Lessons Lockdown - BeerBeer - Society of Beer Advocates

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Lessons Lockdown - BeerBeer - Society of Beer Advocates
JULY 2020
                                                HOPPINESS

              Lockdown
                        lessons      Upsides from
                                   Covid downside

             Beer
          Evolution
           Journey back
                        to lager

Beer - for all the right reasons
                               Pursuit of Hoppiness - July 2020   1
Lessons Lockdown - BeerBeer - Society of Beer Advocates
Lessons Lockdown - BeerBeer - Society of Beer Advocates
Editor's Note                                                           Contents
                                                                        5|     LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
What changed in your life beer-wise
during lockdown?
Did you become an online ordering                                       6|     UPSIDES TO THE DOWNSIDE
obsessive? Did you search for local
brands who could provide that personal
touch? Or were you conscious of what you we’re spending                 11 |   JUICE CINDA
(and how much you were drinking) and go for well-priced
supermarket brands?                                                    12 |    OBSERVATIONS FROM THE VOID
The Covid-19 lockdown has dramatically changed so much
in our lives but I’ve also been surprised about how adaptable          14 |    DB LETS BLACK DOG GO
people are. We adjusted to lockdown with remarkable ease,
it felt, and came out with a bounce in our step – returning to
normal with barely a break in our stride.                              15 |    LOCKDOWN UNTAPPD
But underlying the apparent ease on the surface was the
cliché of frantic paddling underneath – the worries about the          17 |    LOVE LOCAL & KNOW YOUR BEER
economy, jobs; the stress, the uncertainty ... it’s there for all of
us I think, if often unspoken.
                                                                       19 |    ON THE ROAD AGAIN
And talking to a range of brewers when we returned to level
one reflected that – there are huge concerns about what the
future holds, especially in small regional towns that rely on          22 |    A BITTER PILL
tourism. But, as you’ll read in our main article in this edition,
I was also surprised at the upbeat nature in the industry.
                                                                       25 |    LOCKDOWN RECYCLING SHAME
Lockdown brought a lot of stress – but it also had huge
upsides as business adapted surprisingly well to stressors that
could have crippled them. From getting online stores running           26 |    NEW WORLD AWARDS
smoothly, thinking of innovative solutions, re-engaging with
a local community, to putting new business practices in place,         30 |    BEER REVIEWS
breweries have been tested as never before.
We look at what they did, learned and changed and how it will
affect your drinking experience in the future.                         32 |    LEARNED TO LOVE LAGER

But in speaking about strength in a crisis, a huge thanks
to Double Vision Brewing                                               34 |    LET THE RIGHT ONE IN
in Wellington and their
designer Harry Henriksen                                               37 |    ROCKY ROAD
for the Jacinda Ardern
meets Rosie The Riveter
cover imagery that comes                                               39 |    BEER IN THE BIG SMOKE
from the artwork on their
latest Hazy IPA, Juice
Cinda.                                                                 40 |    EXERCISE IN EXCISE
You can read the story
behind the design and the                                              43 |    A-Z HAWKES BAY BEER-SCAPE
“beer for good” on P11.
                                                                       46 |
Michael
                                                                               BLEND AMBITION

                                                                       47 |    SOBA EVENTS
Michael Donaldson
Editor - Pursuit of Hoppiness                                          50 |    JOIN SOBA
Lessons Lockdown - BeerBeer - Society of Beer Advocates
FRIDAY 7TH AUG 2020 | 12PM - LATE
Lessons Lockdown - BeerBeer - Society of Beer Advocates
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

           ett
          L toers
Drink later,
                                                  th e            Editor
Reading the latest (May 2020) Pursuit of Hoppiness, the story on use-by dates
(Inside the beer dating scene), prompted me to write.
I only drink dark ales, stouts and porters, and I never chill my beers, always drink at
room temperature as this really brings out the flavour. I consume a lot of Garage Project
beers, and have noticed the barrel aged brews taste smoother and nicer the longer you
keep them. I took a Triple Day of the Dead that I had kept in the cupboard for six years
along to my friends at GP, and Pete Gillespie brought out a bottle of newly-brewed Triple
Day of The Dead. He joined a group of us in comparing the two, and we decided the six-
year-old brew was far superior.
I recently purchased a bottle of Rebel County (a stout aged in Jameson Whisky barrels)
which Pete, Ian and Josh all reckoned would taste great in 10 years!
So, forget about use-by dates on dark ales, especially barrel aged ones, as they mean
nothing – rather like honey, which will still be tasty after 50 years!
Chris Rabey
Longtime SOBA member

                                                ssels,
                              Apolog y to Ca                                              and pubs
                                                                      stor y on ba rs
                                              ed ition we ra n a                     ete Gu ide To
                              In the May                             th  e “C om  pl
                                                                                                     fa iled to
                                                 ch head lined                mer because we uption
                              in Ch ri stchur            is was a m isno
                                     st chur  ch ”. Th                          e- up  (a nd   al so Er
                              Ch ri                                       e lin
                                                   s Brewer y in th                            Ca ssels, one
                               include Ca ssel w we managed to leave out
                                              n). Ho                                    rs  is  inex pl icable.
                               in Ly ttelto              be  st  br ewer ies and ba for th is glar in g
                                                  ch  ’s
                                of Ch ri stchur                         Ca ssels team
                                                    olog ies to the                            m mend
                                So massive ap              r re  ad er s we hi gh ly reco e you’re
                                         on . To  al l ou                           e ne  xt  tim
                                om issi                                   ra nt th
                                                    ba r and rest au                       you go to
                                vi sitin g thei r           (a  nd di tto Er uption if you know
                                                     Ci ty
                                 in the Ga rden                            g th is w  in te r,
                                                     d if you’re goin                               orld-best
                                                                                nt of Ca ssels w st year.
                                 Ly ttelton). An          do  : sa m pl e a  pi                       la
                                                       to                                          ds
        Editor,                   what yo  u  ha  ve
                                                      judged at the
                                                                          World Be    er  Aw   ar
                                  M ilk Stout, as
                                 - Ed itor

                                                                                 Pursuit of Hoppiness - July 2020   5
Lessons Lockdown - BeerBeer - Society of Beer Advocates
UPSIDES TO COVID

               Upsides to the
                      Downside
                                                                                                               AME
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                                                                                                    BAN

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                                                                                   0
                 Michael Donaldson looks at the impact on                   2   02
                Covid-19 on the beer business and how it will                        BA
                                                                                SO
                       change things for consumers.

          he Covid-19 pandemic threat had a huge            To get a feel for the state of the industry I talk
    Timpact on the hospitality sector – bars and            to a number of breweries around the country –
    restaurants were the first to face restrictions and     specifically I looked at operations in provincial
    among the last to fully reopen but life in lockdown     areas and tourist hot-spots – to get an idea of how
    had its upsides too.                                    our beer lives have, and will change. What follows is
    Alcohol was considered an “essential” product           by no means a complete survey of the industry but
    during lockdown and we were able to buy beer            it does go some way to highlighting what the future
    in supermarkets and online – and sales boomed           might bring – and how that will impact drinkers.
    in supermarkets for those lucky enough to be on         “This whole episode has been a fantastic challenge,”
    the shelves. But with pubs and bottle shops closed      says Eddie Gapper of Queenstown’s Altitude
    (except in licensing trusts areas – another smelly      Brewing. “A lot of people we speak to are fairly
    kettle of fish all of its own) it added up to a tough
                                                            downbeat, and Queenstown as a whole is going
    time for most breweries.
                                                            through some radical changes that will take at least
    But there were upsides.                                 six months to become apparent (like the wind-down
    Breweries learned how to sell online, customers         of construction). Quite early on in the process, I was
    learned who their local providers were, and we got      remarking to one of our shareholders that this is
    platforms such as the Facebook group Saving The         the moment you live for as a small business owner.
    World With Couch Beers. Breweries innovated with        The opportunity to test your mettle to see if you
    products and delivery systems. There were casualties    really do have what it takes is part of why you start
    (and there will be more) but many businesses used       a business. If you don't like change and working
    their survival instinct to build a more sustainable     through periods of extreme uncertainty this must
    business.                                               be very unpleasant.”

