absolutely surged as beer drinkers continue seeking out quality ingredients, complex flavors, and innovative techniques. As the public demand grows exponentially, South Africa now has over 200 microbreweries operating across the country, providing beer lovers with an excitingly diverse array of craft beer styles and flavors to suit all tastes.
Popular Styles of South African Craft Beer
South African craft brewers have embraced both traditional European-inspired beer styles and more experimental American-influenced varieties. Some of the most popular craft beer styles being brewed in South Africa today include:
- Pale ales - A classic style, pale ales are refreshing, medium-bodied ales with fruity, floral hop flavors that provide a very drinkable introduction to craft beers. South African versions like Darling Brew’s Slow Beer are more balanced and dialed back compared to the often intensely hoppy American styles.
- India Pale Ales (IPAs) - IPAs distinguish themselves with a strong hop-forward and bitter flavor profile. Leading examples include Jack Black’s Cape Pale Ale and Triggerfish’s Titan IPA. While extremely popular in modern American craft brewing, South African IPAs tend to be less aggressively hopped.
- Wheat beers - South African craft breweries produce delicious fruity and spiced wheat beers, like Darling Brew’s popular Bone Crusher. Brewed using wheat malt, these beers offer lovely flavors like banana, bubblegum, and clove.
- Porters - Porters are medium-bodied dark beers with chocolate, coffee, and roasted malt flavors, such as the rich, roasty Black Mist from Cape Brewing Company. While stouts are more common, quality porters are also brewed by South African microbreweries.
- Stouts - From dry Irish-style stouts to sweeter milk and oatmeal variations, South African brewers make excellent dark, creamy stouts. Knuckle Brewing’s Maroela Milk Stout uses lactose sugar to provide a silky sweetness.
- Sours - Tart, funky sour beers offer an exciting flavor change, with a sharp, acidic tanginess often balanced by fruit flavors. Brewers skillfully use wild yeast strains, mixed fermentation, and barrel aging to produce sought-after sour beers.
South African craft brewers also make very drinkable lagers, pilsners, saisons and honey-infused braggot ales. More limited edition seasonal brews and constantly changing small-batch beers provide additional variety for adventurous beer lovers to explore, and many brewers use South African hops and South African yeast, too.
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Top Breweries and Beer Brands
South Africa’s vibrant craft beer culture has given rise to numerous excellent breweries and beer brands across the country. Some of the leading lights in South African craft brewing include:
- Devil’s Peak Brewing Company - Based in Cape Town, Devil’s Peak has earned national and international acclaim for their balanced craft brews like the hoppy King’s Blockhouse IPA and are one of South Africa’s pioneering craft breweries at the forefront of the movement.
- Cape Brewing Company - This well-established Cape Town brewery has built their reputation on brewing diverse European and American-style craft beers to the highest standard. Their tasting room allows visitors to sample special limited releases.
- Darling Brew - Darling Brew is a leading microbrewery that offers both craft beer classics and more experimental seasonal offerings like their acclaimed Slow Beer wild ale. Their beautifully designed labels match the creativity inside the bottles.
- Mitchell’s Brewery - Located in Knysna, Mitchell’s holds the distinction of being South Africa’s very first microbrewery, kickstarting the country’s craft beer tradition back in 1983. Their beers can now be found countrywide.
- Clarens Brewery - Situated in the small town of Clarens, this modest brewpub crafts beers like their deliciously smooth and velvety Clarens Stout. The relaxing brewery offers tastings with scenic views.
- Copper Lake Breweries - A family-owned craft brewery located in Gauteng, Copper Lake specializes in brewing refined European lagers and ales like their Copper Weiss wheat beer.
With new players constantly joining the scene, there are many more excellent breweries and craft beer brands to experience across South Africa.
