Molly Rose Brewery
The first beer Nic Sandery sold, in 2017, was a smoked Japanese dark lager brewed with seaweed, and it is still in the range.
Why go
Sandery brewed at Little Creatures, Stone & Wood and Holgate before spending 2016 travelling Japan, the US, England and Germany, trying to work out what beer culture meant in each country rather than just how the beer was made (The Crafty Pint). The taproom opened in a former furniture store on Wellington Street in mid-2019, with fermenters at the back and beer poured metres from where Sandery brews it. A 2023 expansion into the two buildings next door added a 300-litre brewhouse for small batches, a still and a beer garden. The range has run to barrel-matured farmhouse ales, beer and wine hybrids, and a sour brewed with Proud Mary the roaster. Three or four taps pour wine from Pacha Mama, which belongs to Sandery's partner Callie Jemmeson.
The company went into liquidation on 31 March 2025 and reopened on 11 April under a new structure at the same address (The Crafty Pint). What trades now is a beer hall with four spaces and a kitchen making pizza on slow-fermented dough, with a steak night on Thursdays and an all-you-can-eat Sunday.
Order this / avoid
- Order: Matilde, the Brettanomyces saison. Then the seaweed-smoked dark lager if it is pouring, and whatever came off the small brewhouse. Pizza to go with it.
- Avoid: Monday and Tuesday, when only the weekday retail cellar door opens. And do not arrive expecting the twenty-seat chef's table and beer-pairing degustation of 2023, because the kitchen has been rebuilt twice since.
What locals & experts say
- James Smith, founder of The Crafty Pint, asked what he would use to convert someone to good beer, on the saison he actually wants:
Given a choice, I'd probably crack one enlivened with Brettanomyces like Molly Rose Matilde for myself.
3 - Broadsheet, on the brewer:
Founder Nic Sandery is one of the most talented and creative brewers in Melbourne. In addition to nailing basic styles, he makes beers that combine historical styles with inventive new takes.
4 - The Crafty Pint, reporting the failure (31 March 2025): the liquidation was
distinct from the voluntary administrations that have become commonplace over the past few years
because the business closed while the liquidator worked. Sandery cited expansion delays, a 40 percent rise in construction costs, interest rates and falling demand.2 - No Melbourne chef names it. Across 74 picks by 44 working chefs and writers in Broadsheet's industry series, Molly Rose appears in none.6
Good to know
- Where: 279-285 Wellington Street, Collingwood, on a quiet backstreet.
- Timing: Wednesday and Thursday 4pm to 10pm, Friday 4pm until late, Saturday from midday until late, Sunday midday to 6pm. The retail cellar door runs Monday to Friday, 10am to 4pm.
- Booking: through SevenRooms. The beer garden takes up to 20, the dining hall 16, and the private room 30 seated.
- Caution: the company was liquidated on 31 March 2025 and reopened eleven days later under a new structure. It is trading and it is worth going to; check before you build an evening around it.
- Diet: no allergen or dietary statement is published, so nothing is flagged. Absence of a flag means unknown.
- Hygiene: Victoria publishes no venue ratings, only Safe Food Victoria's register of convictions under s.53D of the Food Act 1984, and this venue is not on it.7
Verdict
should-visit — Nic Sandery spent 2016 travelling Japan, the US, England and Germany to work out what beer culture meant in each place, having already brewed at Little Creatures, Stone & Wood and Holgate. The first Molly Rose release in 2017 was a smoked Japanese dark lager brewed with seaweed and it is still in the range, which tells you the point of view is not a marketing exercise. Broadsheet calls him 'one of the most talented and creative brewers in Melbourne'. The 2023 expansion put in a 300-litre brewhouse for small batches and a still. Then the company went into liquidation on 31 March 2025 and reopened eleven days later, and the kitchen that once ran a twenty-seat chef's table now sells pizza on slow-fermented dough with a steak night on Thursdays. Go for the beer and the beer garden, and read the caution before you plan an evening around it. The Crafty Pint's own founder, asked what Brett saison he would pour for himself, named Molly Rose Matilde.