6        Pursuit of Hoppiness - July 2020
Lessons Lockdown - BeerBeer - Society of Beer Advocates
UPSIDES TO COVID

                                                         Auckland-based Epic Beer had an online store –
                                                         owner Luke Nicholas being one of the pioneers
                                                         of online beer retailing – but Nicholas said it
                                                         accounted for only 2 per cent of revenue before the
The online sales channel was a godsend for               lockdown. “We sold more t-shirts than beer through
breweries and the lockdown period either                 the online store.”
accelerated plans in that area or helped refine          After online sales “exploded” during the eight weeks
how digital platforms and the local distribution         of level 4 and level 3, they’ve held up surprisingly
could work. Consumers also learned there were            since bars and bottle stores reopened in late-May.
alternative ways to get beer.                            “Basically it looks like it will turn into 5 per cent of
But many breweries didn’t have the correct               sales so we do have some growth there.”
remote licence and others needed to                                     The online store will now focus on
take a crash course in Shopify or                                         24-pack cases – a deliberate ploy to
WooCommerce.                                                                make sure they don’t cannibalise
“It definitely made us relook at online            We sold                  sales through other channels.
sales and while we weren’t the best
at it, it did catalyse us into getting             more                    “We have an unspoken agreement
                                                                           with our customers – the retailers
that going which should be a good                 t-shirts                   and bottle stores – that we
tool into the future,” said Paul
Croucher of Rotorua’s Croucher                   than  be  er                won’t compete with them in
                                                                            six-packs and singles. We want
Brewing.                                       through the                create ecosystem that works
At Altitude Brewing in Queenstown,              online store              for everyone. We don’t want
                                                                          to undercut them but we now
Covid-19 sparked a major project.
                                                                          have an offering for those who
“The major initiative was creating the                                   want a 24-pack of the latest hazy
online store,” says Gapper, “something                                at a slightly discounted rate. It’s
that had been on the drawing board since ages ago.    something they can’t get anywhere else.
This has kickstarted a major IT project to build
all of the digital platforms we need to grow the      “Online is not going to be our core business but we
                                                      definitely sell more beer than t shirts now.”
business.”
Nelson-based Sprig & Fern built their business
model on a string of pubs in both Nelson and
Wellington and their warehouse and distribution
was focused on keg sales so when lockdown came
and the pubs had to shut it required a quick pivot.
By chance they had set-up an online store just days      One of the most repeated phrases during lockdown
earlier and quickly ramped it up, with a focus on        was “buy local” but for many customers, it was only
mixed packs of their large format bottles. They sold     when buying options thinned that they found what
a mixed 8-pack of 888ml bottles for an incredible        was right in front of them.
$88. It was a clever bit of marketing even if packing    And being able to delivery quickly was critical.
the boxes was “labour intensive” according to owner      Cassels in Christchurch redeployed some staff to do
Tracy Banner.                                            deliveries in their local area, promoting it as “fridge
                                                         to fridge”. Orders before noon were fulfilled the
“Having eight different bottles in a box takes
                                                         same day – better than queuing at the supermarket
time when hand-selecting and packaging but the
                                                         for hours. At level 3 they offered a click-and-
feedback for the mixed case has been tremendous
                                                         collect service doing food from their restaurant
and we will continue to supply this. Online
                                                         accompanied by a rigger.
purchasing was a new way of shopping for many
through lockdown but this is an area that is likely to
continue to grow post-lockdown as it’s become the
new norm for some.”

                                                                                                                    7
Lessons Lockdown - BeerBeer - Society of Beer Advocates
UPSIDES TO COVID

                                                              “Also, some of the events that we had supported
                                                              almost altruistically had their membership show us
                                                              a good deal of reciprocal support. Also, as events
                                                              consider reopening and sponsorship is harder to
                                                              come by we realise that our support, and thus our
                                                              relationship with our community, is appreciated
                                                              more than ever.”
                                                              Sunshine Brewing has been Gisborne’s only craft
                                                              brewery for three decades but still found new
                                                              customers.
                                                              “After 30 years we thought our local visibility and
                                                              penetration was good but have been pleasantly
                                                              surprised how many new drinkers popped up
                                                              needing home deliveries,” said co-owner Martin
                                                              Jakicevich. “Post-lockdown we are experiencing a
                                                              noticeably higher level of retail sales in Gisborne
                                                              both through the taproom and local liquor retailers.
                                                              We feel that more people were dragged in by our
                                                              ability and willingness to service them over the dark
                                                              days and have stayed loyal customers.
                                                              “It just shows how important it is to continue to
                                                              market to our local market. I have had a reasonable
                                                              amount of comment from people saying they used
                                                              to be Steinlager or Tui drinkers but after drinking
                  Cassels Fridge to Fridge delivery           our beer they couldn’t go back now. In all dark
                   guaranteed same day delivery               times people convert to religion, our religion just
                                                              happens to be craft beer.”
    Jesse Sigurdsson’s Shining Peak in New Plymouth is        Eddie Gapper at Altitude saw a commitment to local
    relatively new brewery and didn’t have the visibility     paid back quickly as soon as they could open their
    of more established brands but still found solid          taproom during level 2.
    support as locals cottoned on to local online orders.
                                                              “The main pastime during lockdown was delivering
    “We were fortunate enough to have our online store
                                                              fresh tap beer to local customers. It was labour
    up and running in time for the move to level 4,
                                                              intensive but it delivered vital cash and provided
    which gave our packaged offering great exposure
                                                              a great opportunity to shout pleasantries at our
    and traction as we burned around in our yellow
                                                              customers from the end of their drives! Reopening
    delivery truck doing contactless drop-offs.
                                                              the taproom showed us how well supported we are
    “What we've seen since things are opening back            locally. Since Level 2 started we have been doing
    up is that we're getting a lot more off-license sales     summer numbers which is extraordinary in May.”
    than we were before, and I'd say that's a direct result
    to people actually learning that we provide that
    service.”
    In Rotorua, Paul Croucher was worried his
    brewery’s relationship with the local market was
    something they’d possibly taken for granted. But he
    also found that long-time sponsorship and support         At the start of lockdown hand sanitiser was in more
    of local events brought good karma.                       demand than toilet paper and pasta.