Where to Find Craft Beer in South Africa: Beer Bars and Brewpubs
To truly experience South Africa’s flourishing craft beer culture, beer lovers need to visit some of the country’s top beer-focused bars and brewpub restaurants. These spots offer the perfect atmosphere to sample an array of local brews. Recommended places for tasting South African craft beer include:
- Banana Jam Cafe in Cape Town - This laidback cafe in the vibrant Woodstock neighborhood has over 30 tap lines pouring the city’s best craft beers. Their outdoor courtyard is a favorite local hangout.
- Beerhouse in Cape Town - Located on lively Long Street in Cape Town and in Tygervalley in Cape Town’s Northern Suburbs, Beerhouse is a local institution and its contemporary beer hall has 25 taps and a legendary ’99 Bottles’ of the best local and international beer.
- Sugarbird Brewhouse in Plettenberg Bay - Settle in at the bohemian-inspired Sugarbird Brewhouse to try their lineup of German-style lagers and ales paired with woodfired pizzas.
- Airport Brewing Company at Johannesburg Airport (international and domestic) - An absolute must visit and well worth arriving early at the airport for. Excellent food, too.
Many breweries themselves have excellent taproom bars that provide the ideal laidback space to sample their beers straight from the source while mingling with fellow beer aficionados. To gain a deeper understanding of South Africa’s blossoming craft beer culture, visitors should immerse themselves in experiences beyond simply tasting the beers by:
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- Taking a brewery tour - Most microbreweries are very welcoming to visitors and offer behind-the-scenes tours that provide fascinating insight into each brewery’s processes, equipment, and operations. They usually conclude with a tasting session too.
- Visiting brewpub restaurants - Eateries like Sugarbird Brewhouse that brew their own beer on-site are wonderful for chatting with passionate brewmasters and sampling exclusive small-batch brews that may not be available anywhere else.
- Attending a beer festival - As craft beer has grown more popular, South Africa has seen various local and national craft beer festivals emerge as annual events, like Cape Town’s We Love Beer Celebration. These vibrant outdoor events let you sample from dozens of breweries in one place - so time your visit for one or more of the South African beer festivals.
- Going on a dedicated beer safari or tour - To fully embrace South Africa’s beer culture, travelers can book a custom tour focusing on visiting breweries and local beer hangouts across different towns and townships. African Beer Tours is one company providing specialised South African craft beer tours.
- Taking a hospitality course - For a truly immersive experience, beer lovers can even take short courses at institutions like the Beer Academy of South Africa to learn about beer styles, flavors, and food pairings from brewing experts.
Challenges Facing the Industry
While South Africa’s craft beer segment is booming and full of enthusiasm, it still faces some economic and distribution challenges common to small startups in an industry dominated by large conglomerates. Some of the key hurdles the country’s craft breweries continue to face include:
- High excise taxes - The exorbitant alcohol excise tax rate in South Africa increases operational costs substantially for craft brewers, which limits their ability to compete with beers from large companies like SAB who can benefit from economies of scale. Efforts to lobby for a reduced excise tax rate specifically for small brewers are so far making little progress.
- Market dominance of SAB brands - Due to their huge brand awareness and distribution reach, SAB beers like Castle Lager still dominate shelves and taps at most restaurants and bottle stores. Breaking into this market presence as a small craft brewer can be extremely difficult.
- Restrictive distribution - Unlike the big brewers, many craft breweries struggle to distribute their beers widely across different provinces. Most craft beers are confined to their immediate local area. Accessing distribution channels is both logistically and financially challenging for small operations.
- Access to ingredients - Imported premium hops, malts, and yeasts are not always readily accessible or affordable for craft brewers in more remote areas. This can limit creativity and expansion into more diverse beer styles.
To help overcome common challenges, many South African craft breweries have banded together by forming the Craft Brewers Association of South Africa (CBASA). This allows coordinated efforts in areas like lobbying for reduced excise and easier distribution. The entrance of more black-owned microbreweries is also helping to diversify the playing field away from the legacy of SAB’s monopoly.
