After years watching it unfold on social media with a growing envy, Duncan Greive finally hit the road to Beervana last year. With the 2020 edition about to kick off, he revisits a magic day. My day started early, with a beautifully balanced Westmalle Trappist Dubbel over a hearty omelette, just after 9am. It was … Read more
Business is Boring is a weekly podcast series presented by The Spinoff in association with Callaghan Innovation. Host Simon Pound speaks with innovators and commentators focused on the future of New Zealand. This week he talks to Simon Cooke and Ryan Carville, founders of yeast company Froth Technologies. A lot goes into making good beer. … Read more
An urgent excursion to her hoppy homeland shows Alice Neville why brewers and beer drinkers the world over seek out Nelson’s pungent bounty. In the 19th and early 20th centuries, trainloads of working-class London families would temporarily migrate to Kent to work in the hop fields during harvest time. It was the closest thing many … Read more
Dietary Requirements is The Spinoff’s monthly podcast in which we eat, drink and talk about it too, with special thanks to Freedom Farms. This month, we’re joined by Jos Ruffell of Garage Project and Sammy Akuthota of Satya to talk about their exciting new venture. In our first field trip of the year, the Dietary Requirements … Read more
In the near decade since Sawmill Brewery’s new owners came on board, they’ve made some of the best beers in the country, won awards and watched their brewery burn down. And their former landlords at the Leigh Sawmill Cafe accuse them of acting unethically. Alice Neville reports from Matakana. Every Monday, when the Sawmill Brewery’s … Read more
We love a cheeky bevvy here in Aotearoa, but upon what have we been supping in the 2010s? These are 10 libations that captured the mood of the decade. Coconut water Obvs the refreshing clear liquid held within coconuts has been drunk by people in places where coconut palms grow since forever, but the 21st … Read more
From a rural shed to a multimillion-dollar acquisition by DB, with a few legal battles thrown in for good measure, Tuatara’s two decades in the business have been a wild ride. Now, after revamping the beers, its talented head brewer has called it quits. Alice Neville checks in. For a while there, Tuatara Brewing seemed … Read more
Good morning, and welcome to The Bulletin. In today’s edition: Examples of why teaching history matters immediately emerge, accused Labour staffer resigns, and giant of Tongan democracy dies. In the space of a day, there were two examples that clearly showed why New Zealand’s history needs to be taught in schools. In case you missed it, … Read more
The only published and available best-selling indie book chart in New Zealand is the top 10 sales list recorded every week at Unity Books’ stores in High St, Auckland, and Willis St, Wellington. AUCKLAND 1 Three Women by Lisa Taddeo (Bloomsbury, $35) “The children, of course, add purpose, but the house feels like a … Read more
Hospitality is a legitimate career, and a hard one at that, and it’s about time it’s treated like one. I recently stopped working in a beer bar in Edinburgh. I worked there full-time for 20 months and loved it. But there are two questions I was consistently asked by my customers that irked me. The … Read more
Business is Boring is a weekly podcast series presented by The Spinoff in association with Callaghan Innovation. Host Simon Pound speaks with innovators and commentators focused on the future of New Zealand, with the interview available as both audio and a transcribed excerpt. This week he talks to Andrew Childs, founder of Behemoth Brewing. You’ll … Read more
Sam Flynn-Scott gets down with the funk of the fresh hop season. To truly understand beer you have to think of it as a fresh product. Unless you are getting into very specific variants, it is not usually meant to be aged. It’s a weird funky stew that at its peak, when made by the … Read more
Fresh from the tap, sealed and delivered to your door – and you can drink some, reseal it and finish later. Welcome to the latest innovation in craft beer consumption. In 2006, the New Zealand Herald confidently predicted the demise of the flagon. Once a staple of the Kiwi beer drinker, the fill-your-own vessels were going … Read more
The New World Beer and Cider Awards are serious business in the industry – so why not send along a beer rookie to see what it’s all about? “Burnt butter.” “A sort of minerality.” “Quite a firm, long, furry kind of bitterness.” “Grapefruity.” These are some of the ways head judge Michael Donaldson describes the … Read more
