Did someone say beer? XXXX Brewery Tour review

1: Stay in bed in the foetal position and hide from any ray of sunlight, or2: Get outdoors and embrace the day with a hair-of-the-dog and good company to wash away the hangover.And who better to share this experience with other than the beer-lovin’ king himself – my Dad.

Now don’t get me wrong, I’m far from pro-alcoholism, but when a twenty-something YOLO-enthusiast has an opportunity to back up for a fun-filled day of sipping down a coldie with the oldie (with the added bonus of a little history) you can count me in.

The XXXX Brewery in Brisbane’s inner west suburb of Milton has become a landmark to tourists and locals alike over the years. Those big flashing four X’s and the dancing Mr Fourex make for a familiar site for any Brisbanite. Though what lies beyond the smell of brewing hops and flashing lights is where the true beauty can be found.

XXXX Brewery Tour & BBQ lunch

Arriving at the XXXX Brewery at the reasonable hour of 11:45am, Dad and I are ready to learn more about this iconic landmark (and its famous products) with a XXXX Brewery Tour & BBQ lunch. Things kick off in the XXXX Ale House Visitor Centre I can see Dad’s eyes wide open with all the XXXX paraphernalia in the room. I have to distract him from this bad boy before he adds it to the Father’s Day wish list.

We start off the tour with a few ground rules around safety before making our way through to the cinema room… yes, the cinema room. I always pictured brewery tours to be similar to winery tours, so I’m pretty excited by this unique twist and mini-film on the history of XXXX.

There’s a lot to know about that refreshing cold beer hundreds of thousands of people sip on daily. Without giving away too much, here are some pretty interesting facts about XXXX:

• The XXXX brand started in 1924 by the Castlemaine Brewers who came up to sunny QLD from VIC and the company (XXXX) was born in 1857.

• Beer was originally labelled by X’s. The more X’s the better (ie, stronger) the beer. XXX was the standard ale going around, until they perfected the recipe and developed the delicious XXXX we know and love.

• There are many theories behind who the XXXX mascot (Mr Fourex – pictured below) actually is. Some say he’s the companies former direct, Paddy Fitzgerald, others say he’s the company’s former director, Paddy Fitzgerald, others say he’s modelled from a paper boy who worked in Fortitude Valley during the ’20s. The true identity remains a mystery!

Following the short film, our tour guide takes us through the brewing site and teaches us about the different ingredients, brewing methods and history of XXXX beers. It’s pretty amazing to learn just how many beers are produced in a day at this place. To help put it in perspective, 450,000 beers are bottled an hour here! That’s sure to leave even the keenest beer drinker under the table.

Hot tip: If you’re considering a tour and are flexible with dates – I highly recommend visiting mid-week so you can catch the bottling of beers in action.

It’s amazing to see just how well preserved they’ve been able to keep some of the old XXXX products – from kegs and original brewing tools, to bottled beers and carton cases. They’ve kept the XXXX history alive (and in-tact) and just as well they did.

There are two types of tours available to book at the XXXX Brewery – both include four pints of beer at the end. The first tour is the Brewery tour (for $27), the second option (which we did) includes a delicious BBQ lunch afterwards (at only $40 per person). When considering which tour to go on, the BBQ lunch option wins me over. $13 more for a BBQ lunch included – yes please!

For those looking for something a little different to do in Brissy, add the XXXX Brewery to your bucket list – you won’t be disappointed. And with Father’s Day just around the corner, why not grab a coldie with your oldie and gift him something that you’ll both enjoy (with the added bonus of family bonding time). It’s a win-win!