Metro area

Best breweries in Wellington, New Zealand

Within 16 miles of Wellington we track 15 breweries. 1 rates Great. Garage Project in Wellington leads the list at 4.19 (Great).

The scale

Exceptional
A short list of extraordinary breweries worth planning a trip around.
Great
Consistently produce world-class beer.
Fine
Make genuinely good beer, if not the pint you will still be talking about next year.
Poor
Not bad beer so much as unremarkable beer.
Limited
Most craft beer drinkers pass these by.

1
Garage Project
Wellington, Wellington Region, New Zealand
What is Garage Project? Garage because it started in a garage, but it’s more than that. It’s also about approaching things with a garage mentality. It’s about playing around, making do and thinking outside the box. The surroundings might be basic but this is no barrier to creativity. This is bière de garage – beer from the garage. And why Project – because it’s ongoing, it’s a work in progress and we plan to keep it that way. For example, we don’t plan to come out with a fixed portfolio of beers – this is about experimenting, pushing boundaries, blurring the boundaries between styles - seeing what works. We love beer styles, but we want to take them somewhere, to reinterpret, not just reproduce them.
Rating
4.19Great
Popularity
Extremely widely rated
2
Parrotdog
Wellington, Wellington Region, New Zealand
Parrotdog produce's fine quality beer and is ranked #30 in New Zealand. They are most well known for "Bitterbitch", which is an Other IPA and "Birdseye", which is a New England IPA. Their primary focus is brewing IPAs and Pale Ales.
Rating
3.94Fine
Popularity
Well rated
3
Double Vision Brewing
Wellington, New Zealand
At your Miramar local, we simply aspire to create the kind of damn fine beer that delivers mouth parties and brings a bit of character. We enjoy spending our waking hours taking a second look at what defines a traditional style, and from there, we give the recipe boundaries a bit of a nudge. Yeah sure it might not please the Purity Police… but actually, we’re good with that.
Rating
3.85Fine
Popularity
Well rated
4
Heyday Beer Co.
Wellington, New Zealand
Heyday Beer Co. produce's good quality beer and is ranked #42 in New Zealand. They are most well known for "HEYDAY WCIPA", which is an American IPA and "Gryphon Fresh Hop", which is an Imperial New England IPA. Their primary focus is brewing IPAs and Dark Beers.
Rating
3.84Fine
Popularity
Modestly rated
5
Baylands Brewery
Lower Hutt, Wellington, New Zealand
Baylands Brewery produce's decent quality beer and is ranked #48 in New Zealand. They are most well known for "Idaho Haze", which is a New England Pale Ale and "Woodrow's Veto IPA", which is an American IPA. Their primary focus is brewing Pale Ales and IPAs.
Rating
3.84Fine
Popularity
Modestly rated
6
Waitoa
Wellington, New Zealand
From our home in Hataitai, Wellington we create bold and fresh takes of tried and true classics with an unapologetically Aotearoa flavour. You won’t find anything pretentious or gimmicky in our brews. We believe in keeping it simple and letting the product (and awards) do the talking. It’s even in our name, which can be interpreted as ‘strong water’.
Rating
3.82Fine
Popularity
Modestly rated
7
Mean Doses
Wellington, New Zealand
Dean and Kerry were just regular people until 2018 when they decided to throw caution to the wind. Now they run Mean Doses and make very good beers. Flyin’ away on a wing and a prayer… who could it be? Believe it or not, it’s just Deeean (and Kerry).
Rating
3.82Fine
Popularity
Modestly rated
8
Fork & Brewer
Wellington, New Zealand
Back in 2010, when planning first started on the Fork & Brewer venue, there were zero breweries in Wellington. Now, there's close to a dozen - and Fork & Brewer was right there at the start of the capital's craft beer boom! Independently owned, and one of three craft breweries which began production in 2012, Fork has since gone from strength to strength, winning the NZ Brewer's Guild Champion Micro Brewery Award in 2024, to add to its Champion Small Brewery Awards two years running in 2018 and 2019. With Wellington's largest range of onsite-brewed beer pouring from a mind-boggling 42 taps, Fork & Brewer showcases premium craft beer alongside quality food, great vibes and one of the sunniest decks in the city at its brewpub on Bond Street. Our 1000 litre brewery on the premises produces every drop of our award-winning beer range, which features everything from Gold Medal-winning lagers and hazys, to stouts, sours, speciality brews and beyond. Come and find us upstairs at 20A Bond Street in central Wellington!