Following on from inappropriate use of Māori-inspired imagery to promote New Zealand-hopped beers, several British craft breweries appear to think ‘Māori pale ale’ is a beer style. The United Kingdom might be half a world away from New Zealand, but it hasn’t stopped at least three British breweries from using the term ‘Māori’ to describe … Read more
The hours are long and lonely, your creations are constantly criticised and alcohol is everywhere – is it any wonder many brewers are struggling? Content warning: suicidal thoughts From the outside, the beer industry seems like a brilliant lifestyle choice. What could be better than making beer all day, drinking free beer at night, selling … Read more
A Melbourne bar that used an image of a 19th-century St Kilda mayor with tā moko drawn on to promote a New Zealand beer showcase has been accused of mocking Māori culture. This story was originally published on RNZ A Melbourne bar has been criticised for using an image of a former St Kilda mayor … Read more
Does less booze mean less flavour? Well, yes… but it’s not all bad news. All prices given were correct at the time of original publication in January 2019. Prices may have changed since. Here at The Spinoff, we’re a responsible bunch, and we know that a hoppy 8 percenter isn’t always the answer. You might … Read more
Alice discovers that juniper and hops are a match made in heaven, while Henry pops the cork on a bargain bottle of bubbly. DUNCAN’S BREWERY JUNIPER IPA 7%, 500ml, $10.99 from Fine Wine Delivery Co A lot of brewers have a penchant for gin. Come to think of it, winemakers too. I guess the point … Read more
Dietary Requirements is The Spinoff’s monthly podcast in which we eat, drink and talk about it too, with special thanks to Freedom Farms and Fine Wine Delivery Co. In this very special – and very, er, extended – festive edition of Dietary Requirements, the gang escapes the confines of the studio for a wholesome jaunt to the countryside. … Read more
A fruity rosé inspires Henry to issue some eyebrow-raising advice, and a new IPA has Alice feeling festive. BEAU DE FRANCE ROSÉ 2017 13%, France, $13.99 from Fine Wine Delivery Co Here at The Spinoff, it’s hot take season – all month long, we’re shooting our hottest opinions, straight from the hip. But there’s one I … Read more
How much do you really know about the beer you’re holding – and how it’s different to the one your mate is drinking? Elevate your Christmas party chat with the Spinoff’s guide to beer varieties. Standing in the chilled beer fridge at your local liquor store, the cold air carries a tinge of anxiety as … Read more
Alice is taken back to Blighty by an old-school bitter, and Henry paints the town millennial pink. GALBRAITH’S ALEHOUSE BOB HUDSON’S BITTER 440ml, 4%, $7.99 from Fine Wine Delivery Co English pubs were where my passion for beer truly took hold. I arrived in London as an innocent, fresh-faced lass from the colonies (OK, I … Read more
Part cellar door, part bottle shop and soon-to-be urban winery, Dorset Street Cellar Door has a big future ahead of it. Just off Victoria Street in Christchurch’s faded golden mile is an unassuming building with a sawtooth roof. Even with a fresh lick of paint, you can still make out the lettering of the former … Read more
Alice is tickled pink with a summery sour beer, while Henry says hola to a super-approachable Spanish white from Gizzy. SAWMILL BREWERY RASPBERRY SOUR 4.5%, 500ml, $10.99 from Fine Wine Delivery Co Earlier this year, Scottish craft beer giant BrewDog repackaged its hugely successful Punk IPA as Pink IPA, satirically dubbing it a “beer for … Read more
Alice partakes of a pineappley pale ale, while Henry pops the cork on some French fizz. BEHEMOTH PRETTY PRETTY PRETTY PINEAPPLEY PALE ALE 5.3%, 330ml, $3.99 from Fine Wine Delivery Co Hot on the heels of Kind of a Big Deal, which honoured San Diego’s finest son Ron Burgundy, comes a Behemoth tribute to another … Read more
Henry dives into a big, bold Spanish red, while Alice samples an easy-drinking Kiwi hop fest. ANCIANO 35 YEAR OLD VINES GARNACHA 2015 15%, $19.99 from Fine Wine Delivery Co Let’s talk about alcohol. You could read a shelf full of books about wine and barely know that there’s any alcohol in it. Wine publications … Read more
Alice welcomes the zombie hopocalypse with open arms (and gin), while Henry sups upon a spicy syrah from a Hawke’s Bay OG. EPIC BOILERMAKER Epic Hop Zombie, 8.5%, 500ml, plus Hidden World Oriental Spice Gin, 50ml, 44%, $11.99 from Fine Wine Delivery Co A boilermaker, according to the internet, is a trained craftsperson who produces … Read more
Alice is in a glass case of emotion (in a good way) about Behemoth’s latest IPA, and Henry is chuffed with a cheap and very cheerful pinot gris. BEHEMOTH BREWING COMPANY KIND OF A BIG DEAL SAN DIEGO IPA 6.9%, 330ml, $5.99 from Fine Wine Delivery Co San Diego: famous for its zoo, Comic-Con, some … Read more