    “What we could do well was to repackage keg beer          Good George was the first brewery to make alcohol-
    into flagons and target our local market, rekindling      based hand sanitiser, following the World Health
    that relationship that we feared had staled over the      Organisation guidelines, and more followed suit.
    years,” Croucher said.                                    “Hand sanitiser was huge for us even though we

8        Pursuit of Hoppiness - July 2020
Lessons Lockdown - BeerBeer - Society of Beer Advocates
UPSIDES TO COVID

gave away most of it,” says Brian Watson of Good        three months to ensure freshness. The 24-packs of
George. They gave it to local essential services        Armageddon cost $75 and sold out in days.
including armed forces, schools, prisons, aged care
                                                        Possibly the most fun innovation of lockdown was
homes and even hospitals.
                                                        the Facebook page “Saving the World with Couch
“So, we supported local and then sold some of it        Beers” – the brainchild of Behemoth’s Andrew
with beer and cider. We then turned our still to        Childs.
making gin. We were able to also dial up our online
                                                        The page has 15,000 followers and has turned into
sales to sell hand sanitiser, beer, cider and gin.”
                                                        a great review platform, with fans posting pictures
To demonstrate their commitment to the on-              and reviews of what they’re drinking. It’s full of
premise trade Good George also offered a full credit    great discussions, with lots of beer education going
on unopened, full kegs that were returned to the        on. It’s a way more social and interactive version of
brewery meaning venue operators didn’t need to          Untappd, without the stars.
worry about any stocks of kegs aging in chillers.
Watson was hopeful that bars would use these            At Cassels Facebook was also a great selling tool.
credits to re-order fresh stock.                        They created a Cooking with Cassels campaign
                                                        that started with founder Alasdair Cassels cooking
The problem of that to do with keg beer when bars       a fillet of beef marinated in Cassels Milk Stout.
closed for two months was giving Luke Nicholas a        Different staff created recipes with different beers
real headache at Epic. He credits former NZ Hops        and the brewery says it did great business through
boss Doug Donelan for the idea of pumping keg           that channel.
beer back into bottles.
“I was wondering what I was going do 600 kegs
and nowhere to sell them. Doug said `why don’t
you bottle it?’. He said they used to do it sometimes
when he worked at Malt Shovel in Sydney. And I was
like d’oh, of course, why didn’t I think of that?”
Kegs of their flagship Armageddon and Pale Ale          While life in New Zealand has returned to normal,
were pumped back into a bottle filler and run           there’s a lot from lockdown that will live on and
through the bottling machine as normal. “We did         there’s certainly more change to come.
whatever could to make sure oxygen pick up was          Brian Watson of Good George takes a glass half-full
minimal.”                                               approach. He points to lessons learned in the last
Nicholas also tasted each batch for freshness and       recession when craft beer really took off in New
transparently advised customers to drink it within      Zealand.

                                                                                 Pursuit of Hoppiness - July 2020   9
Lessons Lockdown - BeerBeer - Society of Beer Advocates
UPSIDES TO COVID

     “We think people might postpone that expensive            in buying shelf or tap real estate, we need to treat
     holiday or luxury car purchase but they will still        this as an opportunity and upsell ourselves to our
     want to treat themselves with something local, a bit      trade customers. Use our diversity and difference
     special and of good quality. It's times like these that   to show them how being different from their
     Kiwis love to support New Zealand products and            competitors may be a workable path for them to
     brands that reflect their values. We are a sociable       take.”
     bunch at heart and if you are well connected to
                                                               While most of us will go back to our normal
     your local community craft breweries and bars will
                                                               shopping patterns, online ordering is here to stay –
     always find a way to be relevant and prosper.”
                                                               but will morph.
     Paul Croucher is a little less optimistic. “Tourism
                                                               Sunshine did a great trade in more unusual and
     has been critical for the Rotorua we knew and losing
                                                               seasonal beers online said Jakicevich. “Online is
     that market is going to redefine us somewhat and
                                                                    now our biggest outlet for seasonal bottle
     businesses will struggle and consequently
                                                                          beers, which traditionally are hard to
     there will be many job losses. It's going
                                                                              get into retail stores, this gives us
     to be increasingly important to
                                                                                confidence to look at bottling more
     appreciate local and everything
                                                                                   of them.”
     that brings to our culture
     and society. That cool bike                                                     Eddie Gapper believes online
     shop, that great bakery not to                                                   will be the place where craft
     mention that local brewery.”                                                     geeks go to seek out rare and
                                                                                      limited releases. “The forced
     Paul Finney at Kaikoura’s
                                                                                     uptake of online purchasing for
     Emporium fears a price crunch
                                                                                    craft beer has shown consumers
     – good for consumers, bad for
                                                                                   the best way of satisfying their
     breweries on tight margins.
                                                                                 craving for novelty and variety
     “I hear there are breweries doing two-                                   is neither the craft beer bar nor
     for-one deals on kegs, or buy two get a                              the supermarket shelf, but the curated
     third free. Those are breweries that are struggling         subscription box supplier,” he says, referring to
     and need to get cash going. We are fortunate we           the likes of Beer Jerk.
     don't have to do that but when we come to start
                                                               Finally, adaptability appears the key to success as
     selling again I hope that those doing the deals have
                                                               we navigate what seems to an inevitable economic
     not damaged the market as some bar owners will no
                                                               downturn.
     doubt say ‘give me a discount or else I shall go to X
     brewery’.                                                 “As we move through another economic cycle
                                                               businesses in almost every category will struggle
     “These are desperate times for some and the true
                                                               and some will close,” believes Eddie Gapper.
     colours will show I guess. I also think it has shown
                                                               “Expect those in the middle to find the struggle
     some breweries that we can't rely on hospitality
                                                               hardest. Small and large operators will have agility
     as this whole thing has clearly shown that a lot of
                                                               or scale on their side. The economic shock of
     those operations are working month to month with
                                                               lockdown may well prove terminal for any brewery
     cashflow and if something else comes up they, and
                                                               that was in marginal territory to begin with.”
     so we in turn, are very vulnerable.”
                                                               In Auckland, Epic’s Luke Nicholas says the
     Martin Jakicevich of Sunshine is another bracing
                                                               necessities caused by lockdown drove him to re-
     for downward pressure on pricing and a move to big
                                                               examine all aspects of his business, many of which
     breweries winning the battle with low-priced beer.
                                                               became apparent as his core team of seven were
     “There is a bit of desperation with pricing pressure      forced to take on new tasks and were forced to find
     already showing, maybe dated or soon to be                solutions.
     dated kegs are helping to drive this but prices are
                                                               “Every time we got a challenge, it changed the way
     dropping or deals getting sharper.
                                                               we did business. This experience has made our
     “It is natural when the big three (Lion, DB,              business better – we had to be more efficient in
     Independent) face diminishing volumes through             order to survive. We’re going to be better because of
     their own outlets that they will intensify their work     this hardship.”

