Matsos Brewery – ‘Smokey Bishop’ Dark Lager Poster

Matsos brewery opened on 10 May 1997. The first impression of the brewery is that of a private house complete with a white picket fence. Impressions quickly change after entering where there is a cocktail lounge, a barbecue area and restaurant; plus the brewery.

As for the business behind the beers, Matso’s first opened as a brewpub and restaurant in 1997 – the brainchild of 12 investors based in Perth. When their venture didn’t take off as planned, it opened the door for Martin and Kim Peirson-Jones, whose family had built 60 4.5-star self contained apartments across the road from the brewpub and restaurant, to step in. They set about restoring it and, in 2003, added the unique on-site brewery – unique because they were unable to alter the structure in any way so had to have it designed to fit the existing space – and tripled on-site production.

Soon, however, with the beers finding fans across Australia, they hit capacity again and started having their most popular beers brewed offsite. It was a move that, while the owners didn’t know it at the time, would lead to arguably the biggest change in the business more than a decade later.

They enlisted Gage Roads to help them meet demand so, when the Palmyra-based operation decided to expand and bring new brands into the business in 2018, the first acquisition was Matso’s.

The brewery produced a range of beer styles, many with quaint names such as Hit The Toad, Monsoonal Blonde, Smokey Bishop, Sow’s Ear. For variety, there is Mango Beer, Ginger Beer, Chilli Beer, Divers Porter and Staircase Cider. Most of these beers have won awards. Patrons can enjoy a meal and sample Matso’s beers while taking in the uninterrupted spectacular views of Roebuck Bay.