Independent NSW brewery Mountain Culture has acquired Tasmania’s Fox Friday Brewing, which went into voluntary administration last month.

Mountain Culture co-founders DJ and Harriet McCready said: “We’re so excited. We really respect Fox Friday not just for their awesome beer, but the local communities they have built. This is a chance to not just continue the amazing growth of our brand and connect in a really authentic way with those new communities, but also to do what’s right for them and the craft industry as a whole.”

Fox Friday founders Sarah and Benn Hooper announced in mid-April that the brewery and subsidiaries, including a Melbourne brewpub, Perth venue, Moonah Hotel and Cellars and Carwyn Cellars, had entered administration.

“Unfortunately, we’ve faced significant financial challenges that have brought us to this point,” they said in a statement.

“While we understand that there will be some uncertainty as a result of this decision, we very much intend to come through the other side of this and we hope that Fox Friday and its subsidiaries will continue to operate well into the future.”

Mountain Culture said it was unable to share details of its plans for Fox Friday at this stage, due to “the dynamic situation” with their focus in the short term to meet with the teams and build transition plans for each individual venue. 

The McCreadys opened the Blue Mountains’ first brew pub in Katoomba in 2019 and Mountain Culture has gone from strength to strength ever since.

It is now Australia’s fourth largest independent brewery, with three GABS victories under its belt. It recently took over Atomic Beer’s Redfern brewpub after it closed its doors, while cricketer Pat Cummins joined the business as its first investor late last year.