I am currently visiting Australia and have a couple of beer loving friends. Are there actually any beers (or wine or spirits) that are actually worth bringing back to the US from Australia?
Cantillon is always popular. As for local it depends on what you like but Clout Stout is great (though phenomenally expensive), Moon Dog are hit and miss but have some really interesting beers or maybe something like Stone and Wood Pacific Ale which is a great reaction to local conditions.
I'll second stone and wood. Also I'm not sure which mountain goat rare breed is still available but those have been good.
Apart from the obvious Cantillon, try some Feral/Murray's/Riverside/MoonDog/HopDog/La Sirene There is good beer to be found in Australia, it just takes a good palate and persistence to find it If you say what state(s) you're staying in I'm sure you could be helped further.
Often an Australian craft brewery's most popular beer is an American pale ale in style. Little Creature's Pale Ale and a couple of Squires brews come to mind. But why carry coals to Newcastle? Get something different. Stone and Wood's Pacific Ale is sort of an APA, but quirky enough with its load of Galaxy hops to stand out. By the same thinking, if you want to bring back a huge alcoholic beer and are ready to pay astronomical prices to cover the tax bill on them, I too would go with Murray's Anniversary. Nice woody tastes. Clout reminds me a lot of Old Rasputin, good beers to accompany scheming on a bitter Moscow winter night, but niche beers for sure.
