After riffing on the idea of a brewery for years, husband and wife team Jason Newton and Gabi Purnell finally got to press play on Mixtape in February 2022. Previously, the dynamic duo headed up (or should that be herded up?) Spooning Goats, a much-loved basement bar in Sydney’s CBD, best known for craft beer, video game comps and Star Wars Shakespeare nights.

After COVID-19 sadly claimed Spooning Goats, the couple spent several years searching for their ideal brewery location before landing in the heart of Marrickville’s beer scene. While Sydney lumbered through lockdown, Jason and Gabi built the bar and tables, set up the restaurant and played with Jason’s new toy, a shiny 300-litre brew kit.

The latter means Mixtape does things a bit differently to most breweries on the Trail. Instead of brewing big and distributing far and wide, Jason and Gabi’s brewpub only sells its beer on site, making it a truly original experience.

While there’s a trusty pale ale, IPA or sour always on tap, Jason also gets to experiment a-plenty which means there’s always something new and novel to taste. Previously, he’s dabbled with a spiced dark beer, Mexican nitro-horchata and even mediaeval gruit beer, which uses Harry Potter-style ingredients like mugwort and wormwood for flavour instead of hops.

Whatever your potion, grab a drink, relax and rewind, and let the good times play.