10        Pursuit of Hoppiness - July 2020
JUICE CINDA

Juice Cinda: Celebrating resilience
Now that we’re out of the other side of the Covid-19     This involves donating
lockdown what better way to celebrate the good           $2 per pint and $1
things in life than a Jacinda Ardern-inspired beer.      for a half-pint from
Yes, after the Ashley Bloomfield tea towel we            our tap-house as
introduce you to Juice Cinda – Double Vision             well as 50% of profit
Brewing’s tribute to our PM. And what’s more, sales      from our outside sales to
of the beer helped raise funds for mental health.        go towards Kiwi mental
                                                         health.
“It’s a celebration of exceptional leadership in the
best little corner of the world and the knowledge        “We have been inspired
that every pint contributes to good mental health,”      by Aotearoa's sense of
said Double Vision co-founder Warren Drahota.            togetherness even when
                                                         separated. We chose the
“The spirit of this new recipe comes to you as           inspiration of ‘Rosie the
a celebration of kindness, resilience and local          Riveter’ and the ‘we can
support.”                                                do it’ attitude because as
Given the stresses of the Covid-19 pandemic and          this beer was in brew tanks
lockdown, Drahota said the brewery realised many         during COVID-19 Alert
New Zealanders might be struggling with their            Level 3, we were doing just
mental wellbeing.                                        that as a nation.”
“We are keen to get in there and support the great       (It sounds like a dern good
work of The Key to Life charitable trust.                drop (boom-boom) – Editor)

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                                                                                   Pursuit of Hoppiness - July 2020   11
FROM THE VOID

                 Observations from the Void
                     T
         RECEIP

              TOTAL

                                                    TIM NEWMAN

               ith an aspect of my job deeming me             consideration to what I was purchasing.
     W‘essential’, my lockdown experience was                 It was a small change, ultimately. But it reminded
     not as stark as others, but I did inevitably end up      me about the importance of visibility when it comes
     with time on my hands.                                   to our relationship with alcohol (among other
     As the world around me slowed, I felt like I was         things). A flippant attitude toward spending for me
     drinking more and (consequently) spending more –         could be something far more damaging for someone
     but surprisingly, the opposite was true.                 else, and both stem from the same place. A problem
                                                              has to be visible in order to be solvable, and too
     The difference was in how online ordering affected
                                                              often they are invisible, lost in the noise of our ever-
     my perception of what I was buying.
                                                              more distracted and facile society.
     Previously, I would typically throw a few bottles
                                                              Whether these observations will stay with me
     into the trolly on my lap around the supermarket.
                                                              remains to be seen, but I like to think I’ll remain
     That expense would disappear into the immediately
                                                              just a little bit more conscious of how and what
     discarded receipt and I would spare no further
                                                              I’m buying. As for converting to online ordering
     thought on it.
                                                              long-term, I’m not about to do away with retail just
     But as I moved over to online ordering, that             yet. As indisputably convenient as it has proven
     changed. With every purchase I was presented with        to be, cutting the human element away from the
     the exact cost of what I was about to buy, and that      process can only harm the beer scene in the end. A
     – coupled with the huge increase in choice afforded      beer with personality is good, but contact with the
     by ordering at specialists – led to me giving far more   personalities behind beer is important too.

12        Pursuit of Hoppiness - July 2020
www.sunshinebrewery.co.nz
BLACK DOG GOES

     db lets black dog
                                                              They stressed the decision would not impact the
                                                              existence of the Black Dog brand, which would
                                                              continue to be brewed and distributed in New

                               go
                                                              Zealand.
                                                              Bowker says they were told Black Dog’s core range
                                                              would continue to be brewed, “but as for our smaller
                                                              stuff and the Wellington craft presence, that’s not
                                                              really going to be a thing going forward.”
                                                              He says eight staff lost their jobs.
                                                              DB opened the brewpub on Blair Street – just off the
                                                              bustling Courtney Place – in 2011 and moved to its
                                                              current location on upper Cuba Street in 2018. In
                                                              its early days, when it was one of the only centrally-
                                                              located brewpubs in the capital, Black Dog brewed
                                                              small batches of a range of beers – from pale ales, to
                                                              American stouts, to a Berliner weisse – and it was
                                                              the first brewery in New Zealand to brew that style
                                                              commercially.
                                                              But after a time, DB started brewing Black Dog’s
                                                              more popular beers, such as the Chomp pale ale and
                                                              Dogfather APA, on a larger scale at some of DB’s
                                                              other sites, while the brewpub focused on creating
                                                              more experimental and limited edition offerings.
                                                              The brewery has won plenty of awards (always
                        DENISE GARLAND                        entering separately to DB), including 13 medals at
                                                              the 2019 New Zealand Brewers Guild Awards; their
                                                              Thai-PA collab with Rhyme & Reason won a gold.
            lack Dog Brew Co. – one of DB’s craft beer
     Bbrewpubs in the heart of Wellington – has               Bowker thinks moving Black Dog to Cuba Street
     closed, though the brand will continue on.               was the beginning of the end for the brewpub.
     DB shut down the brew bar on upper Cuba Street           “Our location was definitely nowhere near as good
     due to the Covid-19 lockdown. Staff were called          as our Blair St location was. I think even moving
     to a meeting on June 19 where they were told the         from Blair St to Cuba St we took a massive hit
                                                              because we had to reset everything and for a whole
     premises would not be reopening and they would be
                                                              bunch of customers who had Blair St as their local,
     made redundant.
                                                              we’re now way out of the way for them.”
     Black Dog brewhand and bartender, Hamish                 But he says it’s probably time for Black Dog and its
     Bowker, says the team met with DB representatives        staff to move on.
     before the meeting.
                                                              “We get a pretty healthy redundancy package
     “We were shown some figures on how Black Dog             each which is awesome, it solves a lot of problems
     had been actually running at quite a loss for a while    – so towards the end it almost feels like it was in
     and so we submitted some feedback and some ideas         everyone’s best interests.
     on how we might be able to cut costs,’ Bowker said.
                                                              “Most of the team is still in high spirits and we’re a
     “But the projections showed we’d still be running        pretty tight-knit group, so we’re helping each other
     at quite a significant loss for a while and it was the   out where we can,” Bowker says.
     more financially responsible thing on DB’s part to       DB also owns Tuatara’s The Third Eye brewpub in
     terminate the bar and microbrewery themselves.”          central Wellington. Unlike most other pubs and
     DB confirmed the closure, saying the venue has           bars, it remained closed well after the end of the
     been experiencing ongoing challenges over the past       COVID-19 lockdown on June 8.
     18-24 months and, despite efforts to improve its         DB would not provide someone for an interview to
     viability, COVID-19 expedited the decision to close      explain the prolonged closure, but The Third Eye
     the doors.                                               reopened on Friday, June 26.

14        Pursuit of Hoppiness - July 2020
LOCKDOWN UNTAPPD

Lockdown
   Untappd                                                                STEPHEN GALLAGHER

    n lockdown, I got more deliveries in five weeks                  BEER ONE
Ithan I would normally get in a year, and that’s         BEHEMOTH BREWING COMPANY
because I had this sudden realisation that if I wasn’t   Snow Mexican, Maple Syrup Imperial Stout
going out and buying beer, it might suddenly cease
to exist, and I was not prepared to take that risk.      On the first Saturday session of Beervana 2018,
                                                         I’d already been treated to many decedent and
While the courier made light work of bringing beers
                                                         delightful drops of beer – but with just one sip of
from his vehicle and up to the front steps of my
                                                         this, my wife and I looked at each other and I damn
Lower Hutt home, it got me thinking about what
                                                         near shed a tear.
would happen if I could only have five beers to drink
for the rest of my life.                                 It felt like Andrew Child’s brewing process was just
                                                         to trick everyone and actually just pour maple syrup
I felt like I did more admin working through this
                                                         in to a keg!
than I normally would for my day job. I put on my
thinking cap, I started looking through all the beers    With a 9% ABV, this boozy imperial stout is an
I had checked in on Untappd since I began my beer        absolute treat. It’s the dessert beer humans don’t
drinking adventure in 2013, and compiled this list       deserve, but absolutely enjoyable and something
while enjoying a beer or two, or three…                  that still tugs on my heart strings.
                                                                                  Pursuit of Hoppiness - July 2020   15
LOCKDOWN UNTAPPD

