beers of the year
With the flood of new beers on the shelves of our local retailers it’s easy to go past something that stands out from the rest.  Luckily for me I stumbled across this beauty of beer from the team at Abandoned Brewing.  I must admit I have limited knowledge about the brewery and the beers they produce, but after sampling their hazy pale ale you can now count me as a fan! After doing a little investigating I discovered that Abandoned Brewery is located in an old disused factory in Lower Hutt.  The remnants of an old brewery were left but the team pretty much started again from scratch.  Their branding really effective…put simply, it looks like they’ve got a plain white can and used crayons to create the text.  You won’t find any psychedelic, multi-layered brand campaign on these cans, they simply describe the style of beer you should expect, which is really effective! The beer itself is bloody good! Pour the can and you get this light honey coloured liquid with the gentlest haze.  Nectarine, peach and passionfruit aromas galore and mouthfeel that is best described as light and powdery! At 5 per cent ABV the beer really holds up its complexity, very easy drinking and totally smash-able. If you’re looking for a summer fridge filler then you shouldn’t go past this beer… it’s now top of my list!

Beers Of The Year 2025

There were some standouts and commonalities when the Pursuit of Hoppiness team compiled their beers of the year for 2025. An overwhelming favourite was Emerson's Pride of The Plains Pilsner, the 30th anniversary rebrew of the genre-defining NZ-style pilsner that...

Three Sisters Expand Into Wellington

New Plymouth brewery Three Sisters is expanding into Wellington, taking over the site that was once home to Black Dog brewery in Blair Street. It's a massive step for a small provincial brewery but comes with the support of their shareholders and off the back of a...

Mr Good Bar — Epic Taproom

After a while, being Mr Good Bar has become a little like living a replay of Groundhog Day, the Bill Murray movie that famously celebrates repetition. And I mention that because making a professional habit of visiting various of the nation’s small army of brew bars...

An Epic 20 Years

Achieving two decades in craft brewing is a titanic feat for any producer, but few (it could be argued none) have been as formative a presence in the New Zealand industry as Epic Beer. Epic and its founder Luke Nicholas were not just at the forefront of the glory and...

Instagratification: Dusty’s Best Summer Beers

Photographer, beer-lover and Instagram influencer Dusty, picks his highlights from the latest releases. Eddyline Weizen Shine Hefeweizen Eddyline have summer in a glass with their 5% Weizen Shine Hefeweizen. All the usual suspects here: banana, clove, lemon &...

Renaissance Takes Over Kaiapoi Site From Chinchiller

Renaissance has taken over the brewery in Kaiapoi that was previously home to Chinchiller and, before that, Eagle Brewing and Five Peaks. It's the third home for Renaissance, which started in Blenheim in 2005 before moving to Christchurch under new owners Brandhouse,...