Thinking global drinking local at the 2025 National Multicultural Festival

For the first time after more than 10 years of serving delicious local beers at the National Multicultural Festival, the Canberra Brewers will sell beers specially made by some of the region’s best homebrewers.
Visitors to Canberra’s biggest yearly festival from February 7-9 will get a chance to ‘think global and drink local’ with beers designed and brewed by members while chatting with brewers about all things beer and home brewing.
It will be the club’s most diverse tap list yet, selling beers that will only be available at this year’s festival.
Ever since hosting their first stall at the festival in 2012, selling the legendary beers made by Richard Watkins at the Wig and Pen, the Canberra Brewers have been using the festival to showcase the region’s best beer.
Since then, the lineup has been curated to highlight the club’s relationships with Canberra breweries, selling wares from BentSpoke Brewing Co, Zierholz, Cypher Brewing Co and Capital Brewing Co.
World class, home brewed
This year, the club is proud to be serving a range of beers specially brewed by some of its award-winning homebrewers on a pilot system at Zierholz Brewery in Fyshwick, thanks to the support from owner and former club champion Christoph Zierholz. The beers will represent styles from around the world including:
- Dortmunder Helles Lager (Germany)
- British Golden Ale (UK)
- Tropical Fruit Sour (Brazil)
- Table Saison (France/Belgium)
- American Amber Ale (US)
Ingredients for these beers were all sourced through local homebrew suppliers Brew Your Own at Home in Kambah, Belco Brew Supplies, and Mashematics.
Best of the best
Alongside these will be two beers from the multi-award winning BentSpoke, made with club members after winning the ACT Amateur Brewing Championships yearly trophy for beer of show, the BentBrewer Award.
Continuing a tradition he started while at the Wig and Pen, BentSpoke co-owner Watkins helps judge the award, and then brews the winning beer with the winner and co-owner Tracy Margrain at their Braddon Brewpub.
Rob Barnsley won BentBrewer 5 in 2023 with his oak-smoked wheat beer, inspired by a traditional Polish grodziskie while Craig Evan’s won the BentBrewer 6 late last year with his American light lager. The smokey wheat beer is sure to be a great match to the festival’s rich, smokey foods while the light lager will be a smash as temperatures head into the 30s.

Complementing this line-up will be beers from club supporters Zierholz, Cypher and Capital, and BentSpoke’s Crankshaft, again voted Australia’s favourite IPA in the 2024 GABS Hottest 100 beer poll.
Find the Canberra Brewers at stall H27 – in Bundah Street between Akuna and Petrie Streets!



