When my recent piece ‘A slow walk through paradise’ was published, a mate joked, “Jeepers BH, you’re a bit middle-of-the-road in your beer tastes to be talking to the craft beer community.”

Slow Walk Through Paradise — Visiting Every Brewery in NZ

Fair call. I am middle-of-the-road—and I’m happy to own it.

So what does that mean? To me, it’s the sweet spot between mass-produced lagers and ales that lack character, and the bold, experimental brews that New Zealand’s craft beer innovators are famous for. I sit somewhere in the middle—right in the volume heartland of NZ’s craft beer scene, with a decent lean toward the innovation side.

We’ve come a long way in our beer tastes. I’ve happily left behind my student-era Rheineck and Josef Kuhtze days, but I haven’t fully embraced the Hazy IPA revolution either. Pineapple-infused sours and bubble-gum flavoured beers? Not usually my go-to.

…But sometimes, I surprise myself.

My beer journey over the years has looked something like this:

Mainstream Lager → Session Ale → Pilsner → APA → Hazy IPA → IPA → West Coast IPA

…and along the way, I’ve enjoyed plenty of other styles too.

That got me thinking—if bakers get a dozen (13), then surely brewers and drinkers deserve a Brewer’s Dozen (15). So here’s mine. Maybe it’ll inspire you to think about yours.

My Criteria:

  • Brewed in New Zealand
  • Only one beer per brewery (yes, that made it tough—looking at you Epic, Parrotdog, McLeod’s, Double Vision…)
  • Available in a can or bottle—so you can enjoy it at home or in a bar

My Selection Method

I keep it simple: buy it, smell it, taste it… and if I want to repeat the cycle, I know I’m onto something.  That may sound somewhat cynical, but that is not my intention. I’m not big on tasting notes—half the time, the flavours on the label don’t register with my taste buds. But when I find a beer that hits the spot—whether it’s the start of a night out or a quiet Sunday afternoon—I know it and note it.

Once you’ve found your Brewer’s Dozen, that’s when the real fun begins. You can step off the middle of the road and explore the wild, wonderful world of NZ craft beer—knowing you’ve got a few reliable favourites to return to. (And knowing that those middle of the road craftie’s are the volume that helps fund our outstanding brewers experiment with less financially feasible edgy recipes.) No need to default to mainstream Mexican or Dutch lagers!

So here it is—my ‘Brewer’s Dozen’. Each with no more than 15 words of notes (Because buggered if I can do a beer review with extensive tasting notes…there are some true experts for that….and I am trying to make ‘The Brewers Dozen’ the next big thing in NZ Craft Beer… lol)

  1. Emersons Bookbinder — Harder to get these days but a true session ale – a malt classic at 3.9%
  2. Garage Project Pernicious Weed — A strong tasting IPA that is a go-to for a hops celebration  
  3. Liberty Brewing Halo Pilsner — Sets the standard for a New Zealand Pilsner. ‘nuff said           
  4. Epic Pale Ale — What can I say that the brand does not. I love hops. Epic!     
  5. Double Vision Brewing Smooth Operator Cream Ale — I love Vanilla, and Smooth Operator brings that flavour through in a humble manner    
  6. Duncan’s Chocolate Quad Imperial Pastry Stout — This one is a bit of an OMG; a dessert in itself after a beer entrée (Note to self – strayed from centre-line) 
  7. Parrotdog Thunderbird Bright IPA — A game changer for me, this beer is a pioneer move from the hazy revolution
  8. Ruapehu Brewing Weedcore IPA — Hard to find beyond the Central North Island but Weedcore is worth the wait      
  9. Sunshine Gisborne Gold — Always will be on my list as my first true ‘craft’ beer      
  10. Panhead Super Charger APA — It’s a classic – even converted my Aussie mate from VB (That shouldn’t be difficult!)      
  11. Behemoth Something Hoppy IPA — A favourite that has a perfect ratio of hops to malt, and I love Churly   
  12. McLeod’s #802 series — I can’t believe the #802’s releases are now at 74 — a pleasant journey in itself      
  13. Lakeman Taupo Thunder NZIPA — Comes through with a fruity mix that is smooth and not over-bearing   
  14. Fork & Brewer Base Jumper APA — Solid , just solid, always a starter when at Fork & Brewer         
  15. 8 Wired Big Smoke Porter — A porter that for me has never been beaten. (Note to self – strayed from centre-line, again)