Zeelandt "Back on the Horse" with special beer

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Happy Friday ahead of a pseudo-long weekend beer lovers.

Because there’s a potentially 4-day weekend in store for those of you who managed to add a Monday holiday in before Anzac Day, we’ve got an extra beer of the week for you, including three great fresh hop beers that for me, anyway, are setting a benchmark so far.

First up, I’m super impressed with the team at Zeelandt Brewing for their attitude in producing Back on the Horse, a New Zealand-style IPA to raise money for those impacted by Cyclone Gabrielle in Hawke’s Bay.

Not only are Zeelandt trying to rebuild their own business following the devastating effects of the floods but they’re also taking time to raise money for the emergency workers who helped victims of the flooding in February.

Owner-brewer Chris Barber says Zeelandt are moving to contract brewing after floods and silt destroyed the brewery, including all stock and equipment.

“We’ve spent a lot of time thinking about how we rebuild, and what the future looks like.  We love what we do and are committed to our business and our customers.

“Over the short term we are contract brewing in Auckland so we can continue getting Zeelandt beer to customers, with the first batches of beer being available towards the end of April.

“We are also launching a new fundraising beer, called Back on the Horse, to benefit local first responders and our local community trust.”

And the story behind the name is pretty cool: it’s inspired by a small wooden horse that remained standing on Chris and Luciana Barber’s property after floodwaters receded. Chris’s father Les built the wooden horse in the vege garden for his two grandchildren to play on. While the force of the floodwaters took away the sheds and cars that surrounded it, the horse remained. To Chris, this was a sign that the only way for the community to move on from this event was to get back on the horse.

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Beer of the week No 1

It’s understood now that Hop Federation sets the benchmark for fresh hop beers every year. It’s no wonder, given their proximity to the bines in Riwaka, including a farm owned by parent company Kono. And this year’s edition is the freshest it’s ever been. Brewer Simon Nicholas was on something of a mission this year, with all the hops in the beer coming from the 2023 harvest. This includes Taiheke, Nelson Sauvin and Southern Cross pellets which were picked and pelletised, at Plant & Food, on the same day. He then used fresh, whole cone Nelson Sauvin. The texture is just what you want in a freshie, it’s tacky, almost waxy and it feels like you really are drinking something special. My wife, on having her first sip, exclaimed: “It’s so fresh!” The greenness of the hops expresses itself with an almost savoury, spring onion note before giving way to some dank and grape. I found this one better after it had warmed a tad and opened up. Straight from the fridge the flavours and aromas were tight but they flowed nicely in the second half of the glass as the malt warmed. It’s an experience.

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Booktown ticket giveaway.

If you’re in the proximity of Featherston on May 14, come and join me, legendary brewer Richard Emerson and Beervana manager Ryan McArthur for a live chat on the story behind the story of The Hopfather, Richard’s amazing life story.

Why Featherston?

Featherston is New Zealand’s only “Booktown” and next month the Wairarapa town will be celebrating the eighth Featherston Booktown Karukatea Festival.

What’s a Booktown?

A Booktown is a small rural town or village, close to major cities, in which second-hand and antiquarian bookshops are concentrated. Booktowns are an international phenomenon, celebrating books, from their stories through to their paper, glue and ink.

Right now, I’ve got a double pass to give away, so if you’d like to go, email me at michael@hoppiness.co.nz and I’ll draw a winner early next week.

There’s plenty of other events over the weekend of May 12-14 and I will be hanging around on Sunday to listen to another Dunedin legend, Shayne Carter, talk about writing his book Dead People I Have Known.

And if you want to get on book your own tickets to my chat with Richard, you can do it here.