Best beers of 2023, Part 2

NZ's oldest pub for sale — buy a part of history. Lion closes iconic Aussie craft brewery. Breweries shrink beers to get around tightening economy. Ireland to introduce health warnings on beer.

Happy Friday Beer Friends,

Well, we’re over the shortest day malarkey and on to the expanding sunlight hours but it still feels a bit dark and grim for our friends across the Tasman, which I will come to in more detail a moment.

And for a moment I thought there was bad news on the agenda here when I saw a post from Hop Federation about the last brew day in their Riwaka brewery.

But thankfully, they are not shutting down, just moving to a new purpose-built venue in nearby Motueka where they will start brewing in August. We will bring you the full story ASAP.

And in other news for the area, there’s a fantastic opportunity for any prospective pub owners out there: The Moutere Inn is for sale!

As you’ll know, The Moutere Inn is regarded as New Zealand’s oldest pub, in terms of continually running in the same building. Built in 1850, its licence was issued in 1853. The other contenders for the crown are: The Duke of Marlborough in Russell which opened in 1827 but the building has been demolished and rebuilt four times; the Thistle Inn in Wellington opened in 1840 but burned down in 1866 with only a staircase and two doors remaining from the original building; and the Horeke Inn in Hokianga also stakes a claim, as it was first licenced in 1842 but the original building was a small shed that is now part of a larger building.

Anyway, it’s a fantastic spot in a great part of the world and has been a flagship for Nelson’s craft beer scene, and the wider South Island scene in general.

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Craftwork get modern

Staying in the South Island, Oamaru’s Craftwork have taken a giant leap forward with their website and you can now order online. For fans of these hard-to-get beers this is super news, and there’s free shipping on any case of 12 or more.

Craftwork Brewery Oamaru NZ

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Best Beers of 2023, part 2

It’s that time of the year-ish. Since we just passed the Winter Solstice, the time feels right for the next installment in “Michael’s Beers of the Year”.

If you missed the first quarter list back in April, well here it is:

There is a kind of ranking order to these but it was hard to put them in any personal preference. And I’ve omitted the Fresh Hop beers on the basis that it’s a separate list altogether.

1. Alibi Bad Juju A complex hop bill, with Chinook, Nelson Sauvin, Cryo Mosaic and Strata on an all-pilsner malt base. It’s sticky and resinous and honey sweet with lots of pine sap and some of Bob Marley’s favourite herb for a dank edge, and earthy bitterness to boot. Complex yet coherent, rich yet drinkable. Yum dialled up to 11.