The Beer Project

When I think of Belgian beer, IPA does not typically come to mind.  But such beers do occasionally emerge from the region, and this one of the few readily available in New Zealand.  The hop bill looks pretty modern with Amarillo and Tomahawk along with the more traditional Saaz.  But it’s still a Belgian beer, so of course it’s 9% ABV and bottle conditioned. On the nose there’s dry grassiness, with citrus and peach further back, and alongside the hop notes there’s that delicately malty, faintly candy-floss aroma of Belgian Tripel, which will be what’s running under the hood here.  The flavour is intense, some stone fruit and smooth malt richness before a near-immediate blast of bitterness which totally grasps the palate.  But as that bitterness subsides the fruit returns and uniquely blends with the ripe Belgian yeast esters to create a complex and curious finish. Probably better described as a hoppy Tripel than an IPA, this is a fascinatingly unique fusion of traditional Belgian character rammed at high speed into super-hoppy American style IPA.

This Ain’t No Hellhole — The Beer Project

Down a long driveway in the middle of nowhere I find a rustic shed fronted by some barrels. Inside is the northern-most brewery in the country, Kainui Brew Co, not too far from Kerikeri, I'm greeted somewhat apologetically by brewer Paul Keating. “It’s not too...

Galbraith’s Celebrates 30 Years Of Real Ale

“Where's the time gone? It's been a bit of a time tunnel this place — I just got absorbed into it.” Keith Galbraith is reminiscing on 30 years as the owner of Auckland’s iconic Galbraith’s Alehouse. “You know, I said to my wife when we started this, ‘look, give us 10...

8 Wired First Craft brewery to Stand Tall in 500ml cans

8 Wired are looking to move the needle with the launch of a 500ml can, an IPA called — appropriately — Tallboy. This has been in the pipeline at 8 Wired for a while and owner Soren Eriksen agreed “it's been a long time coming”. “The turning point was the ability to...

Altitude Brewing Reach Great Heights

Queenstown’s Altitude Brewing stormed through the Australian International Beer Awards in Melbourne last week. Altitude were crowned Champion Small International Brewery and took home the trophy for Modern Pale Ale with their flagship beer Sled Dog. They won four gold...

Clayton Hops Harvest Report

Clayton Hops, one of New Zealand’s leading hop growers, has just dropped their 2025 hop harvest report. Following on the heels of NZ Hops Ltd’s report the other week, this one again highlights a significant reduction in hop production in line with global trends....

Hop Flakes — Kiwi Invention Set To Revolutionise Hops

Hop flakes — a revolutionary breakthrough in hops processing — is being driven out of hop farm in Nelson using technology from the medicinal marijuana industry in the US. There’s been a wealth of hop innovations over recent years, from oils to cryo-hops, to...