                   BEER TWO                                                 BEER four
      BACH BREWING                                             BALLAST POINT BREWING COMPANY
      Whitsunday Blonde IPA                                    Manta Ray, Double IPA

      I’ve always been fond of the cool Kiwiana artwork        The only non-New Zealand beer in my line-up, but
      on the labels from Bach Brewing, and I pick them         this would also be one of my top five international
      out of a supermarket line-up just based on that.         breweries as they always deliver the goods.
      So when I took this one home one day, I felt like I      This beer is full on, but without that sneaky bite.
      won the lottery.                                         Strong and bold, and holds its flavour ‘til the last
                                                               drop.
      Such a full on, hoppy witbier that created a gorgeous
      soft yellow colour in the glass.                         Whether you taste tangerine, melon, or a slight pine
                                                               pinch, you’ll be impressed.
      It’s a beer you can have every day throughout
      summer and not get sick of, and also has a dry
      characteristic which meant the hops lingered on my
      tongue after every sip.                                               BEER five
                                                               SPEIGHT’S
                                                               Distinction Ale
                   BEER THREE
                                                               I’ve always had a soft spot for this brew. Yes, I know,
      HAWKES BAY BREWING CO                                    it’s not really a beer you thought would make this
      Crushed Peach Bomb                                       list, but I can’t leave it out.
      I’m being cheeky and sneaking this one in here,          This amber ale hits me with its full malty sweetness.
      because it absolutely deserves a spot. My dad loves      Every sip seems to generate more of a caramelly,
      Golden Queen peaches, and honestly, this felt like       butterscotch linger. A smooth mouth-feel, and
      drinking a fruit juice.                                  finishes off with a slight hop bite that makes me
      It’s thick, a deep gold colour, and smells like          believe this beer will always be a reliable drop, no
      summer.                                                  matter the occasion.
      It’s one of those beverages that you can’t just have
      one of. The flavour is so strong and with every
      mouthful it makes you want to pick the glass up
      and have more. If you’ve never had the privilege of
      this beer, you’re truly missing out.
                                                                  a   ntine
                                                             quar

ntine

                                                                      ine
                                                    quarant
                                                                      a          ntine
                                                                 quar

tine
                                                                   tine
 16                                                     quaran
LOVE LOCAL BEER

                         STEPH COUTTS

            ow, more than ever before, our beer and          with the current revolutionising of our craft beer
     Nhospitality industries need us to love local.          scene. Hat tip, here, to Tracy Banner (and all the
     They’ve just taken a huge hit as a result of our team   other brewers, operators and owners that are not
     effort to beat the COVID-19 pandemic. Get out and       men)!
     about, and support your favourite brew pub or beer
                                                             I agree that ownership matters. The multi-nationals
     bar. Show them some love.
                                                             that own Lion, DB and Independent all have
     Getting out and about to support local is one           historical and contemporary business practices that
     sentiment from Michael M’s Independent Imposters        should not sit comfortably as we learn more about
     article (PoH, May 2020, p. 44) that’s easy to agree     them. Do we really want to be supporting multi-
     with. There are a few others that are worthy of some    nationals that support the Myanmar Army? But, in
     debate.                                                 saying that, ownership does not define craft and it
     Although it is in my business’ name, I’ve never         does not define or constrain innovation.
     really been able to define what “craft beer” means.     The one thing that big beer has is big money. Money
     More and more, I am starting to think it is actually    brings an ability to innovate. We might not be fans
     meaningless. You should be able to appreciate a beer    of DB’s continuous fermentation but it did enable
     on its merits and make informed decisions about         Doug and Jim Banks to work on a range of yeast-
     the beers that you imbibe. This approach to beer        based (and other) innovations that are now used by
      r a n t i nisedifferent to Michael M’s suggestion
q u aappreciation                                            breweries around the world. It’s hard to find anyone
     that “craft beer” is brewed by the guys, independent,   who cares about their work. Not even their own
     innovative and flavoursome. “The guys” are credited     brewery acknowledges it online.
                                                                                     Pursuit of Hoppiness - July 2020   17
LOVE LOCAL BEER

                                                               faults appearing in their beers. We don’t often write
       Support your favourite brew pub or beer bar.            about it, but do we have DMS, diacetyl, infections
       Show them some love.                                    and oxidisation as common place or regular
                                                               features of more than a few independently brewed
                                                               New Zealand beers.
                                                               Big beer has largely managed to eliminate faults
                                                               from their brewing processes. I wouldn’t snub a
                                                               Steinlager Classic if the alternative was a cooked
                                                               corn lager. Steinlager is clean and it is flavoursome.
                                                               It’s certainly true that that Lion Nathan and DB
                                                               don’t seem to care that the average drinker doesn’t
                                                               make the connection between them and Emerson’s,
                                                               Panhead and Tuatara. No real surprises there. But,
                                                               if the less-informed beer drinker tries an Emerson’s
                                                               Pilsner, a Panhead Supercharger or a Tuatara
                                                               Aotearoa Pale Ale and then moves on to Three Boys,
                                                               Duncan’s or Liberty beer, that’s a win.
                                                                                          As beer appreciators, the
                                                                                           challenge for us is to be
                                                                                            better than “big beer”.
                                                              Recalibrating                 We should be honest in
                                                              my taste buds
                                                                                            our beer evaluation and
                                                                                              appreciation, while
                                                             with one of these                   also appreciating
                                                               [big brewery]                     and supporting

     People do care about Emerson’s, Panhead                 beers makes me                      local. Get out there
                                                                                                and have an honest,
     and Tuatara. They are all still sought after             appreciate craft                 informed debate.
     as breweries and brewers to collaborate with.               even more                     And do it in your
     They have continued to develop new beers                                                 local brew pub or
     and bring them to the market. But, with few                                              bar.
     exceptions, they’re just like the beers from
     our independent breweries - largely following                                             craftbeercollege.co.nz
     trends. It’s been a while since we’ve seen anything
     truly innovative from the New Zealand brewing
     scene. Think back to Mussel Inn Captain Cooker,
     Emerson’s New Zealand Pilsner, 8 Wired Hopwired
     and Yeastie Boys Rex Attitude; they’re all beers of
     some time ago.
     Michael M comments that, “recalibrating my taste
     buds with one of these [big brewery] beers makes
     me appreciate craft even more”. There’s no doubt
     the beers he is drinking are “carefully crafted” but
     just because a brewery is local does not mean it is
     making fault-free beer and nor that all their beer is
     flavoursome. It is just that the flavours individual
     drinkers enjoy vary.
     Many of our small independents do not have the
     systems and processes that prevent basic brewing

