Searchlight
Winner of the International Lager category at the 2021 Brewers Guild Awards.  Boneface IPL is, ostensibly, lager that’s hopped like an IPA.  It’s been one of my favorite beers for a long time, but seems to forever be stuck as a fringe style.  Outlaw has clean and bright aromas of lime, pineapple and rockmelon, with an extremely neutral and fresh malt base.  Smooth malt and citrus-focused hop character leads on the palate, with faint tropicals and minty herbaceousness following.  Moderate but precise bitterness closes out the brisk and refreshing finish, leaving the palate cleansed and wanting nothing more than another sip.  Hopefully its recent success at the awards encourages a few more brewers to tackle this style.  We’ll see.

Brewer Becomes Co-Owner at Searchlight

by | May 25, 2026 | Cover Story | 0 Comments

Ash Hutchinson, head brewer from Searchlight in Queenstown, is now a co-owner of the business — and one of his first big jobs will be showcasing Searchlight to the wider world at Beervana this year. Ash has worked at some of the best breweries in the country:...
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150 years of Speight’s

by | May 25, 2026 | Cover Story | 0 Comments

Speight's Brewery in Dunedin — New Zealand's oldest brewery — is celebrating its 150th birthday. It's quite the yarn, because it's a brewery that has risen, fallen, partly revived, fallen, risen and risen further. In celebrating the landmark birthday, owner Lion noted...
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Altitude’s Trophy-Winning Attitude

by | May 15, 2026 | Cover Story | 0 Comments

Queenstown's Altitude Brewing are celebrating (another) stunning awards performance at the Australian International Beer Awards, held in Melbourne last night. They increased their haul from last year’s AIBAs — taking home three trophies and a swag of medals (20 in...
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Bach Brewing Sticky Buds III

by | May 12, 2026 | Recommended | 0 Comments

I’m far from ready to declare a favourite from this year's fresh hop season, but I surely have some contenders, and the third edition of Bach Brewing Sticky Buds (by way of Steam Brewing) is most definitely on the list.  Fresh Nectaron is the pick here, supporting a...
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8 Wired Fresh Hopwired

by | May 12, 2026 | Recommended | 0 Comments

It’s here… the full force of the fresh hop storm is upon us, and I find myself again in the (not so arduous) position of having vastly too many releases to choose from. So for this week’s feature, I’ll pick one that I’ve been most looking forward to reuniting with. ...
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Hallertau Fresh Hop Belgian Ale

by | May 12, 2026 | Recommended | 0 Comments

When it comes to fresh hops, it’s a bold move for a brewer to step outside the IPA and Pilsner paddocks, but Hallertau Fresh Hop Belgian Ale is unique (and bold) for even more reasons. A fleetingly rare example of a North Island hopped beer, using hand picked cones...
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