Rating
3.81Fine
Popularity
Modestly rated
9
Abandoned Brewery
Porirua, Wellington, New Zealand
It was a dream abandoned in a place joy forgot. Among the cobwebs and grime in an old factory in Epuni, Lower Hutt were the remnants of a brewery left for dead. A hapless experiment, an abandoned jumble of mismatched parts, the broken bones of a brewery lay forgotten. Brought back to life but this time done right. Abandoned Brewery, a true micro-brewery with a neversay- die attitude and a deep belief in the craft, an arsenal of ideas and calm amongst the chaos…this monster lives - Abandoned Brewery 2017.
Rating
3.80Fine
Popularity
Lightly rated
10
Choice Bros Brewing
Wellington, New Zealand
Choice Bros Brewing is located in the heart of Wellington, New Zealand. Every day we strive to make great beer, enjoy life and play some sweet tunes. So grab another drink and let's dance.
Rating
3.75Fine
Popularity
Modestly rated
11
Maiden Brewing Company
Wellington, New Zealand
Maiden Brewing Company produce's good quality beer and has a limited variety of different ones to choose from. They are most well known for "Multiverse Passionfruit", which is a Fruited Sour and "Multiverse Plum", which is a Fruited Sour. Their primary focus is brewing Sours and Saisons.
Rating
3.47Poor
Popularity
Barely rated
12
JuiceHead Beer
Wellington, New Zealand
Brought together through slinging pints and creating distinctive and explosive beers, JuiceHead is all about making quality beer that bursts with flavour, tests the taste buds, and leaves you craving another. Cheers!
Rating
3.41Poor
Popularity
Lightly rated
13
Black Dog Brewery
Wellington, New Zealand
Black Dog Brewery produce's unproven beer and are usually experimenting brewing new ones. They are most well known for "Chomp Pale Ale", which is a New Zealand Pale Ale and "Dogfather", which is an American Pale Ale. Their primary focus is brewing Pale Ales and IPAs.
Rating
3.07Limited
Popularity
Modestly rated
14
Bassline Brewing
Wellington, New Zealand
Just like that time a homeless man screamed “You’re in the jungle, baby!” at Axl Rose, sometimes a chance encounter can tap you into a new zone of creative inspiration. Such was the case for musos-turned-brewers Abe and Jase from Bassline Brewing, based in Karori, Wellington. For these guys, blowing off some creative steam used to mean picking up an instrument - or at least that was the case until the pair were each gifted a bottle of mindblowing local homebrew. From there, the pair were hooked and quickly took to experimenting with creative brews of their own. Both Abe and Jase started off as solo artists, but quickly found that collaboration made for both better times and better beer. For this brew-duo, crafting a tasty drop didn’t feel so different from a good jam session. When you have the theory down, there’s no limit to the flavours you can start riffing with. From Gorse Flower Lagers to Peruvian Purple Corn Pilsners, Abe and Jase quickly developed a taste for pushing the envelope and pursuing the flavours they weren’t finding in commercial beer. And just like that, Bassline Brewing was born. Whether you’re a sucker for a crowd-pleasing anthem or you prefer your beer with a funkier, more experimental bent, Bassline is all about making beer that is as diverse as the sounds Abe and Jase love. For them, brewing really is like music; as much an art as it is a science.
Rating
3.00Limited
Popularity
Barely rated
15
Yeastie Boys
Wellington, New Zealand
Headquartered in UK and brewing both here and in New Zealand, where we were founded in 2008. Please note that we do not have the resources to monitor this account... all enquiries, hate mail and love letters should be directed to [email protected].
Rating
2.87Limited
Popularity
Widely rated