Beer is a yeasty, fizzy alcoholic drink that goes great with many occasions. Its flavor profiles range from light and refreshing to dark and bitter, so the taste possibilities are endless. Whether I'm purchasing my favorite beer or interested in trying a new flavor, I like visiting brewery and beer websites to get a good idea of what's currently on the market.
I enjoy perusing beer sites with a diverse catalog of products with comprehensive flavor profiles, as well as intuitive e-commerce tools to make purchasing a bottle or can all that easier. I've reviewed five websites that accomplish these essential goals, and if you're looking to create one of your own, try our brewery AI website builder.
Zarla checks that sites meet basic web standards for mobile and desktop. We also use Google's PageSpeed Insights, and WAVE, a service that evaluates accessibility for individuals with disabilities. PageSpeed scores and accessibility are important factors for search engine rankings. PageSpeed scores may not match user experience and can vary substantially.
Cape Canaveral, Florida, U.S.
Carib Brewery is a long-established producer of more than 20 different styles of ales, lagers, and ciders. I liked that the website used tropical-inspired design elements to mirror the brewery's location and it made me curious about the company's various offerings. I enjoyed the introductory video on the home page, not so much for informational purposes, but for entertainment.
While the website places a large emphasis on aesthetics, its functionality is decent and I found the site easily navigable. I enjoyed exploring the company's history, extensive product range, and taproom experience, and the addition of high-quality images gave most pages a polished look.
I liked that the site's "Our Beers" section includes recommended food pairings as it encourages readers to make the experience of drinking beer all that more enjoyable. The inclusion of a "Beer Locator" with an interactive map and search bar made it easy for me to find out where to buy the brewery's products.
I don't have much to dislike about this website, but I think the addition of a walkthrough video of the brewery's taproom would be great for increased engagement. WAVE also picked up several instances of insufficient contrast ratios across the site.
I liked how the spacious layout of the desktop website allows the content and images to shine, and the addition of different color blocks made all sections easily readable for me. The merchandise store is easy to navigate and I found the checkout process to be seamless.
Our real-world tests indicated fast page loading times, which is reflected in the site's decent performance score of 80/100 on Google's PageSpeed Insights test.
The mobile site retains a high-quality and engaging appearance with slimmed down content and images, and the introductory video also plays without fault. While the hamburger menu is intuitive, I would have liked more navigation tools like a back-to-top button to make the browsing experience smoother. On Google's PageSpeed Insights test, the website was awarded a performance score of 58/100.
https://www.sevenbro7hers.com/
Greater Manchester, England, U.K.
Seven Bro7hers Brewing Co. offers a diverse range of beers that are available via the brewery's online shop, taproom, and other store locations. I liked the minimalistic yet professional look of the website and its well-organized pages allowed me to easily read more about the brewery's history, sustainability practices, and product offerings.
I appreciated the use of bright CTA buttons that effectively funnel users to the site's online shop, which features an intuitive shopping and checkout process.
The website offers new customers 10% off their first order, which I think is a great incentive for making a purchase. I liked the inclusion of third-party customer reviews to give the site additional credibility, and "The Beer Family" section was an interesting read to learn more about the brewery's team.
I don't have any big critiques for the website, but I think it would benefit from slightly more engaging elements, such as video content, to generate increased user interest. According to WAVE, the website has several contrast errors across various pages.
On desktop, the website features generous white space to give its content sections and images good breathing room, which helped me to easily scroll through the various pages without getting overwhelmed. I also liked that additional page links are available in the footer menu, which I think keeps the top menu bar uncluttered and contributes to a smooth browsing experience.
I enjoyed scrolling through the mobile website as the content slimmed down nicely with additional horizontal scrolling options. I like that the search bar remains prominent in the top menu bar, and I found the mobile shopping process easy to follow. According to Google's PageSpeed Insights test, the site's pages load quite fast, and it received a score of 62/100 in the performance category.
https://www.smallbatchdispatch.com/
Vaughan, Ontario, Canada
Small Batch Dispatch is a one-stop online shop for curated craft beer subscription boxes. I liked the website's approach to curating a wide range of beers from local suppliers to give customers a varied profile of flavors, and I think it's ideal for newcomers interested in finding their perfect beer.
I found the website's pages easy to explore, and the "FAQ" section answered most questions I had about the online shopping experience, including payments, shipping, and returns. I also liked the flexibility of the "Build Your Own" boxes and gifting options for special occasions.
I thought that the inclusion of the company's social media feed on the home page added visual interest to the site. I enjoyed scrolling through the company's previous curations to get a good idea of the beer options I could expect when purchasing from the site.
