On a boat to Waiheke Island, Hauraki Gulf, NZ and this pup needed to rehydrate. Good use for Stella don’t you think? Got any funny pics of dogs and beer? Or animals and beer? Send them in.

I know this has nothing to do with beer but thought you might be interestd in what I’m doing when I’m not drinking a beer.

I launched endemic on Friday. Its an online store….. check it out and grab a pre- christmas special.

www.endemicworld.com

Keen to know what you avid beer drinkers think of it.

I was lucky enough to go to Hallertau brewery during labour weekend. It was unplanned but I could not resist the temptation after being blown dry by the west coast wind at Muriwai Beach and seeing the sign “Hallertau 3km” pointing off to Riverhead. I got the tasting rack (only $10) which had five brews, two of which were worth drinking again and again. Their beer is very hoppy compared to any standard nz tap beer (ale or lager). My favourite was the Amber Ale, kind of like a slighter milder Epic Ale, then the Statesman that had a solid hopful kick. You can fill a 1.5 litre bottle for about $7 (a Hallertau refillable bottle costs $10).

So on your next surf mission out to the west coast get a tasting rack, sit back and enjoy another superb nz beer…

The reason nz beer is so dam good is largely because of the awesome hops grown here. One brewery making the most of them is Hallertau from Riverhead, Auckland, NZ. Their beer is truly amazing and is a family boutique operation born in 2005. Only two years on the scene and these guys are setting a high standard for any new or existing micro brewery in NZ.

It reminds me of Wanaka Beerworks in the way the beer, the company and the look and feel has been carefully put together for a quality beer experience. It is not everywhere so if your lucky enough to come across some Hellertau grab it, grab it all, and drink it all too.

And once you have done that you should go out to Riverhead visit the brewery and have a feed in their restaurant and try a seasonal brew. The photo of the hops above is from their outside seating area. If your a tourist and your thinking about going up the Sky Tower in Auckland, nzbeer suggests flagging and instead go to Hallertau, it will be an unforgettable experience and you will wish you had one in your town. Us kiwi’s are lucky….thanks Hallertau.

We used to drink by brand, and loyally drink only one most times. Usually forced to drink something different when being a guest at someone elses house, or at a bar/pub that didn’t have your drop.

But its finally changing, we like to try different ones, taste a few during a night, we pay more attention to where it was brewed, what type of beer it is, is it light or dark, pilsner or pale ale. This change to an industry controlled by two main breweries has seen more serious micro breweries pop up, some of which are very well established (Wanaka Beer Works, Moa, Lindenburg, Hellertau, Emersons…) Its exciting, and about time Lion and DB had some competition (most of their beers are low quality).

And the new $100 million dollar expansion plan by The West Coast Brewery is just another taste of what the future has install. The next 10 years is going to see the NZ beer industry get the attention that the NZ wine industry has (now exporting around $800 million a year) . Expansions, such as the West Coast Brewery just announced, is just the beginning.

Whats evern more interesting is that they have just taken over the sponsorship of Hokitika Wild Food Festival. This is super good news since Monteiths (the old sponsor) is Asian owned anyway and hardly a NZ beer anymore.

So Big Ups to The West Coast Brewery for taking on the big boys, good luck to ya and look forward to drinking your beer.

“…..by far the best beer I have tasted this year…..” Being kiwi I obviously like a crisp cold lager, and this satisfies that need but Pilsner style. It tatses like a beer you could drink solidly all night and get up for a 6 am fish the next day feeling better than ever.

Careful if buying this from Glengarry’s. I often see boutique beers that are 6  months past best before dates. If you lucky enough to live in Dunedin, the home of Emerson’s, then Im sure you rs will be fresh as a daisy.

I wish this beer was on tap as mush as Export Gold (that cat piss we put up with everywhere)

Check this post on Real Beers site.

The person is looking for a flat mate, and he has a bar in the lounge where he serves his home brewed English Pale Ale.

Bloody classic!

When I lived in Wanaka I went to a flat once and on the fridge door was a beer tap. When you opened the fridge there was nothing but a keg in it. Perfect! Who needs a fridge full of small glass bottles when you can just stick a whole keg in the fridge. Less mess, skips the recycling process, and you don’t even need to open the fridge to get a beer.

It means you need to find an alternative location for food though, but come to think of it there is never much of that in a flat anyway. Just be prepared for some unhappy ladies having to drink their fluro green vodka pre-mix warm.

Having lived in Germany on and off since 2003 I have struggled to enjoy the common beers back here in NZ. Tui’s, Export Gold, Macs Gold…. and it is even harder to get used to having no heavy winter numbers to knock you out on a Sunday night. Sure, we get some imports, but they are the budget ones and all taste old. Until I met Montieths Winter DoppleBock. I know I am not the only one pleased to be drinking this.

Check this wiki to get a basic run down on how Bock beer came about. At 6% it is the weakest DoppleBock I have ever drunk, but better than nothing. I am sure if they brought in a proper 8-9% job no one here could handle it, being a nation of ’solid lager lovers’!

Since its just one of their seasonal releases I’d enjoy it while its on the shelf. If its not there you can get it on tap at The Drake in Auckland.

This is the original drop by Moa. Brewed the MOA way and bottled champagne style it provides a unique beer experience. It can be a lot of fun opening it. Lads, this is what you should use instead of champagne to celebrate this summer. Down a couple of these bad boys and I promise a good day/night will unveil…..!

This week I thought I would review one of our most recent entries into the boutique beer market in NZ…..MOA. Head honcho Josh Scott (son of Alan Scott, one of NZ’s most prominent wine makers) established the Moa Brewing Company in 2003. I first spotted the beers in our stores during 06-07 summer and must say have been impressed with the hands on care taken to produce them.

This wee darky they call a “dark lager” is full of hearty goodness from the Marlborough region. Just when you thought wine was all that came from this part of the country, think again. Coming from NZ’s prime hops growing region, its no surprise that a great beer also comes from there.

These beers come in small 375ml (never quite enough) and also a bigger 750ml bottle with a champagne style cork and wire, which helps fooling the ladies into drinking some (the day NZ breweries bottle in 500ml re-usable glass bottles like Germany will be the best day ever).

My suggestion is ignore the price and grab a big bottle of each of their brews. Noir, Blanc and Methode Traditionale, sit down with a couple of mates and down the lot. It will be well worth it! And it goes unbelievably well with a dozen green lipped muscles. Bloody beautiful mate……

The sparkle is put into the brew by the time honoured “methode traditionelle” more usually used to put the bubbles into Champagne.

After six weeks for the initial brewing process and conditioning, the beer is then bottled with more yeast and sugar, capped and left to re-ferment thus adding that sparkle. The unusual bit is next - the bottles are inverted allowing the yeast sediment to settle down into the neck of the bottle. The neck is frozen, the bottle uncapped and the frozen plug of sediment pops out, then is finally sealed with a champagne style cork and wire cage. The Moa is born – a bottle conditioned beer with no sediment.

The best one is definitely the original or “Methode Traditionale”. It reminds me of Augustine from Munich.