18        Pursuit of Hoppiness - July 2020
ON THE ROAD AGAIN

                                              On the road
                                             again
                                                            DENISE GARLAND

           fter eight weeks of self-isolation and      winning Pale Ale, the very new Pawpaw Party
           severe social restrictions, a couple of     Smoothie IPA, and the super refreshing Yum Yum
A          birthdays and long weekends seemed like
a good excuse to get some friends together and take
                                                       Yuzu Lager.
                                                       Next it was time for lunch, so we travelled a bit
a road trip.                                           further down the road to Waikanae and parked
The destination, Ohakune in the central North          up outside the Salt and Wood Collective – a BBQ
Island, was picked purely because it ticked a couple   restaurant and bar that is also the home of North
of boxes – it was within four hours’ drive of both     End Brewery, We were lucky enough to share
Wellington and New Plymouth (where the group           a beer with the brewer, Kieran Haslett-Moore,
members reside), and we found a house with a spa       before filling our puku with some fried chicken,
that was big enough to sleep seven people.             beef brisket, jalapeño poppers and vegetarian
                                                       quesadillas. Sufficiently fueled for the rest of the
As beer lovers, and with Ohakune not being known       drive, we crammed some North End cans into our
as one of New Zealand’s premier beer destinations,     now very full boot, and with the promise of fresh
the Wellington contingent decided to make a            Saison Du Nectar Peach & Mango Sour and Iron
few stops along the way up to the Manawatū-            Sands Oat Rye Stout in the very near future, we
Whanganui region to ensure our fridge there would      made our way north.
be filled with tasty beverages.
                                                       Upon our arrival at our accommodation, we were
Our first stop was Duncan’s Brewing Company in         pleasantly surprised to hear from our host, Chris,
Paraparaumu, where the brewer, George Duncan,          that Ohakune did in fact have a couple of local
welcomed us in with a broad smile and enthusiasm.      breweries. Ruapehu Brewing was located just a
Duncan has a neat off-license set-up just inside his   five-minute walk from where we were staying in
premises, directly across from the brew kit, where     the Heritage building of Ohakune Railway Station.
colourful signage and a few plants brighten the shop   And another – that appears to be a pretty low-key
area. After some post-lockdown catch-ups, we filled    contract brewery – Little Thief vs Damaged Goods,
the rental car boot with a couple of riggers and a     which produces the local favourite More Pils – a 5
few dozen cans and bottles, including their award-     per cent Pilsner.
                                                                                Pursuit of Hoppiness - July 2020   19
ON THE ROAD AGAIN

                                             Lunch at Salt & Wood in Waikanae. Photo: Steph Coutts

     Our host gifted us some bottles of the Little Thief vs
     Damaged Goods More Pils, some of which gushed
     upon opening. My bottle didn’t, and the beer itself
     was fine – a bit of a typical lager on the aroma with
     some light grain on the nose, and the flavour was
     a bit one-dimensional with the hops earthy and
     grassy. The bitterness was a bit heavy with the body
     on the thin side, leaving a slight astringency on the
     finish, but it was a clean and thirst-quenching drop.
     We also went for a stroll to find Ruapehu Brewery.
     The brewery is located in The Craft Haus at the old
     train station, which houses not only the brewery,
     but a cafe and a store selling locally made designer
     clothing, artwork and other goods. We were
     greeted by the scent of mashing in and the sight of
     a beautiful white, fluffy Samoyed dog, who loved
     attention.
     We could only view the brewery through a window
     near the cafe/shop counter, and unfortunately, they
     were unable to sell beer from their premises due to
     the lack of an off-license. We were directed to a pub
     up the road which had their wares on tap, but we
     were stymied again with the bar being closed for a
     private function.
                                                                                          Photo: Denise Garland

20        Pursuit of Hoppiness - July 2020
ON THE ROAD AGAIN

We spent the weekend drawing down our beer
stock, checking out some walks around the
Tongariro National Park, eating some of the most
delicious eclairs (and doughnuts) you can buy
in New Zealand, and visiting the iconic carrot
(obviously) – all in between dips in the hot tub. A
particularly winning beer-spa pairing was North
End’s Petit Luna Hibiscus and Lime Sour, while the
Parrtodog Falcon APA was also the right amount of
thirst-quenching while relaxing in the hot water.
We left Ohakune tuckered out and with an almost
empty beer fridge, with good memories and the
knowledge that next time we’re headed to Tongariro
National Park, to leave some room for some local
brews as well.
                                                      Photo: Denise Garland

                                                      Stopping at Duncan's
                                                      for supplies.

                                                      Photo: Steph Coutts

                                                              Pursuit of Hoppiness - July 2020   21
A BITTER PILL

              A
                 Bitter
                            Pill
                                                                    AMANDA NALLY

                  hen I started writing for Pursuit of       That’s all reflected in the stories of other columnists
                  Hoppiness, there were around 50            in recent years who have written of the rates of
     W            brewery brands in New Zealand –
     and near where I lived there was one in Southland,
                                                             mental health and tragic suicides within our craft
                                                             beer family.
     three in Dunedin (one of which was Speight’s) and
                                                             When alcohol is the only thing freely available, the
     Wanaka Beerworks in the middle.
                                                             risks of over-imbibement are high.
     So, I wrote about beer, and the brave new consumers
                                                             But if you, as I, have been following the craft beer
     of these products, to give the lower South Island’s
                                                             movement since the days when hipsters could afford
     industry a voice in a wider craft beer world.
                                                             hairdressers and razor blades, you may have noticed
     When Pink Boots formed several years later, I was       something.
     invited to join. A condition of membership was
                                                             Which brings me to the day job that has put Gulden
     members had to derive some part of their income
                                                             Draak in the pantry and paid for the dog food over
     from beer. That was me out.
                                                             the years.
     While writing about beer is strictly a community
                                                             Selenium.
     service, writing is my day job, and in this column
     (sadly my last for Pursuit), I’ve found an intersect    Once plentiful in wheat, this trace element essential
     between the two roles.                                  to life disappeared in a large part from the New
                                                             Zealand diet in 1960. It made a weak comeback in
     Craft beer is not an easy industry – the hours are
                                                             the mid-1980s and has been vanishing ever since.
     long, the critics harsh, while any actual money flows
     like a summer rain down an Auckland drain to the        I’ve been cataloguing the scientific studies,
     coffers of Customs and Excise.                          alongside anecdotal stories, of that impact. Mostly

22        Pursuit of Hoppiness - July 2020
A BITTER PILL

that means focusing on numbers of very sick people           Zealand’s great beer pioneers: Richard Emerson,
with weakened immunity dying in greater numbers              Steve Nally, Luke “Baby Face” Nicholas, Ralph
of cancer, respiratory failure, suicide and heart            Bungard, Ben Middlemiss, Martin Bennett, Martin
disease. People with diminishing IQs, with reduced           Townshend, Carl Vasta.
fertility, who are aging poorly and unlikely to attain       What do they have in common?
their allocated average life-span. Yes, I’ve been
                                                             The answer isn’t easy lives and regular beauty
looking at contemporary New Zealand.
                                                             therapies.
If not for the selenium I was taking, I would have
                                                             It’s that they are all enthusiastic and long-term
found myself a very depressed bunny indeed.
                                                             imbibers of full-grain brews.
Frequently when I looked up from my research, to
                                                             Vitamins may be destroyed by heat, but minerals
say cheerful things like, “Look! The cot death rate          are not. Barley contains a veritable cocktail of
has been rising since 2010”, I’ve found myself sitting       the micronutrients that are increasingly elusive
across the table from brewers who all look (and act,         in modern diets. Things like vitamin B3 niacin,
incidentally) much younger than their years.                 thiamine, copper, magnesium, manganese,
(The only reason I know this is because they point           phosphorus and my friend, selenium.
at geriatrics in their Zimmer frames* and say things         Could it be the secret of eternal youth comes from a
like:                                                        brown bottle that pours with a foamy head?
“I was at school with …”                                     *Gross exaggeration both for dramatic effect and
“I played rugby against …”                                   because it was the kindest comparative description.

