Hi reddish. Apologies - just getting back to this (i've currently several contracts on the go - lots of early starts - so rushing around like an idiot). On the question of ale... Aus has a flourishing micro brewer industry these days, producing a wide range of interesting beers, but much of it is very local so I'm not familiar with what you'll find in Sydney. Some of the better bottle beers like James Squire and Four Pines cross State boundaries. Beer is generally drunk cold here, so expect a lot of lager beers, pale ales, and Pacific ales. But there are some interesting 'dark' ales kicking around, and a few good stouts (usually only in bottles though). You might want to steer clear of some of the mainstream draft stuff (mostly Tooheys in Sydney; Victoria Bitter and Carlton Draught here in Melbourne) in the 'big' pubs - perfectly drinkable, but no better than the stuff they dish out at UK football grounds. Furphys is okay-ish for a standard lager-beer However, most decent pubs usually have a 'speciality' beer or two on tap. Ask the bar staff - they're usually quite informative on what your drinking (once they finished winding you up about English cricket!)
