3 minute read
Opinion: Michael Donaldson
Michael Donaldson
Beer Writer of the Year, journalist and author beernation.co.nz
Regions raise the bar
As Chair of Judges for the New World Beer & Cider Awards, Michael Donaldson finds that small regional breweries are making their mark with some truly great drops in the 2020 competition
THE CONTINUED growth in New Zealand’s regional breweries was one of the huge talking points from this year’s New World Beer and Cider Awards.
The beers and ciders that ranked in the Top 30 are promoted in stores throughout June, and the list for 2020 features beer from the veritable who’s who of New Zealand brewing: Garage Project, Epic, Behemoth, Parrotdog, Panhead, Good George, Sawmill, 8 Wired, McLeod’s, Three Boys, Kereru, Bach, Boneface, and Sprig & Fern. All the big names are represented in the elite list.
But equally impressive is the showing from New Zealand’s smaller regional breweries. Brave Brewing and Zeelandt from Hawke’s Bay, Lakeman from Taupō, Sunshine from Gisborne, Renaissance from Blenheim and Emporium from Kaikoura were all judged to be among the country’s best, alongside cideries Zeffer (Hawke’s Bay) and Peckham’s (Neudorf Valley).
Drilling down further into the Top-100 highly commended list there are breweries from Taranaki, Amberley, Kapiti Coast, Whakatane, Mt Maunganui, Waipara and Motueka.
Quality is not the sole domain of the big cities, that’s for sure. And in a postCOVID-19 world where domestic tourism will play a big part in our holiday choices, it’s clear you can go pretty much anywhere in New Zealand and be guaranteed of finding quality beer. And what good stories there are behind some of these breweries.
Take Lakeman. Sheep farmer James Cooper and his wife Elissa have a small
piece of land above Lake Taupō. A few years back, the Lake Taupō catchment area was the first to implement a system that limited stock numbers to control the amount of nitrogen going into the lake.
The Coopers had started thinking about diversifying when James discovered beer, through his namesake brewery, Cooper’s in Australia. A lightbulb went off and he literally taught himself how to brew – going from complete novice in 2013 to a multiaward winner just seven years later. And he brews all his beer with water drawn from an aquifer 80m under his farm. The water is
untreated and unfiltered and of the highest quality. As a result, Lakeman Hopadelic IPA is very much a New Zealand-made product: Canterbury-grown malt from Gladfield, Nelson hops, and Taupō water.
At the end of the Napier-Taupō road in the Esk Valley, Chris Barber’s Zeelandt is a brewery plonked down among the vines. He makes classical European styles and his Black Monk dark lager is perfect for these winter months. In Hastings, Brave Brewing have an underground following thanks to the award-winning beers of former home brew champion Matt Smith. But most of it is sold in the immediate region and is rarely seen in the bigger cities. That will change with Brave Brewing People’s Pils now widely available.
Heading north from Napier, Sunshine Brewing has been a Gisborne institution for more than 30 years. Their Gisborne Gold lager is part of New Zealand craft beer folklore. The brewery got new owners in 2013, and in 2018 work began on upgrading the brewhouse and moving it closer to the beach, and new branding launched in 2019. Brewer Dave Huff came on board two years back and has elevated the beers to stunning levels. Dave is an inventive brewer and the taproom is worth a visit to try some out-there styles – but the two Sunshine beers in the Top-30 are a classic stout and a bright, sparkling hoppy Summer Ale.
In Blenheim, Renaissance Brewing was on the brink of collapse a few years ago before Brandhouse bought the brewery and resurrected things. The beers are getting a second life too, reflected in the fact their Elemental Porter is part of the Top-30. It’s a beer that’s been around for a long time but has never tasted better.
Finally, down the road in Kaikoura is Emporium Brewing, which was hard hit by the big earthquakes of 2016. Their awardwinning Drop Cover Hold Tropical Sour is not only a great beer but the label also carries some useful safety advice if you’re ever caught in a big shake.
