Craft beer venue scores big with Six60 gig
Is it last drinks for Steinlager at All Blacks games? Marchfest adds a Sunday session. Garston hops taking New Zealand IPA in a new direction. The rise and rise of Guinness explained.
Welcome to the penultimate Friday Night Beers newsletter of the year.
I didn’t intend to have Brewtown feature two weeks in a row — but what can you do when they make news!
And it’s the kind of news that will have a massive impact on the craft beer industry as literally thousands of people will be exposed to brands such as Boneface, Panhead, Te Aro and Tuatara when they head out to the Hutt this summer.
That’s because Upper Hutt beer and entertainment centre joins the likes of Sydney, Melbourne, Adelaide and Brisbane in hosting Kiwi music sensations Six60 next year.
This comes just a week after Tuatara completed their move to the venue and follows on from Upper Hutt beer legends Mike and Anna Neilson buying Brewtown-based Boneface.
In beating out Wellington central to host the Six60 gig on February 1 — as part of the band’s summer-long, trans-Tasman Grassroots Tour — the beer village made headlines for eclipsing the Capital as hosts.
Six60 will follow fellow high-profile Kiwi acts performing at Brewtown in December and January: the Black Seeds perform alongside international ska act, Sublime with Rome, at the venue’s annual Brew Year’s Eve event, as well as Fat Freddy’s Drop (Jan 25). Further international live acts will feature at Hutt Sounds (March 2), an 80s & 90s nostalgic showcase returning for its third year and featuring Orchestral Manoeuvres In the Dark (OMD), The Thompson Twins, Diesel, and Upper Hutt legend and former-INXS frontman, Jon Stevens.
The 18-hectare entertainment hub — owned by the Gillies Group, and previously, the former site of the Dunlop Tyre factory — opened in 2019, and has continued to grow with four breweries and their respective taprooms and eateries — Panhead, Boneface, Tuatara and Te Aro Brewing — as well as a whisky distillery and entertainment options galore, such as go-kart racing, an indoor paintball field, a 600-sqm trampoline park, ice skating rink, axe throwing, bowling lanes, and Chipmunks indoor kids playground.
Brewtown manager, Phil Gorman, says hosting high-profile bands, such as Six60, is a major coup for the city. Gorman has lived in Upper Hutt his entire life (and proudly has the mullet to show for it) — but as much as he loves his hometown, he can’t remember a time when the city was considered “cool”.
However, that perception has been flipped on its head as Brewtown’s reputation as a dynamic one-stop entertainment and live music spot gets out.
“Upper Hutt has always been looked upon as Wellington's poor cousin. Heck, even Lower Hutt’s poor cousin!” he laughs.
“But the addition of Brewtown has absolutely elevated the city into a unique destination within the Wellington region. In all my memories of living here, we’ve never had anything quite like this. Having Upper Hutt attract and host international artists on the scale we are seeing here at Brewtown is just so great for the city.
“So it’s been a real buzz to see Upper Hutt up there on the Six60 summer tour posters, alongside major cities such as Sydney, Melbourne and Auckland,” he says.
Long-time promoter, Brent Eccles, the organiser behind two of Brewtown’s summer gigs, Fat Freddy’s and Six60, says Brewtown is a no-brainer.
“It's a purpose-built outdoor venue, built for rock and roll, and that is very unique within the region. It’s easy to get to by car or public transport, and it’s easy to get in and out of the venue. There’s outdoor covered facilities too. Concertgoers can easily grab a drink and meal at any one of the eateries beforehand. And most importantly, people really love it,” he says.
Upper Hutt Mayor, Wayne Guppy, says Brewtown is now an integral part of the city’s tapestry.
“It has been a significant boost for Upper Hutt. It’s fantastic for our local economy, supporting local businesses and it’s a major destination for visitors to the city. The weekly farmer’s market in itself sees between 3000-4000 people from around the Wellington region attend.
“There is absolutely no question that Brewtown has developed into the region’s leading hospitality and entertainment centre — and now, in fact, into one of national significance,” he says.
For further event info, check out brewtown.co.nz. Tickets for Brew Year’s Eve featuring Sublime with Rome and the Black Seeds can be purchased at brewtown.co.nz. Tickets to Fat Freddy’s Drop and SIX60 can be purchased at Ticketmaster.
