Here are some of the best Bariloche breweries to check out for a taste of the local craft beer scene.
If I had to summarize San Carlos de Bariloche in three words, I would say mountains, chocolate and craft beer. Today, we’re going to focus on the latter.
Argentina may be known as the Land of Wine, with Malbec as the grape of choice, however, in Patagonia, beer is king.
So why is beer so popular in Bariloche?
It’s the combination of the cool climate, an abundant supply of fresh water, and the locally harvested hops that go into the creation of craft beer.
This has given rise to numerous breweries and brewpubs in and around Bariloche, meaning you never have to travel too far to quench your thirst with a pint of beer.
Whether you’re craving a Pilsen or a Porter, a Lager or an IPA, you can find it here. Plus, you can even try some more creative beers made with raspberry, pumpkin and hot chillies!
In this guide, we’re going to share some of the best Bariloche breweries to drink craft beer!
🍺 Don’t have time to visit all these breweries? The Bariloche Beer Experience takes you to 3 breweries for guided tours and tastings, including regional food. It’s one of the top-rated food and drink experiences!
How to order beer in Argentina
First things first, some vocabulary. Before we dive into Bariloche’s beer scene, here are some useful Spanish words when it comes to ordering beer:
Cerveza – beer
Cerveza artesanal – craft beer
Cervecería – brewery
Chop – mug (330mL)
Pinta – pint (500mL)
Jarra – jug (1.5 Liters)
Tip: A lot of the cervecerías in Bariloche do happy hour where you can get 2-for-1 beers. This is a good option if you’re looking to try a few different brews and you’re on a budget.
Bariloche Breweries: Where to Drink Beer
Because we’ve visited Bariloche multiple times over the years, we’ve had the opportunity to visit many of the breweries in and around the city.
Some we’ve gone back to multiple times because we are creatures of habit. I’m looking at you Cervecería Patagonia, Gilbert and Manush – these are three of our personal favourites!
Then there are other breweries that we haven’t necessarily visited in person, but we’ve had a chance to try the beers at different establishments around town.
Plus, there are plenty of breweries that we have yet to visit since there are new ones constantly popping up!
Patagonia
Cervecería Patagonia is the most famous brewery in Bariloche. If you were visiting Bariloche for the first time, I would bring you to this brewery for a classic experience.
Aside from being a well-established name in the microbrewing circuit, it has an incredible location on the Circuito Chico with truly stunning views.
The brewery overlooks Lago Moreno and as you enter the premises, you go past a hops plantation and a lavender field, before being met with various drinking and dining options.
You have an outdoor beer garden, main salon, outdoor terrace, domes, plus outdoor picnic tables and chairs at the various lookout points. I love coming here for the views! It’s a beautiful space, but it’s no well-kept secret so expect it to be busy.
The beer selection includes Amber Lager, Bohemian Pilsner, Pale Ale, Weisse, Porter, IPA and Double IPA, just to name a few.
As for the menu, they’ve got lots of snacking platters, sandwiches, hamburgers, and traditional Patagonian dishes.
Cervecería Patagonia offers two types of beer tours. You can join a 1 hour and 30-minute tasting where you sample 4 of their beers, or you can sign up for a 2 hour and 15-minute meal featuring 3 courses with beer pairings. Both tours can be booked here.
Address: Kilometre 24.7 Circuito Chico, Bariloche
Gilbert
Cervecería Gilbert is one of my favourite breweries in Bariloche and one that I would select for some hearty Patagonian dishes paired with great craft beer.
Gilbert is also located on the Circuito Chico, but it’s down a side road, so it doesn’t get an overwhelming number of visitors.
This brewery is set in a cozy log cabin, features rustic wood furniture, and the decor consists of old beer bottles from every place imaginable.
When it comes to food, the specialty at Gilbert is cheese fondue for two. You get 3 different types of cheese: Gruyere, Fontina and Pategras and then you get small plates with bread, potatoes, sausage, carrots, apples and pickles for dipping.
