Like most good stories, ours started over a beer.

Meeting on opposite sides of the bar, Richard Adamson and Oscar McMahon got talking. It turned out they both shared a love of beer and a view that the Sydney beer scene was behind the times. It should, they thought, be more adventurous, innovative and fun. Since Richard knew how to brew and Oscar knew all the ins and outs of hospitality, they figured they could do more than just talk.

Brewing an idea
The idea to open a brewery was easy. Doing it wasn’t. At the time, few people understood the concept of hand crafted beer so several development applications were rejected. But in 2012 the green light was given for an industrial warehouse space in Newtown. With the help of a few friends, a small brewing kit was purchased and Young Henrys was officially in business.

The First Round
The first Young Henrys beers were brewed in March 2012. The idea behind them was pretty simple: brew beer our local community would enjoy and be proud to call their own. Not much has changed since. The same beers that poured back then are the same ones you’ll find at our brewery now.

Growing Pains
It turned out that people liked our beer. A lot. Within months we were struggling to meet demand. Doing everything by hand, we worked seven days a week but we couldn’t keep up. More tanks were brought in but that still didn’t help. So we took the warehouse next door, knocked down the wall and built a brewery big enough to ensure no one will go thirsty again. We hope!

Still young, but growing fast
Young Henrys may have grown quickly but we’re still the same as we’ve always been, still doing everything by hand. The main difference is that we’ve got a bigger family now, so we have a few more hands to help.