“I went to the school ball with …”)                          Amanda Nally is the co-author of Just Cause and
                                                             Effect – The Story of Selenium Deficiency in New
It would beai1592285058390_001331
            helpful about now if youZeelandt
                                     could play
                                             - NZBCA     -   Ad - half Buy
                                                             Zealand.   pageit.-It’s
                                                                                  12_06_20.pdf
                                                                                     excellent, and1she 16/06/20
                                                                                                        needs the 5:24        PM
in your head a kaleidoscope of portraits of New              money.

                                              A Crafty                                                 TO

                                                                                                         F
                                                                                                             P2

                                                                                                             OR
                                                                                                                  0 BEE

                                                                                                                   202
                                                                                                                      RS
                                                                                                                          0

                                              Award Winner
                                               From Zeelandt brewery
                                               Brewers of helles, pilsner, Vienna,
                                               Oktoberfest, marzen, schwarzbier,
                                               saison, hefeweizen, dunkelweizen,
                                               kolsch, alt, pale ale, bitter, IPA.

                                               ZEELANDT.co.nz

                                                                                      Pursuit of Hoppiness - July 2020        23
RECYCLING SHAME

    Lockdown
                                                        This, however, highlighted an even bigger
                                                        bottleneck. Like most other people, I had not
                                                        planned for this pandemic to happen, which meant
                                                        the number of craft beer flagons I had at home was
                                                        not enough to guarantee fresh beer supply for an
                                                        extended period of time. Even when looking at
                                                        rationing the number, frequency and size of my beer
                                                        allowance (and taking into consideration that my
                                                        wife would invoke the ‘what’s yours is mine’ clause
                                                        that apparently is part of marital vows), the fresh
                                                        supply would not last for longer than two weeks.

              Recycling
                                                        At some point I was reliant on restocking from the
                                                        supermarket. Whilst you find the odd interesting
                                                        bottle or can on the shelves, my local supermarkets

                 Shame
                                                        do not specialise in craft. If you do not fancy
                                                        buying a six-pack from Tuatara or Panhead, the
                                                        supermarket’s interpretation of ‘specialty beer’
                                                        appeared to be Mac’s or Harrington’s. The only
                                                        supermarket nearby with a decent range of craft
                                                        beer, sadly, displays their range on standard
                                                        shelving next to red wine and bakery products,
                                                        while DB’s and Lion’s pasteurised range is stored in
                                                        the walk-in chiller.
                                                        The contents of my recycling bin turned into a sad
                                                        and embarrassing knock-on effect of lockdown.
                   MICHAEL M                            I tried to disguise the mess by putting empty jam
                                                        jars and the odd wine bottle (used for cooking of
                                                        course) on top of the crate before putting it out on
     hame on me! Yes, I admit, I did some panic         the curbside. This could fool the neighbours, but not
Sshopping when the country went into                    my own guilty conscience. The only thing playing
lockdown all those weeks ago.
                                                        in my favour was the council’s decision to continue
But the psyche of a craft beer drinker appears to       their weekly recycling collection, meaning that the
be completely the opposite to the wider general         evidence was disposed of quickly.
public. I had no intention of using my lockdown to
participate in a New Zealand bake-off. Diarrhoea as     Thankfully, this embarrassing time did not last
a side effect of Covid-19 was not my biggest concern,   too long. My (and probably a lot of other beer
and I can also imagine a life without pasta. Flour,     enthusiasts’) saviour came in the form of the
toilet paper and spaghetti did not spring to mind       government’s decision to declare brewing and the
when Alert Level 4 was announced.                       distribution of that beer an essential service. With
                                                        bars – the main sales channel for many smaller craft
In these unprecedented times, my thoughts were on
                                                        brewers – closed, breweries across the country had
an imminent (and literal) bottleneck of fresh craft
                                                        to become innovative on the sales and logistics side,
beer supply to my bubble. On the eve of lockdown,
I gave all my pots and flagons an extra-thorough        and adapt their business model.
rinse, grabbed the chilly bin, rushed to my local       Most of the local breweries quickly offered
brew bar and filled as many vessels as possible with    contactless ordering/payment and many offered
freshly brewed beer from their taps. Sorted!            free door to door delivery of their bottles and cans.
The fridge, which at that point was overloaded with     I made the most of the ‘support and shop local’
beer, was another reason why hoarding groceries         movement and while my recycling volume did not
was never considered (not that flour, pasta or toilet   go down, carrying the crate to the curbside put a
paper would have competed for chilled space).           smile back on my face.
                                                                                 Pursuit of Hoppiness - July 2020   25
NEW WORLD AWARDS

                                                                           Keep swimming -
                                                                     & winning MICHAEL DONALDSON

           aul Finney hopes the last setback for his          their second-straight appearance in this year’s New
     Pbusiness will be just that: the last.                   World Beer and Cider Awards Top 30.
     Finney and his wife Laura run Emporium Brewing           After cracking the big time with their Witbier last
     in Kaikoura – a dream that’s flipped over to             year, they came through again with perhaps the
     nightmare more than once since they started five         most relevant beer they’ve brewed: Drop, Cover,
     years ago.                                               Hold – a tropical sour brewed with a strain of
     The first shock came with the big Kaikoura               Norwegian Kveik yeast. It’s an incredible beer –
     earthquake of November 2016. The brewery had             lightly sour with punchy pineapple on the aroma
     just got underway, with the first 50 litre brew in the   and flavour thanks to the unique characteristics of
     fermenter. The earthquake wreaked havoc in the           the kveik strain. And it’s the beer that was in the
     brewhouse – but that was something they could fix.       tank the day the earthquake hit – hence the name
     Unfortunately, that wasn’t the case with the roads       doubling as a public service notice.
     around the popular whale-watching tourist town.          The award was about more than getting a place on
     What should have been a great spot for a new             the shelves of New World supermarkets around
     business – a town full of curious tourists looking for   the country throughout June, it brought them
     a local drop – turned into something of a dead end.      exposure they could never afford, thanks to the
                                                              wider marketing clout of New World. As a result
     Then Emporium was caught up in the collapse              of the awards marketing, the Seven Sharp current
     of Beer NZ, losing a chunk of money as the beer          affairs show picked up the story and brought
     distribution company went bust.                          the Emporium name into households across the
     And just as things were looking up, their world was      country.
     rocked by the Covid-19 pandemic, the lockdown,           “It is hard to judge brand awareness as we are still
     and the complete halt to tourism – both domestic         growing, but we have had a lot of good feedback in
     and international.                                       the Facebook forums around our fresh-hopped beer
     But Emporium got a huge jolt of positivity from          this year, and that came just after being in the Beer