They also have local dishes on the menu, which around these parts means German food! You can get Goulash with Spaetzle, or a German sausage platter with sauerkraut, potatoes, apple chutney and mustard. Their wild boar stew and deer stew are two local classics.
All this to say, the food options are beyond tempting and I honestly don’t think you can go wrong with anything on their menu.
Gilbert’s beers on tap include Pale Ale, IPA, Stout, Kölsch, Scottish and American IPA.
Address: Kilometre 24, Circuito Chico, Bariloche
Manush
Cervecería Manush is another well-known Bariloche brewery with two different locations. Their Centro location is right downtown and super easy to reach and the other one is located at Kilometro 4 just as you head west out of Bariloche.
I’ve had the opportunity to eat and drink at both locations and can highly recommend both spots for great beer and delicious food!
The specialty at Manush is gourmet burgers. Their Big Manush features an extra large beef patty, onions sauteed in black beer, double cheddar, Irish sauce, aioli and lettuce all served on a brioche bun with a side of thick-cut fries.
Some of the beers on tap at Manush include Honey, Irish Cream Ale, Milk Stout and IPA Black. They have multiple award-winning beers on tap, so maybe consider ordering a flight of beers so you can sample a bit of everything.
Their beer flight includes 4 100mL beers; if you’re still thirsty, you can always order a pint of your favourite afterwards!
Address: Manush Centro at Juan Javier Neumeyer 20 | Manush KM 4 at Avenida Exequiel Bustillo 3800
Berlina
Cervecería Berlina is one of the pioneers in Bariloche’s craft beer scene.
Also known as Berlina Patagonia Brewery, this microbrewery is the work of three brothers: Franco, Guido and Bruno Ferrari.
In 2004, they opened a brewpub in Bariloche and later in 2008 they moved their production to Colonia Suiza. Their brewery is located at the edge of town at the corner of Calle Felix Goye and Ruta 79. It’s a very popular spot with day visitors.
Berlina has won many awards including ‘Best Craft Brewery in Argentina’ in 2017 and ‘Second Best Brewery in South America’ that same year.
They elaborate 30 types of beers per year including a few seasonal and limited edition beers. Some fun ones to try include Chocolate Imperial Stout, American Pale Ale, Hefeweizen and Pumpkin Ale.
Address: Colonia Suiza and Kilometro 12
Kunstmann
Kunstmann is a brewery with German-Chilean roots produced in Valdivia, Chile. During the early years of the German colonization in southern Chile, Carlos Anwandter became one of the first brewers in the area opening Cervecería Anwandter in 1851.
However, when the 1960 Valdivia earthquake hit, it destroyed the Anwandter Brewery and also decimated the brewing industry in the region. It wasn’t until 1985, that the Kunstamann family started experimenting with beer production and by 1991, they had released their first lager.
But why are we talking about a Chilean brewery, you might be asking yourself? Because Kunstamann is one of the oldest breweries in Patagonia and they have a brewpub in Bariloche which is perfectly situated overlooking Lago Nahuel Huapi!
They have 5 craft beers on their menu: Lager, Torobayo, Gran Torobayo, Bock and Session IPA.
Address: Avenida Exequiel Bustillo 7966, Bariloche
Gennow
Gennow is a craft brewery that started in the mountain town of El Bolsón – which we love so much! – but has since expanded to Bariloche.
They have some light, fruity beers which are quite nice on a hot summer day including raspberry, cherry, and blackcurrant beer.
For something a bit more experimental, they have a hot chilli beer!
Gennow is known for its experimental artisanal beers, so if you’re looking to try something different, you know where to go.
Update: Gennow recently closed its tap room in Bariloche, however, you can still sample their beers in various bars and restaurants across town. Plus, you can also find their beers for sale at local shops.
Blest
You could say that Blest beer was born on the shores of Lake Nahuel Huapi. After all, it gets its name ‘Blest’ from the lake’s western arm which almost reaches the border with Chile.
