12 Austrian Breweries to Visit

Austria is a country of beer lovers - and has been for centuries. You'll find small breweries with age-old traditions as well as new craft breweries offering up unusual creations. Visit these 12 Austrian breweries to taste it all!

Beer is one of Austria's favourite drinks: The average Austrian consumes more that 100 litres (27 gallons) of the amber nectar per year. Austria's breweries have long traditions and age-old recipes; but they also experiment with new product ideas, which has brought them international attention. Some of these beer artists invite guests for tastings and open their production sites to the public - find out where to learn more about and taste Austrian craft beer.

12 Craft Breweries to Visit

Brewery at Eggenberg Castle (Upper Austria)

A great deal of artisanal care and 200 years of experience go into brewing the delicious beer of the family enterprise Schloss Eggenberg in the Salzkammergut region. Of course now, in the 21st century, it's aided by the latest technology.

Freistädter Brewery (Upper Austria)
The people of Freistadt in Upper Austria have been brewing beer since 1363. Water from the local bedrock, hops from the Mühlviertel region, malt from the Weinviertel region, and a well-guarded strain of local yeast make for the high and consistent quality of the Freistädter beers.

Stiegl Brewery (Salzburg)
Stiegl Brewery is renowned for quality at the highest level. At their Brauwelt (The World of Brewing) museum (complete with cinema), visitors can immerse themselves in the world of beer and visit Stiegl's custom-built cellar for cask-maturing specialties such as the Hausbier and their vintage beers.

Ottakringer Brewery (Vienna)
Ottakringer is probably Vienna's best-known beer. In their own craft brewery called Brauwerk, the company also produce some quite remarkable seasonal specialties. Each craft specialty draws its particular character from one of the three main ingredients: the flavour of the beer Hausmarke 1 is influenced most by the yeast, Hausmarke 2 by the hops, while with Hausmarke 3 it’s the malt.

Golser Brewery (Burgenland)
This brewery’s specialties are brewed with the finest of ingredients: chestnuts, spelt, herbs, fruit, or spices. Some beers are made using modern methods like cold hopping and aging in wooden barrels.

Zillertal Brewery (Tirol)
For more than 500 years, distinctive beers have been brewed according to traditions handed down through generations in Zell am Ziller in Tirol. Today, the most modern of technology is used, but carefully selected regional ingredients are still an important part of the process.

Murauer Brewery (Styria)
Europe's first brewery powered by 100% renewable energy, Murauer have also found success in international beer competitions: At the World Beer Awards 2017, three of their brews were awarded gold medals – the Murauer Märzen, the Murauer Weissbier, and their refreshing ‘Radler’ made with apricots and elderberries.

Schremser Brewery (Lower Austria)
Made from a special brewers’ barley known as ‘Waldviertler Landkorn’ and produced in an environmentally friendly way throughout, Schremser beer gets its special taste from the soft, limestone-rich water of the Waldviertel region.

Mohren Brewery (Vorarlberg)
In the "Creative Brewery" at Mohren Brewery, beer lovers can create their own beer. Guided by an experienced brewer, they determine their individual style, grind the malt, prepare the mash, clarify, and then commence brewing. Cheers!

Hofstettner Brewery (Upper Austria)
One particular specialty of Hofstettner brewery is their "Granite Beer", which once nourished stonecutters. The granitic rock from the Mühlviertel region works like a unique kind of water filter. A mixture of light and dark malts as well as 100% Mühlviertel hops give this beer its authentic and smooth flavour.

Zwettler Brewery (Lower Austria)
In the town of Zwettl, beer is still made according to old, artisanal recipes. Organically grown, the hops and malt are combined with soft water from the primordial rock of the Bohemian Massif, giving this beer an aroma of roasted malt.

Hirter Brewery (Carinthia)
A gathering place for lovers of local beer specialties for centuries, the Braukeller (Brew Cellar) in Hirt has one of the richest culinary traditions in all of Carinthia.