Beer of the Week No 1
I waited a long time for this one — since August when the draught version won the Champion International Lager Trophy at the New Zealand Beer Awards.
It took a while for Parrotdog to find room in their production schedule for the can release of their Cold IPA, but it’s been worth the thirst-inducing wait.
I’m a fan of Cold IPA as an emergent style and I’m fascinated by the various and varied attempts at bringing together the structurally different components — the lager profile, IPA hopping rates and hybrid fermentation process.
There’s a lot of directions these components can take a beer, and not many Cold IPAs I’ve tasted have been on the same road (which is not a bad thing).
I accept that this open-to-interpretation style bugs the hell out of people, but this is exactly what I’m looking for in a Cold IPA. Deeply embedded hop character that delivers pine, citrus and some sweet floral notes, combined with the corn-like notes from flaked maize all neatly aligned on a super-light body. Everything is there and in proportion and it’s bracingly drinkable.
Last drinks for Steinlager as All Blacks sponsor?
There were a couple of news stories this week related to the All Blacks and sponsorship — including whether Steinlager would continue its nearly 40-year association with New Zealand’s national team.
The speculation on Steinlager came after it was announced another long-standing sponsor, Ford, was no longer backing the black jersey.
I can’t work out if it’s the sponsors who are changing, or the All Blacks (and by that I mean the wider industrial complex behind the team that includes part-owner Silver Lake).
The speculation on Steinlager’s future came after the 2025 mid-year schedule for the series against France was published sponsor-less.
New Zealand Rugby (NZR) chief executive Mark Robinson said NZR was “in market looking for opportunities” to sponsor the three-match series to be played in Dunedin, Wellington and Hamilton.
“We're working with Lion [who make Steinlager] at the moment around our partnership there but we're also exploring other options as it relates to the July series.”
It would be quite something if the All Blacks and Steinlager parted ways and we’ll watch this space with interest.
It might be that New Zealand Rugby’s choice of beer and vehicle sponsors could follow the recent trend towards global brands — which would be in line with current (controversial) sponsors came sponsors INEOS and jersey sponsor Altrad had been questioned for climate and corruption reasons.
Perhaps Kirin, Lion’s owner, will step in with a wider-reaching brand?
Dusty’s Beer of the Week
This is impeccable! Agave Days from Wellington’s Heyday Brewing Co is a 6.3% tequila barrel-aged chilli salted watermelon brut lager — quite the mouthful figuratively and taste-wise. Crisp, clean, refreshing, lip-tingling but not dominant chilli working in unison with sweet juicy watermelon and a saltine cucumber vibe. The tequila barrel-aging gives the fun attributes plenty of layered depth with a semi-brut finish. Highly recommend this. — Dusty
Marchfest adds a Sunday session
The popular Marchfest beer festival has added a Sunday session to go with their popular Saturday event.
Marchfest Sunday Session is a relaxed, all-you-can-eat BBQ feast paired with great beer and music.
It will be held on Sunday, March 30, the day after the festival proper.
“Marchfest has always been about celebrating good beer, good music, and good times. The Sunday Session takes that to a whole new level,” says Shelley Haring, festival director. “Adding the Sunday Session was a natural evolution for Marchfest. We wanted to give festival-goers a fresh way to enjoy Nelson’s unbeatable beer culture, paired with great food and a laid-back atmosphere.”
One of the attractions of Marchfest is the fact that all the beers are one-off festival brews and if last year is an example, they’ll be nearly all South Island breweries, and often they will be breweries you don’t see out of their natural environment. So it’s a great chance to try some unique beers.
The headline music act is ZED, known for chart-topping hits like Renegade Fighter and Glorafilia.
When: Saturday, March 29, 2025, 1-9 PM (Festival) & Sunday, March 30, 2025, 11 AM - 3 PM (Sunday Session)
Where: Founders Heritage Park, Nelson
Beer of the Week No 2
Brothers are on a roll in recent weeks, with new head brewer Dylan Adams and his Italian crew cranking out some incredible beer as the brewery finds its feet after voluntary administration, liquidation and subsequent sale.
I’m not one who believes dark lagers should be reserved for the cooler months of the year and this is living proof that they can do a fantastic job in the warmer parts of the year.
