We love real beer
Craft beer in Cape Town isn’t just a drink anymore — it’s a badge of local pride. At the 4th We Love Real Beer festival, brewers lined up like proud dads at their kids’ first track day, handing out samples like tiny trophies. “Well done. You’re here. This is going to be good. You deserve it.”
Cape Town’s craft beer scene has woven itself into the city’s culture — a blend of Woodstock’s gritty charm, side-street cafes, and design trends sharper than a lumberjack’s plaid. It’s become a movement polished with that unmistakable Cape Town flair. Locals can now tell their lagers from ales, stouts from weissbiers, pilsners from pales — and will happily throw in a few foreign terms if it means winning a brewing technique debate.
One guy even told me he was a “beer recipe designer” — basically the final frontier of hipsterdom. What made me grin was seeing African-inspired brews show up on the menus — like the Sowetan-style boldness that makes you want to smile at strangers and shake hands like you’ve known them forever.
So what was different at the 4th Real Beer festival? It felt more relaxed, better organized. There was room to breathe and enjoy before the Biscuit Mill filled up with thick folk-jangles and the fermenting fog of good vibes.
Beer — that majestic social lubricant. That hoppy happiness that cools your throat and warms your heart. That magical love juice that can turn a girlfriend into a charming doter (while a sharp Chenin Blanc might have the opposite effect). Beer fuels cosy festivals dedicated to drinking more of the golden stuff.
After the huge success of the first RealBeer festival, the organizers leveled up. This time, the Biscuit Mill was alive with chalkboards, flags, flowers in teapots, and whitewashed tables overflowing with frothy conversations and bright smiles. By evening, sunlight streamed through gaps in the rafters, turning pink balloons into glowing moons — perfectly reflecting the warm, beer-soaked buzz of the crowd.
We started with a roasted Darling Brew, moved left to a second draft of Napier, and wandered the crowd until math gave way to merriment. Twangy guitars sprinkled the party with thick riffs and merry meanings — lyrics mostly lost in the mix, but who cares when there’s a hot girl shaking a tambourine? Meanwhile, Tecla was busy licking everything, proudly introducing her slightly drunk mom to everyone.
For the first time in Cape Town, ten small independent microbreweries came together under one #RealBeer banner. Nobody really expected the massive success of this idea, sparked by &Union and Jack Black Beer. Locals already know the vibe from the Neighborhood Goods Market — that blackboard, twangy, hay-bale weekend ritual. So the Old Biscuit Mill was the perfect home for the festival.
We arrived early, which in Cape Town means on time. An hour later, the line clearly split the veterans from the curious. What really stood out was how good everyone looked — natural, well-dressed, healthy — all glowing from their first sips of craft beer. I pulled out my 70-200mm f2.8 — a beast of a lens — and noticed a few curious glances. Close-ups weren’t going to work here. Instead, I captured the whole golden glow: laughing girls who love beer but keep in shape, foodies huddling over tasting notes they’d soon forget, the warm buzz of freshly crafted joy sweeping through the crowd.
Switching to a 50mm prime, I snapped friends, details, pouring moments — all subtle. Then Snoddie and Bauke burst through the crowd with camera and mic, ready to break the scene wide open with open-ended questions and camera-ready charm.
Cape Town’s craft beer scene? It’s a thriving, evolving story — a celebration of taste, place, and people coming together. And honestly, it’s tasting better every year.