Beer Riff

Beer Riff began brewing on Swansea Marina in 2018, developing from an offshoot of Pilot Brewery in Mumbles into its own small-batch brewery and taproom. From its waterside home at Pilot House Wharf, the brewery built its identity around modern, hop-forward beer and a desire to make fresh, flavourful releases using carefully sourced ingredients.

The brewery works with hop growers from around the world and places particular emphasis on ingredient quality. Hop-forward pale ales form a major part of the range, but Beer Riff also regularly produces lagers, fruited sours, porters and amber ales, alongside one-off releases and collaborations with breweries and businesses that share similar interests and values.

All Beer Riff beers are brewed with Swansea water and are left unfiltered, reflecting the brewery's focus on freshness and flavour rather than heavy processing. The entire range is also vegan, with beers produced across keg and can formats from the compact brewery beneath the taproom.

Head Brewer Rhys Pillai has spent years developing and refining Beer Riff's core range while helping shape the brewery's wider identity. Alongside the beer itself, an important part of that work has been creating a taproom designed to be welcoming and inclusive, helping turn the Swansea Marina site into a destination for both local drinkers and visitors to South Wales.

The taproom sits directly above the brewery and looks out across Swansea Marina. Its seventeen taps combine Beer Riff beers made downstairs with a regularly changing selection from breweries around the world, while the fridges extend the range further. On sunnier days, drinkers can also make use of the waterside beer garden.

Food forms another part of the taproom experience, with pizzas served throughout the week and regular kitchen takeovers from independent food businesses and pop-ups. Together, the brewery, taproom and waterside setting give Beer Riff a strong connection to Swansea, combining small-batch production with an open and social place to drink the beer at its freshest.