Current Trends and the Future
Several exciting developments look set to shape the future direction and growth of South Africa’s craft beer industry, including:
- Increased domestic tourism - As more South Africans become interested in craft beer, brewery tours and ‘beercations’ visiting multiple brewpubs within the country are gaining popularity. This provides a growth area separate from exports.
- Beer and food pairing - More restaurants and gastropubs are realising the potential for matching locally-brewed craft beers with specific dishes, promoting South African beer as a culinary complement rather than just an alcohol component.
- Experimentation with unique ingredients - Drawing on local ingredients like rooibos, honeybush, malva nuts and African hops, innovative brewers are testing the waters with experimental beers that reflect South African terroir.
- Growth of canned craft beers - To reach broader distribution and markets, small breweries are canning more of their beer production. Cans help craft beer become more mainstream and summer-friendly.
- Development of craft beer trails/routes - Regional craft beer tours and trails are being formalised, linking together breweries, beer bars, shops, and festivals to promote ‘beercation’ tourism.
- Increasing popularity of craft beer festivals - As the number of microbreweries has grown, more local food & drink festivals are celebrating craft beer, such as Cape Town’s We Love Beer event.
With the craft beer industry professionalising and innovative new players constantly entering the market, the future looks very bright for South Africa’s small-scale brewers. Most importantly, it’s a vibrant scene focused on satisfying the country’s growing ranks of passionate beer lovers.
Traditional African Beer
Traditional brewing methods have remained an important activity throughout Africa despite commercial breweries producing variations of traditional African beers. It is still a key aspect of the rural economy, where traditional beer is brewed for local markets and for all varieties of ceremonial and cultural occasions and gatherings.
Traditional brews go by many different names depending on the location. Southern Africa has chibuku, umqombothi, utshwala, joala, and doro, depending on the subregion, and western Africa shakparo. Kenya has chang’aa, Botswana khadi, Central Africa Republic hydromel, and Ethiopia araque, katila, and talla. Botswana, Zambia, and Malawi all have chibuku shake-shake (a commercial variety made from sorghum and maize). In Zimbabwe, shake-shake is called “scud.” Uganda has tonto, mwenge, murumba, marwa, kweete, and musooli. Ghana has pito, burukutu, and akpeteshie.
By any name, sorghum beer is the traditional beer of Africa. It is also referred to as opaque beer because of its cloudiness. It is made both rurally and commercially throughout the continent. Tribes continue to make their own varieties, using locally available ingredients for additional flavor. Commercial breweries also make different varieties depending on the subregion.
Traditional Method
The first step in traditional sorghum beer production is malt production. Traditional household malting takes place in open yards where the sorghum grain is either added to water or mixed with a slurry of wood ash, soaked overnight, and drained. The grain is then spread on grass mats, kept moist, and allowed to germinate. The resulting malt is then dried, usually between grass mats. The malt is then ground by hand to produce a rough powder. Sorghum malt is often used in porridges and other recipes, in addition to beer production. Today, it is also commercially available in powders.
The sorghum malt is then used alone or in combination with other malts and grains. Maize and millet malts and grains are the most commonly used in addition to sorghum. Cassava root is also used throughout Africa as a grain alternative in addition to sorghum malt.
The malt and grain mixture is soaked overnight in warm water. This overnight fermentation produces lactic acid and the characteristic sourness of traditional African beer. The mixture is then cooked again, cooled, vigorously mixed, and placed in a larger container. It is covered with a blanket and kept in a warm place to encourage further fermentation for several days.
Traditionally, no yeast is added to the final fermentation. Native yeasts present on the grain, malt, and brewing vessels are responsible for the alcohol production. The primary yeasts found in traditional African beer are strains of Saccharomyces cerevisiae. Today, yeast from the previous batch of beer, or even purchased yeast, might be added to a new batch.
