Brothers beer modern love IPA

Citra and Pacific Jade hops drive this rocking full strength (7.4 per cent) IPA from Brothers Beer.  That US/NZ hop pairing bestows aromas of fresh lemon and lime citrus alongside more familiar tropical passionfruit and green grape.  The superbly bright palate is wildly lemon citrus dominant, with some herbaceous greens that emerge in the firmly bitter finish.  An exceptionally bright and nimble IPA despite its heavier ABV, and one of the best showcases of focused citrus purity I’ve encountered this year.

First-Timers Win 2025 Rare Beer Challenge

by | March 14, 2025 | Cover Story | 0 Comments

New Plymouth’s Shining Peak Brewery were crowned — or capped, as it were — the winners of the fifth annual Rare Beer Challenge on March 7. Hosted by Wellington’s Fortune Favours Brewery, this year there was not only a sister bar in Auckland serving the beers on the...
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Moa Superdelic IPA

by | March 10, 2025 | Recommended | 0 Comments

As much as it was exciting to see the recent Superdelic hop step onto the stage of commercial New Zealand varieties, it’s one I’ve been struggling to really love when put in the lead of an IPA. That red berry confectionary note has always come on a bit strong. Perhaps...
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Sunshine Brewing Wants Sale or Merger

by | March 10, 2025 | Cover Story | 0 Comments

New Zealand’s oldest craft brewery, Sunshine Brewing in Gisborne, looking for new owners or — more intriguingly — seeking expressions of interest for a merger with an existing brand. The move comes as the trio of existing owners, who have been at the helm for the past...
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Green, fruity, dank … Tom Shellhammer On hops

by | March 4, 2025 | Cover Story | 0 Comments

For a hop scientist, a months-long summer holiday coinciding with the annual hop harvest in New Zealand is a dream sabbatical. Tom Shellhammer is a Professor of Fermentation Science at Oregon State University where he leads the brewing science education and research...
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Hop Federation Concrete Jungle

by | March 3, 2025 | Recommended | 0 Comments

Fresh off the line this week Hop Federation Concrete Jungle is this bright version of the (also rather good) Inflation hazy IPA that dropped a little earlier in the year.  Sporting an identical 6% ABV and hop bill of Idaho 7, Rakau, and Nectaron, the difference here...
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Instagratification: Dusty’s Best of the Summer releases 2025

by | March 3, 2025 | Opinion | 0 Comments

Photographer, beer-lover and Instagram influencer Dusty, picks his highlights from the latest releases heading into summer. Sprig + Fern Ridgy Didge Crikey! What a lil ripper! Sprig + Fern’s latest sud tube Ridgey Didge is an all-Aussie hopped 4.4% hazy pale ale...
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