Brave Brewing Tigermilk

What I really like about Brave Brewing Co (and their beer) is that they keep things simple.  Their range features seven styles which easily cover the beer spectrum offering an option for all avid beer drinkers. Tigermilk IPA follows that mantra: its simple, packed full of flavour and the best part is … it’s bitter! The first sign that you are onto something great is when you pour from the bottle and greeted with a bright, light caramel coloured liquid that’s super-clean and yes … not hazy! Brave use a mixture of old and new school American hops which I believe is the secret to their success.  The new school hops add wonderful citrus and stone fruit flavours which are blended beautifully with some older US hop varieties giving the beer a nice balanced bitterness (something that’s missing in many of the beers you see on the shelves today).  The mouthfeel is light but slightly creamy which just adds more positivity to the drinking experience. Tigermilk is true to style and ticks all the boxes when it comes to a clean, simple IPA.  Earthy notes, low malts, med-strong aromas and plenty of well-balanced bitterness. I give this beer a solid 9/10 sitting firmly at the top of Crafty’s top 5 for 2021.  It’s re-ignited my love for old school IPAs, so stay tuned as I navigate my way through a few more cans in the coming months and share my experiences with you.

Thief Brewing Frog Wallop IPA

Thief Brewing continues to prove that there’s IPA in them thar hills of Banks Peninsula, adding this West Coast style to the range.  West Coast by way of New Zealand anyway, being driven by Nelson Sauvin, Rakau and NZ grown Chinook.   The...

Double Vision x Baan Bangkok Thunder Struck Triple IPA

The method by which I pick a beer to feature here every week is extremely loose, but usually there’s an equation that balances between ‘interesting’ ‘relevant’ and ‘good’.  Sometimes, one of those spokes dominates to such an extent that the others cease to...

Behemoth Chur-Toberfest 2025

Every year more of our local craft brewers don the lederhosen and kick out a kiwi version of a Munich Festbier.  Historically, the results have been mixed… NZ malt and even more so our hops just don’t mesh well with the peerlessly smooth, crisp and understated...

New Zealand’s Most Awarded Beers

It was Stay Gold that started this … the Brave Brewing XPA that won a trophy in the International Pale Ale class at this year’s New Zealand Beer Awards. I was looking back through the records and realised it was the fifth gold medal that beer had won, and I started to...

Slow Walk Through Paradise — Visiting Every Brewery in NZ

There’s something about beer that’s always been part of my story. From the early days of sneaking sips of Lion Brown at my dad’s feet and walking around the house with my ‘beer mou’, to the $2 jugs of Joseph Kuhtze Lager at the Southern Cross Tavern during University...

Fermented Culture — The Third Place

Earlier this year a battle was fought in the leafy hills to the north of Wellington. A liquor license was being sought for what was once Dick Mead Motors and the Onslow Service Station. The resident’s association successfully applied for an extension to the decision...