Back In Black is a classic Schwarzbier — no pussy-footing with the flavours here; it’s got punchy coffee and soft chocolate on a light lager base, with a generous noble hop character and just-burnt bitterness to round it out.
I thought this was outstanding.
Buyer not yet confirmed for Pacific Coast
The drumbeats in the industry are very loud around the fact that a buyer has been found for the liquidated Pacific Coast Brewery.
I’ve had multiple sources confirm a deal has been done that involves original owner Adam Booth buying back the land and the brewery but both the liquidators and Booth himself say no such deal is done.
“We don’t have any news to share, I am afraid,” Booth said in an email. “I am unsure what the plans are for the brewery going forward, at this stage.”
Liquidator Kristal Pihama of KPMG said: “The sale has not yet completed so we are still unable to provide details in respect of this matter.”
Meanwhile, as I noted last week, former Pacific Coast brewer Sam Williamson has started a consultancy business after finding himself out of work when Pacific Coast went into liquidation.
I’ve included Sam’s details again here for those brewers out there reading this who want or need some advice on their products.
Tim’s Beer of the Week
The Southland-grown hops from Garston are slowly but surely working their way into new releases, and based on the few solo-hopped examples I’ve been able to get my hands on, I’m beginning to think the very nature of New Zealand beer (or at least IPA) might be about to change. Garage Project has done the work here with Picking Hops in the Snow (6% abv), driven exclusively by Garston hops.
A smooth and laidback malt character and moderate bitterness puts the hops in full focus, and the difference is remarkable. The Nelson Sauvin, Rakau and Cascade, usually pungent and tropical in their combined character, are inflected through the starkly cool climate of Southland. The result is sharp and keenly dry notes of lemon and lime zest, with a clean grassy herbaceousness and gentle honeysuckle. Whereas full-strength New Zealand IPA is typically expansive and broad in its hop character, this is quite the opposite. Poised, focused, and compact in a way that I would have previously considered unachievable without support from international hops. — Tim Newman
New hop variety with intriguing name
I wonder how many Kiwi brewers would be game to make a beer with Erebus hops?
The new hop from the Hopsteiner Breeding Program is said to have notes of blueberry, citrus, candied fruit, and floral rose. They say the name is taken from Greek lore, with Erebus “the primordial deity of darkness and son of Chaos. True to its name, Erebus™, is a bold disruptor to the world of hops.”
Given that Erebus has totally different connotations in this part of the world, I doubt this hop will get much use in New Zealand — especially given that descriptor.
Beer of the Week No 3
Laughing Bones Liquid Shade is promoted as a Summer Ale, which had me in mind of Monteith’s Summer Ale … but this is not that!
In fact, it’s an American-style wheat ale which means a clean fermentation profile rather than the usual defining esters you get from German and Belgian wheat beers.
But it does feature coriander and orange, with the woody, spicy note from the coriander adding a nice peppy, dry finish to a clean, easy-drinking, light beer.
Guinness growth explained
We’ll finish with Guinness … probably the most talked about beer in 2024 as it grows and grows in popularity.
It’s been so popular, there was talk of Guinness shortages in the Northern Hemisphere winter.
The New York Times did a great piece explaining why Guinness is so hot right now. (Marketing and an Irish cultural revival being the two main ones)
It’s behind a paywall at the NYT, but since I have an account (it’s good to pay for your news!) I think this link will take you to a version that you can read in its entirety (fingers crossed).
“The numbers are completely bananas right now,” said Oran McGonagle, an owner of the Dubliner, a two-year-old pub in Boston. In 2023, his bar sold more Guinness than any other bar or restaurant in the city. And this year, the Dubliner’s purchasing volume of the stout is up 63 percent to meet rocketing demand.
Guinness’s stateside boom is a byproduct of a larger cultural moment, said Mr. McGonagle, who is from County Donegal, Ireland. In recent years, Irish cultural figures like the actor Paul Mescal and the author Sally Rooney have introduced Americans to a cooler version of Ireland. Guinness, which was hardly trendy when he lived there, is benefiting. “Irish culture is having a big resurgence,” he said. “We’re at the peak of where we’ve ever been.”
And in the UK, Pete Brown looked at the Guinness shortage and explained why the Guinness boom is also good news for stouts in general.
That’s me for this week. I’ll be back with one more news drop before Christmas with my best-of-the-year awards.
Michael
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