26        Pursuit of Hoppiness - July 2020
NEW WORLD AWARDS

Jerk box with our Imperial spiced ale, Reuben the
Red, and our hopped saison, Rapscallion, which                NEW WORLD
both were well-received.
                                                             BEER & CIDER
“To then follow it up with the New World win,
we are riding the crest of a wave. We just need to             AWARDS
capitalise on that.”
The appearance on Seven Sharp opened the eyes of
Kaikoura locals to an award-winning business in
their own backyard as well as having reach further
afield.
“I think around the country, there have been more
people realising they can buy local,” Finney said of
the Covid-19 lockdown period. “Kaikoura is a bit of
                                                                    8 Wired iStout
a hard nut to crack in that respect, but the interview
on Seven Sharp helped out a lot.                                Bach Brewing Juicy AF
                                                                   Bavaria 0.0% Wit
“By being on TV, we sold a heap of boxes of beer
                                                         Behemoth Me Time Mosaic Hazy IPA
after that.
                                                            Boneface Brewing Outlaw IPL
“The other thing it did do was give us access to
                                                          Brave Brewing Co The People's Pils
the North Island. We have probably sold one keg
to Auckland and less than five to Wellington in          Emporium Brewing Drop, Cover, Hold
                                                                     Tropical Sour
the whole five years we have been going, so people
buying boxes of our beer in the North Island was                Epic Hopshine Pale Ale
nice to see.”                                                     Epic Shotgun XPA
Finney knows that a month’s worth of promotion             Garage Project Electric Dry Hop
                                                                       Acid Test
through the New World stores won’t be the
definitive antidote to all the hard times they’ve had,      Garage Project Fresh IPA 2020
but it was just the boost they needed to refuel the               Good George APA
resilience tank.                                           Good George Passionfruit Cider
“I think the resilience was starting to run low. I                  Heineken Light
know we are a bit fatigued by it all. In all honesty,      Kererū Night Spirit Barrel-Aged
we just want some normal years. The last two years                  Imperial Stout
we have turned profit. We’re waiting on this year’s,     Lakeman Brewing Co. Hopadelic IPA
but we would be very close, and that is despite             McLeod's Great Migration IPA
missing half of March, earthquake recovery, beer            McLeod's Longboarder Lager
distribution going bust …
                                                               Panhead Port Rd Pilsner
“We seem to have a viable business but we are                Panhead The Vandal NZIPA
getting weary of saying ‘as long as we are going this           Parrotdog Falcon APA
time next year, we will have cracked it’. In a way
                                                             Peckham's Farmhouse Cider
though, it does give us a competing edge as we are
the brewery from Kaikoura who is still battling on.         Renaissance Elemental Porter
                                                                    Sawmill Pilsner
“Our main concern in town is the job loss. As a
town that is very focused on tourism the town                  Sprig & Fern Scotch Ale
is going to suffer quite badly. Time will tell if we           Sunshine Brewing Stout
are resilient enough to weather this new storm.             Sunshine Brewing Summer Ale
Emporium will keep soldiering on though, as Dory                  Three Boys Wheat
said in Finding Nemo ‘just keep swimming, just                   Zeelandt Black Monk
keep swimming’.”
                                                                  Zeffer Rosé Cider
Swimming, and winning awards.
                                                                        Pursuit of Hoppiness - July 2020   27
NEW WORLD AWARDS

                                     Hair’s to Lakeman
            akeman Brewing, the pride of Taupo, got          feedback he sometimes struggles to find while
     La well-earned confidence boost from the                brewing on a remote farm in the middle of the
     New World Beer and Cider awards announced last          North Island, far removed from the biggest beer
     month.                                                  markets in the country.
     Lakeman set up in 2013 when sheep farmer James          “We had four in the top-100 last year and this shows
     Cooper decided to diversify his business. He learned    we are getting consistent – which is what we’re
     to brew from scratch – teaching himself with help       striving to do: make consistently good beer.
     from Greig McGill of Brewraucracy, Graham Mahy,         “But we are in a bit of a bubble here. Away from the
     who has worked at a number of New Zealand               main markets it is hard as we don’t get the feedback
     and Australian breweries, and Peter McKenzie at         here, so this Top-30 means a lot to us.”
     Shunters Yard – all from nearby Hamilton. “Those
     guys all helped me a lot and really hammered home       Cooper, who runs the farm and the brewery with
     the need for quality,” Cooper said.                     his wife Elissa, said the news of the award also
                                                             gave them a much-needed lift, coming just as New
     All the same, a lot of early beer was dumped,           Zealand moved into Covid-19 lockdown. Lakeman
     Cooper estimating he tipped out 15,000 litres in the    got a big sales spike and huge brand exposure after
     first year because it wasn’t up to scratch. “But beer   appearing on TV3’s The Project.
     makes good fertiliser for the farm,” he says in his
     typically laidback fashion.                             Cooper hoped that would help tide things over until
                                                             summer, when he and Elissa plan to add to a small
     While Lakeman have won trophies at the NZ Beer          taproom to their farm to cater for visitors who they
     Awards in the past, getting a Top-30 in the New         hope will return to Taupo post-lockdown.
     World awards with their Hopadelic IPA
     not only expanded their horizons,                       “This award feels positive and feels good going
     but it gave Cooper the positive                         into winter.”

28        Pursuit of Hoppiness - July 2020
MORNINGCIDER APPLE IPA                MAC’S BREW-JOLAIS FRESH

     I've been
                                             CIDER: 6%ABV                          HOP IPA: 6.0%ABV
                                             As the name suggests, this cider      After around a decade in the
                                             has undergone dry hopping with        wilderness, Mac’s fresh hop release

     drinking
         ...
                                             NZ hops. Examples of these            is back on the shelves, and with
                                             hopped ciders come along every        it the closest thing to a mass-
                                             year or so and I find the quality     produced fresh hop beer on the
                                             to be radically hit or miss. But      market. The fresh hop character
                                             this one starts out right with its    is pleasingly distinct on the deeply
                                             cool, clean nose packed with red      herbaceous nose. Leafy and
                                             apple skins and a dank grassy         grassy, with gentle citrus blossom.
        Tim Newman                           hop freshness. The palate is          The palate is juicy and alive
                                             remarkably tart, and that may         with fresh citrus and sugarsnap
         profiles new                        be the key factor that makes this     pea, with a light, fluid malt base
                                             example a success. Rather than a      and very mild bitterness. An
           releases                          sweet cider with the hop character    uncomplicated but fairly faultless
                                             just swimming around lost, it         example of a fresh hop IPA that’s
                                             presents more like a good hoppy       both accessible and affordable.
                                             sour, with its tangy and hoppy
                                             aspects working together.

     CRAFTWORK FLEMISH FLOOZIE BELGIAN                                URBANAUT CHERRYWOOD BOURBON
     FRUIT ALE: 7.5%ABV                                               BARREL AGED PORTER: 7.8%ABV
     An oldie but a goody from Craftwork in Oamaru.                   Urbanaut’s barrel-aged beer debut (though it
     Inspired by the now rarely seen Verboden Vrucht                  should be noted that it’s actually a blend of the
     (Forbidden Fruit) from Belgian producer Hoegaarden.              barrel aged stock and their regular porter). A
     It is similarly flavoured with figs and sultanas and             dynamic nose, with unground coffee beans,
     lightly spiced. The nose is soft, with coriander coming          dark chocolate, smoky oak char and just a
     in first, then dried apricots over more subtle aromas            thread of barrel funk. The palate is on the drier
     of fig. The palate follows on seamlessly from the nose,          side with roasted malt, oolong tea and oak
     with more spice and fruity ester that does a wicked job          tannin along with that bit of tartness from the
     of hiding the hefty alcohol. Not a bad drop at all when          cask. A drier, more lifted example of a barrel
     young but should have huge and comparatively rapid               porter compared to the often super-desserty
     ageing potential for anyone willing to put a few away.           norm. Comes in Urbanaut’s flagship 250ml can.

30        Pursuit of Hoppiness - July 2020
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