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 years, beer has been a constant companion — other than a brief University time for quantity, increasingly a journey of quality.
🍻 From Longnecks to Local Legends
In the ’90s, a marketing job at 3M gave me the chance to travel the country. With a bit of money in my pocket and a thirst for discovery, I found myself finding beers beyond the dominating brands of DB and Lion. Mac’s Gold and Gisborne Gold were revelations at the time. In 1989 I still remember the thrill of bringing a longneck of Speight’s back to Wellington from Dunedin like it was contraband.
My first brewery visit came in 1996 in Gisborne — Sunshine Brewing. I was hooked. So much so that I had a pallet of Gisborne Gold freighted to Wellington soon after for my 30th birthday. That was the start of what I now call my “slow walk through paradise”.
🌍 Drinking Local, Living Local
A 2014 trip to California opened my eyes to the sheer scale of craft beer culture. I started drinking local wherever I went — Anchor IPA in San Francisco, for example — and brought that habit home. Back in New Zealand, the craft scene was exploding. Choosing a six-pack of craft beer became a weekend ritual that took longer than the family grocery shop — much to my wife’s consternation!
Some early NZ craft beer ‘go-to’ beers for me were Epic Pale Ale, 8 Wired Big Smoke Porter, and Liberty Halo Pilsner. Slowly, New Zealand craft beer found its way into the mainstream supermarket shelves, and the taste lift versus the traditional beers from of the two main breweries was worth the extra spend. However, my beer purchase remained simply a part of the weekly shop, the concept of something like a taproom, and therefore the beer purchase being a destination in itself, had not yet entered my world.
Post-COVID, with international travel not so attractive, I leaned into local exploration. Traveling with family to Westport and Kerikeri instead of London and Los Angeles bought home to me that one way to ‘experience local’ was to visit a brewpub or taproom. This became the perfect family compromise: great food for the kids, cider or wine for my wife, and a rotating tap list for me. I even started planning holidays around them (under the generous guise of “finding us a good lunch spot”).
Some of the most meaningful moments came with my dad. In his later years, mobility was tough, but we still managed outings to Liberty Brewing in Helensville and Parrotdog in Wellington. Watching him enjoy a flight of beers was a gift — one I’ll always treasure, as Dad sadly passed last year.
Homebrewing with mates led to the birth of “Foulkscourt Brewery,” named after the family farm in Co. Kilkenny, Eire. We even made it onto Untappd, where a work colleague gave us a ‘generous’ 3-star review: “Solid 3, not bad given the brewer.”
Visiting Baylands Brewery and Brewtopia to pick up home brew recipe packs was always fun, especially the later who had a true beer personality in Karl Hayes — always willing to engage and chew the fat. These days I am a bit lazy, so Karl does the hard work as I buy 20-litre cubes of wort off him and simply bask in the glory of fermentation and bottling. (i.e. less time brewing and more time to journey in paradise…)
📍 The Quest: Every Brewery in NZ?
I never set out to ‘visit every brewery in New Zealand’. But one day recently I counted — 55. (Sadly, three have now closed: Deep Creek, West Coast (now Shortjaw), and Whistling Sisters). Then I read Michael Donaldson’s research and realized there were over 190 potential brewery visits. Challenge accepted.
It does beg the question though…. What is a ‘Brewery?’, because I probably mean a taproom or brewpub. But like the age old debate of ‘What is a Craft Beer?’, it does get tough on the edges to have a hard and fast definition, I’ve made some rules (and broken a few):
- Must sell commercially on-site
- Must have a core location
- Must have a front door
- No contract-only brewers
- There must be a brewery behind the brand, that is not outsourced.
But exceptions exist — how could I not count Lakeman? Even if their brewbar is miles from the brewery and has a different brand name (Jimmy Coops – Taupō)…grrr. Anyway, by my ‘rules’, my target is about 150.
Some of my favourites are probably because they were taprooms in the rawest sense…. raw but welcoming. Early days Boneface Brewing Co. after a mountain bike ride, Double Vision Brewing, Rhyme x Reason, Mata Brewery and Ground Up Brewing. The fact Rhyme & Reason and Ground Up Brewing share the same Wānaka street is pretty cool in itself. Recent visits in the northern reaches of Wellington to Duncan’s Brewing Company and The Beer Engine were top shelf — absolute taproom bangers. A bonus has been meeting some of the brewers along the way and having a yarn…. Austin from Ruapehu Brewing Co., Richard Emerson, Karl Hayes, Mario from Double Vision Brewing, Dale from The Beer Engine, and Julian at Ground Up Brewing…all very generous and humble characters.
🌟 Standouts on the Journey
- First love: Sunshine Brewing (Gisborne)
- Biggest regret: Aotea Brewing Co. was closed the day I visited Great Barrier Island.
- Best all-rounder: Rhyme x Reason (Wānaka) — raw, tasty, and stylish. Great beers, balanced setting, cool merch and top notch food offering.
- Most welcoming: Mario Lanz at Double Vision Brewing — a brewer who truly inspires.
- Iconic encounter: Richard Emerson — humble, proud, and unforgettable (Emersons Bookbinder will always be a favourite of mine.)
- Hidden gem: Woodstock Brewing Co. (Hokitika) — hop bines, valley views, and wisdom.
- Family favourite: McLeod’s Brewery (Waipu) — pizza, pints, and peace.
- Tap takeover: Fork & Brewer (Wellington) – 42 taps of quality
- Worth the drive: Liberty Brewing Co. (Helensville), Duncan’s Brewing Company (Paraparaumu), Eruption Brewing (Lyttleton) and The Beer Engine (Titahi Bay) — each a pilgrimage worth every kilometre dealing with urban warriors in the big cities.
- Big and beautiful: In my opinion some taprooms have lost a bit of soul as they expand — not so Parrotdog Brewery who have absolutely nailed an experience that is great for all at their Lyall Bay, Wellington HQ.
🗺️ What’s Next?
With the kids grown and the nest empty, the pace has picked up. I’ve hit 24 breweries in the last two years alone. Trips to New Plymouth, Whanganui and Christchurch are on the horizon. The map is filling up, and the journey is far from over.
Whether it’s a backroad taproom, a bustling brewpub, or a flight of the brewers favourites shared with someone special, every stop adds a new flavour to the story.
The slow journey through paradise continues…
You can follow Brendon’s journey via Instagram @theh0ptimist