Traditional Brewing Methods Continue
Traditional brewing methods continue into the 21st Century, despite what some analysts describe as a gradually declining demand and the efforts of some governments to discourage and even outlaw the practice. The real reason for the persistence of this ‘underground’ brewing is poverty. Most people simply can not afford the commercial lagers and stouts on sale at liquor stores. One of the more dangerous symptoms of the informal brewing of traditional beer is the lack of quality control. Nevertheless, umnqombothi remains a firm favorite among southern Africans in particular.
Neither commercial nor illegal and brewed by individual households, this smooth, rich and slightly sour indigenous sorghum beer is made by adding sugar, water and corn to soft-cooked sorghum-meal porridge, allowing it to stand, then repeating the process to taste. The natural fermentation process gives the beer a thick and creamy head of various-sized bubbles. It was first brewed in the grass-hut kraals (tribal villages) on the Southeastern tip of the African continent, and fuelled the indomitable imperial armies of the Zulu nation in the mid-nineteenth century.
SAB and the Beer Market
Africa itself only represents some 5 percent of global beer production, but of this South Africa constitutes about 54 percent. This means that one country comprises half of an entire continent’s commercial beer market. SAB was established in 1895 by Charles Chandler, Anders Ohlsson and brewer Charles Glass, and became the first industrial share to be listed on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange.
In 2000, SAB produced no less than 53 million hectolitres of beer (or 44.5 million barrels). Its flagship brand is Castle Lager, first launched in 1898, with another 14 labels comprising its production portfolio. SABI Africa, SAB’s international division in Africa, runs operations in almost all Southern African countries and has recently reached deeply into the eastern, central and even western African beer markets. SABI’s latest and most significant strategic alliance in Africa is with the Castel Group’s Beer Division (CBB). Whereas SABI was the dominant force in southern and east Africa, the CBB controlled the majority of the markets in central and western Africa. The alliance expands and consolidates both companies’ positions in Africa by way of a nil premium share exchange. SABI is growing, with 79 breweries in 21 countries, and beer production increasing at 28 percent.
The domestic success of South African Breweries is no doubt bolstered by two of the country’s most popular pastimes: braais (barbecues) and spectator sports. Both activities traditionally involve a tremendous amount of beer drinking.
South African Beer Brands
Here are a few popular South African beer brands:
- Carling Black Label
- Castle Milk Stout
- Castle Lager
- Castle Lite
- Flying Fish Premium Flavoured Beer
These beers offer a range of flavors and styles, reflecting the diverse tastes of South African beer drinkers. Whether you prefer a classic lager or a flavored beer, there's something for everyone to enjoy.
Microbreweries in South Africa
Despite the virtual monopoly that SAB has established in South Africa, microbreweries do exist. Mitchell’s, by far the largest and most popular, has recently been bought by the Scottish and Newcastle, the biggest brewer in Britain. Since its inception in 1983, the original Mitchell’s brewery in Knysna (South Africa) has grown by leaps and bounds. Among the other micros, Royal, which produces Tollies Lager, and Birkenhead, whose hoppy, amber draught is almost as heavy as a Guinness, are both estate breweries nestled in the scenic valleys of the southern Cape Province. Birkenhead uses a natural mountain spring on its estate to produce its beer.
So why, one may well ask, are there so few microbreweries in South Africa? But SAB has recently revealed that despite (or perhaps even because of) its flourishing international interests, its production figures in South Africa have decreased. In addition, Tony Manning, one of SAB’s strategy consultants, has expressed concern over SAB’s “unpopular” image as a monopoly. This means that a chink has appeared in the armor of the corporate Goliath SAB, leaving a proportionate gap, however minute, in the beer market. If you consider Mitchell’s astounding success, there should be a lesson for future entrepreneurs here.
Table: Key Facts About South African Beer Market
| Metric | Value/Description |
|---|---|
| South Africa's Share of Africa's Beer Production | 54% |
| Annual Growth Rate of South African Beer Market | 8-10% |
| Dominant Player | South African Breweries (SAB) |
| First Microbrewery | Mitchell's Brewery (Knysna) |
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