The origins of Club Cervecero Blest, or Blest Beer Club, go back to 1989 when Nicolás Silin and Julio Migoya decided to start experimenting with homemade beer. The Bariloche craft beer scene hadn’t yet taken off and most of the beer options were industrial.
So what sorts of beers can you expect to find here?
Blest currently produces 13 different types of craft beers: Scotch, IPA, Pilsen, Honey, APA, Bock, Black IPA, Barley Wine, Framboise, Sidra, Stout, NEIPA, and Red IPA.
They also have multiple taprooms across Argentina – including some places we have visited like Villa La Angostura, Esquel, and Trelew – as well as multiple locations in the city of Buenos Aires.
Address: Avenida Exequiel Bustillo 3850 Km4, Bariloche
Wesley
Wesley Brewery started out in the 1950s as a fun hobby for Teddy Wesley, a World War II veteran who settled in Patagonia and set up his farm on the outskirts of Bariloche.
It was on his farm that he started experimenting with the homemade production of liquors, ciders and beer using regional products.
When Teddy’s grandchildren found his brewing instruments and recipes sixty years later, the idea for Wesley’s Brewery was born.
Today, this family microbrewery is run out of Teddy’s old farm, where the beers are made using some of the purest water in the Cordillera, which comes from the slopes of Cerro Campanario, and fresh hops from the Andean region.
Wesley Brewery is committed to the environment focusing on responsible energy consumption and reusing by-products which are 100% destined to feed the farm’s animals.
Some of the craft beers at Wesley Brewery include Golden Ale, Honey, NEIPA, APA, IPA, Hazy Session IPA, Scottish and Porter.
They also have a Belgian beer series featuring Belgian Dark Strong, Trippel and Dubbel.
Address: Brewery – Avenida Exequiel Bustillo 15500 / Downtown Pub – 20 de Febrero 451 Casa 1
Lowther
Cervecería Lowther is another option for craft beer in Bariloche. This brewery was started by Ricardo “El Gringo” Lowther and has recently opened a second location in neighbouring Dina Huapi.
The beers include Porter, Milk Stout, Irish Cream Ale, American Amber Ale, Honey, American Pale Ale, Indian Pale Ale Double IPA, and of course, the beloved Raspberry beer you can find across Patagonia.
Aside from beer, Lowther has recently started dabbling with gin production, which seems to be the next big hit in Bariloche. You can buy their artisanal London Dry Gin right at the brewery or sit down at the bar for a gin and tonic.
Cervecería Lowther is set in a three-story building and it also has a deck which is especially popular during the summer months.
Address: Mitre 1160, Bariloche | Los Calafates 281, Dina Huapi
Bachmann
Bachmann beer was started by the Bachmann family who first arrived in Bariloche in 1907.
Beer-making started out as a hobby for Andrés Llanes and his wife Susana Bachmann, who worked to perfect their recipes out of the kitchen of their family home.
It wasn’t until 2007 that the duo opened their first brewpub, which was run by themselves and their children and the preparation was 100% visible.
Four styles of beer were offered that are still produced today: Amber, Black Schwarzbier, Pilsen and Raspberry.
They also began to prepare homemade foods of German origin such as Pretzel and Sauerkraut, and also typical local foods, such as trout and minced wild meats, which today are Bachmann’s trademark.
You can enjoy Bachmann beer at their two pubs in Bariloche and you can also find their beers at bars across Argentina.
Address: Ada María Elflein 90, Bariloche | Vice Almte. O’Connor 1348, Bariloche
Read more
- The Perfect Bariloche 2-Day Itinerary
- 10 Fun Day Tours from Bariloche
- 5 Bariloche Walking Tours to Discover the City
- Boat Trip to Isla Victoria and Arrayanes Forest
- Bariloche is for Chocolate Lovers: 10 Shops to Visit
- Getting to Bariloche: A Transportation Guide
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