The 12 Beers of Christmas
It’s not a definitive lineup, but if you’re looking for festive brews, here’s Michael Donaldson’s wish list.
Ipreface the following list with the plain fact that it’s now impossible for me – or anyone – to sample all the beer produced in New Zealand in a given year. I’d struggle to keep up with the output of breweries in a 25km radius of my house… so there’s nothing definitive about this festive dozen, except to say it’s what I’d buy for myself.
Snappiest summer pilsner: Last summer I couldn’t get enough of ParrotDog Pandemonium. It’s dry and delicate but driven by an underlying juicy and slightly dank Australian hop character.
IPA, IPA, IPA: Epic, the kings of IPA, have been expanding their realm in 2017, banging out a new IPA every month it seems. The one that stood out was Epic Static IPA. The use of New Zealand Riwaka hops was a good move; the tropical fruits over savoury bitterness works a treat.
Freshen up: Like a cold dip in the lake on a hot Queenstown day in summer, Altitude Brewing Powder Day Pilsner is a perfect pick-me-up.
Out to sea and never coming back: Garage Project Mutiny on the Bounty would be an amazing gift for any beer lover – just for the packaging – but inside it’s the most decadent and other-worldly stout made with vanilla, coconut, breadfruit and roasted plantain. Complex, lush, loveable.
It’s Christmas, have Chocolate: If there’s one beer I’ve seen open people’s minds it’s Behemoth Triple Chocolate Milk Stout. Eyes literally widen in delight, smiles appear from nowhere and glasses get proffered for more.
A visitor from Hawke’s Bay: Actually, you probably have to visit Hawke’s Bay to find it, but it’s worth the trip for the Brave Brewing XPA. Light body, easydrinking with smooth bitterness and wonderful walk-in-the-pines aroma.
Sweet and spicy: Outlier Cartel Wunderkammer is one of those beers that stays with you because it’s so different. A gruit beer, brewed without hops, its marzipan sweetness is tempered by bitter cinnamon spice – would make an ideal Christmas Day drop. Americano: Birkenhead Brewing’s collaboration with standout American brewery Ninkasi, Beautiful Trouble marries Kiwi and American hops into a sublime, complex, delicious mix. My fave IPA of 2017. The distinctive 888ml bottle offers good value too. Everything please: Liberty Brewing’s Halo Pilsner could have made this list, or The Kush IPA, but I adored the High Carb Ale with its huge malt bill and complementary bitterness. It was just more of everything that’s great about beer.
Take it easy: Brixton Pale Ale from newcomer Urbanaut is a wonderfully understated English-style pale ale with great balance, complex malt and firm but fair hopping. At 4.4 per cent, one of the best session beers of 2017.
Kiwi as, bro: Boneface feels like the new Panhead – it’s in Upper Hutt, brewer Matt Dainty used to be at Panhead and the packaging it spot on. The beers are SUPERB. The Unit NZIPA is everything you want from a modern IPA jammed with fragrant Kiwi hops.
Fruits of summer: Craftwork Bruxelles Ma Belle is a sour beer made with Central Otago apricots and aged in oak barrels. It’s restrained and delicate but powerful enough to be transportive. It sings Christmas.