New Braddon bar Bentspoke Brewing Co opens

Brewer Richard Watkins had everything ready - tanks full of six brand-new beers, rows of shiny tables and high wooden seats, and a menu of classic pub food. He just needed people, to sit around the bar, drink a pint and have a bite.

And now he's got them. Watkins' hotly anticipated bar, Bentspoke Brewing Co, has just thrown open its doors in Braddon.

Watkins, the former head brewer at the cult brewpub Wig and Pen in Civic, is a much respected craft brewer on the Australian scene and is venturing out on his own with Bentspoke, a microbrewery, bar and restaurant in an apartment complex on the corner of Mort and Elouera streets.

He's been busy brewing new beers that include the Barley Griffin, an oregano-spiced beer, the Braddon Bitter, which is pumped straight from the brew tanks behind the bar, and Mort's Gold, a crisp pilsner.

"We wanted to make different beers that we hadn't made before but also that other brewers hadn't made," Watkins told The Canberra Times.

"So that's the motivation, to come up with six core range beers that are different and I think we've managed to do that."

There's room for up to 18 beers on tap and he plans to create further brews with time.

"The Barley Griffin is a bit like Canberra, cloudy but fine, with ingredients from around the world. The oregano is a really nice savoury spice and it brings a different element to the beer," he said.

His partner and co-owner Tracy Margrain has also produced a cider with hand-crushed Batlow apples, called Adam's Cider.

Watkins, Margrain and their team have been working hard to get the new bar open and Bentspoke has attracted a strong following on social media such as Facebook and Twitter.

Downstairs is a bar area with room for outdoor seating, and upstairs is a restaurant serving ploughman's lunches, burgers and pies. Watkins' brewery tanks are on full display behind the bar and enclosed behind glass walls.

Patrons will also be able to buy travellers to take beer home with them.

"In this day and age you've got to be responsible with drink driving laws. People can come in, have a couple of pints, pick up a traveller to go home and then they can have another couple of pints back home," Watkins said.

But you'll have to wait a little while before you can start ordering a beer to go.

"We won't be starting yet because we want to make sure we've got enough beer," Watkins said with a laugh.