While the "About" section features an introductory video, it did not give me any additional information that was already available on the website. I would also have appreciated a "Featured Breweries" section to get a better idea of the breweries the company works with. WAVE picked up a large number of contrast errors throughout the site.
I found lots to like on the desktop site, with refined page layouts ensuring I could easily read all the content sections. However, there are some downfalls — while the online ordering section features pricing and shipping information, as well as a link to the online bottle shop, I did not find the process all that intuitive as it lacks a clear checkout option, which confused me slightly. According to Google's PageSpeed Insights test, the site was awarded a reasonable performance score of 57/100.
I liked that the mobile site features a bottom banner with the company's contact options, although it disappears once you start scrolling. I would have also liked the "Order Now" CTA button to remain prominent in the top menu bar and not hidden behind the hamburger menu. While our real-world tests indicated fast page loading times across the site, its PageSpeed Insights performance score was quite low at 27/100.
https://coolumbeercompany.com.au/
Coolum Beach, Queensland, Australia
Coolum Beer Co. is a family-friendly brewery that produces a wide range of craft beers available in cans and on tap. The website's laid-back aesthetics grabbed my attention and I liked the strategic placement of the company logo across the home page, increasing its brand recognition. I enjoyed perusing the product range and reading more about the brewery's various tasting experiences.
While I found the site to be a good visual representation of the brewery, it is lacking certain elements that I think would lead to increased user engagement, such as video content or industry-specific blog posts.
I liked how the website effectively advertises the brewery as a go-to destination for families with comprehensive information on its brewery area and private function packages. WAVE picked up only a few instances of contrast errors across the site, which indicates good readability.
While the website covers the basics of the brewery in a user-friendly manner, I think it is lacking a certain visual flair many competitor sites have. This could be rectified with the inclusion of more robust video and/or written content, such as a video tour of the brewery or additional info on the beer like recommended food pairings.
The desktop site performs well and our real-world tests indicated fast page loading times, which is reflected in its good performance score of 88/100 on Google's PageSpeed Insights test. While I liked the site's no-frills appearance and ease of finding specific information for visiting the brewery, I think it would be beneficial for the website to include a more comprehensive section on the beers available so users know exactly what products to try when they do visit.
The mobile site condenses the content to ensure a user-friendly scrolling experience, and the use of various crisp images breaks up the text-heavy sections nicely. However, I think the inclusion of a "Contact" CTA button in the top menu bar would help funnel users to the brewery's hours of operation and its interactive map. Google's PageSpeed Insights test gave the website a score of 58/100 in the performance category.
https://creaturecomfortsbeer.com/
Athens, Georgia, U.S.
Creature Comforts Brewing Co. is a Georgia-based craft brewery that specializes in producing both traditional and experimental beers. I liked the website's attractive hero image slideshow that effectively advertises the brewery's product range and current promotional offers, including summer-specific competitions. I also enjoyed reading the "Impact" section, which expands on the company's sustainability practices and its recent impact report.
The site's ample white space ensures I can easily read and navigate the various pages, and I liked the inclusion of the brewery's social media feed since it gave me a glimpse into its online popularity.
I liked exploring the site's "Events" page and learning more about the community markets, trivia nights, and cultural events hosted at the brewery's taproom. I also appreciated that page links were spread across both the top and footer menus to avoid cluttered layouts.
I think the website could benefit from some minor tweaks for it to serve as a prominent online presence for the brewery — I think the inclusion of pricing information would give users a better idea of the product's price point. While relatively unnoticeable for me, WAVE picked up a large number of contrast errors across the website.
I enjoyed the simplicity of the desktop website and its well-spaced content, although I think a larger distinction could be made between the headings and sub-headings to ensure a more comfortable reading experience. I also think the taproom's hours of operation should be added to the footer menu for more prominence. On Google's PageSpeed Insights test, the site received a reasonable performance score of 60/100.
Like its desktop counterpart, the mobile site features well-organized content, but the space between the menu bar and the hero image slideshow is quite big and a little distracting, and could be filled with a "Contact" CTA button. I liked that I could easily scroll through the website, and the images remained crisp to enhance the overall visual appeal. The website scored 48/100 in the performance category on Google's PageSpeed Insights test.
You can use Zarla’s AI website builder to create and design a website for your craft brewery and update it free of charge for up to 30 days. Payment is only required once the website goes live.
A small brewery website should advertise its products and tasting experiences in a visually engaging manner with optimal usability in mind. Visitors should also be able to easily find specific information, such as the company's online shop, brewing processes, locations, and contact options.
Coolum Beer Co. is a great example of a small brewery website that combines functionality with polished aesthetics to create an enhanced user experience.
Zarla's website builder uses AI to design and create a beer website template based on a description of your business. The site will be delivered, complete with content and images, in less than a minute.
