Bold Brews and Spirits: A Guide to Queenstown’s Craft Beer and Distilleries

The oldest hospitality business in Queenstown, Gantley’s Tavern started serving food and drink from within its stone walls all the way back in 1874. A stalwart on the scene, Gantley’s champions a rotating line-up of 24 craft beers on tap. Expect to see regional favourites as well as drops from further afield, thoughtfully chosen and well-poured. Sip on your cold handle whilst getting around some lawn games out in the sunny beer garden, or if it’s an après ski occasion (it’s less than a minute from Coronet Peak Road after all) try to nab one of the prime, fireside seats.

A cornerstone of Queenstown’s craft beer scene, Smiths is all about variety, flavour and freshness. From local brews to rare finds, punchy pale ales to malty mouthfuls, Smiths’ passion and respect for independent beer and new discoveries is unwavering, in their own words, they ‘serve beer and food for the shepherds, not the sheep.’ Once you’ve chatted to the bar staff about everything on the blackboard and more, turn around and take in the views from the second-storey floor-to-ceiling windows as you park up with your pint. The craft beer house also hosts one of Aotearoa's largest beer events, The Smiths NZIPA, bringing hundreds of punters and brewing personalities from around New Zealand and Australia to Queenstown.

Overlooking the comings and goings of Queenstown’s water activities, Atlas is a craft beer haven and a go-to for locals (the bike rack outside is more often than not at 200% capacity). Tiny but tall-ceilinged and with plenty of outdoor seating, the ever-changing taps here offer something for all tastebuds: crisp lagers, creamy stouts, and everything in between, from New Zealand doors and international shores. Unpretentious and friendly, you’ll be in absolutely no rush to leave.

Down an alleyway and up a set of stairs, Beech Tree is hidden in plain sight in the centre of Queenstown. Boasting 26 rotating taps of excellent New Zealand craft beer, the tap list may well take centre stage, but this bar has plenty more to offer from a wide selection of board games, a weekly quiz night to dog ‘beer’ (yes, well-behaved furry friends are welcome up here). Priding themselves on being a democratic beer bar, Beech Tree genuinely loves to hear feedback and will work to provide what their customers prefer.

If you’re short on time and want to explore the local libations without having to drive, or are keen on a more private experience led by a knowledgeable guide, there are some great options. Queenstown Beer Tours, led by fourth-generation local Lewis, takes you behind the scenes at award-winning breweries, offering tastings, brewery stories, and a chance to interact with the brewers themselves. Altitude Tours’ Twilight Wine & Craft Beer Tour combines the best of both worlds, pairing local wines and/or beers with a scenic drive out to the stunning Gibbston Valley and back. Meanwhile, Hop On Hop Off Wine Tours gives visitors the flexibility to explore vineyards, cellar doors, breweries and bistros at their own pace, hopping between craft beer and boutique wineries without missing a drop.

From within a quintessentially Kiwi corrugated red shed down by the marina, Altitude brews innovative, small-batch creations that often utilise local ingredients, classic styles, and firm crowd favourites like their Sled Dog Session Hazy and Mischievous Kea IPA. There’s a touch of alpine inspiration to every beer, tipples that tell the story of place. Inside the tap room, kegs have been repurposed as seats and lightshades, old skis and snowboards line the walls, and half of a kayak is mounted vertically to the roof, obviously quirky but also relaxed and reliable, the atmosphere at Altitude parallels their product.

Fitting its industrial location, Searchlight operates out of a former warehouse. A passion project turned into a full-scale brewery, every inch of the space was hand-built by founder Lewis and partner Anna. The 18 taps pours Searchlight’s core range, from a balanced West Coast IPA to the ‘tropical juice bomb’ of a hazy IPA, to a whole lot of limited edition brews. Being a 30-minute walk from the town centre and behind tall walls is a quiet point of difference and as a result it's a popular haunt for locals and craft beer enthusiasts. The big roller doors open onto a sheltered, sunny beer garden that often transforms into a stage for a music or comedy gig, but if you can’t stick around, make sure to bring along your own reusable and resealable bottle as it can be filled with your favourite drop to take away.

Situated beside the Shotover River in the dramatic, rugged gorge that gives it its name, Canyon’s beers are just about the only thing that will pull your jaw from the floor as you soak up the views from arguably one of the most spectacular, scenic beer gardens around. This natural theatre harbours a thoughtful and curious ethos as the brewery endeavours to produce beer that treads lightly on the planet, whilst experimenting with technique and ingredients. Canyon grows their own malt and can proudly claim to be the only brewery in Aotearoa with a self-sufficient supply chain. Sustainability isn’t a passing interest, nor does the word boring enter the vocabulary here, craft and creativity flow together.

In a quaint stone cottage in historic Arrowtown, Rifters brings a refined approach to spirits that’s grounded in place and process. Known for their small-batch, award-winning gin, pure artesian water and carefully chosen botanicals are spotlighted in all of their spirits. Their Arrowtown Vodka is inspired by the purple haze of thyme that takes over the hillsides and scents the summer breeze, while the limited release single malt whisky is created in collaboration with the nearby Royalburn Station, one of the original farms to supply grain to Speight’s back in the 1800s. The tasting experience is indulgent and informative, and a counterpoint to the region’s beer scene.

Nestled halfway up Cardrona Valley, Cardrona Distillery is a destination for more reasons than one. Producing small-batch single malt whisky, gin, vodka and single malt liqueurs, every step in their process, from milling (on-site) to maturation (in copper stills, handmade in Scotland bespoke for Cardrona), is carefully considered to create distinctive, elevated, artisan spirits. Join a tour or tutored tasting before kicking back in the scenic front garden, enjoying a cocktail and perfectly paired small plates.

Blending time-honoured Japanese methods and heritage with a distinctly New Zealand sense of place, Zenkuro Sake is a unique addition to Otago’s brewing landscape. Handcrafted in Queenstown, head brewer David (who has studied and worked alongside some of Japan’s best sake heads) and the passionate, close-knit team at Zenkuro use pristine local water and rice varieties grown in Japan specifically for sake in their craft. From the crisp, balanced and elegant drops to the delicate, smooth and gently umami or more medium-bodied and dry, their range is quietly complex, deeply considered, and pairs with many a meal or mood. You’ll find Zenkuro Sake at plenty of restaurants and bars around town, including Canyon Brewing and cocktails at Little Blackwood.