Mac's set to hop into Aust market

Just a few weeks after news broke that the poms will soon be sipping their way through 100,000 pints of New Zealand's multi award-winning Epic Pale Ale, it has been announced that another Kiwi craft brewer, Mac's, is about to start sending beer overseas.

According to a report in NZ Food Daily, "Mac's beer, one of New Zealand's most successful craft brews, is aiming to win a slice of the growing Australian craft beer market, with a maverick attitude and tongue-in-cheek humour."

Mac's, which won two best-in-class trophies at last year's Australian International Beer Awards the world's third biggest beer competition was the creation of Terry McCashin, a farmer, former All Black and publican from Picton who couldn't find a beer he wanted to drink, let alone one he wanted to serve to his customers.

The story goes that when told by one brewery rep that his pub would have to take what the brewery had on offer, McCashin took umbrage and decided to make his own beer. This was not accomplished without difficulty.

Six months of red tape were the first hurdle no-one in New Zealand had sought a brewing licence for 50 years and the man who knew which forms to fill out had passed away. The second problem came when the big domestic breweries deliberately bought up all stocks of bottles and caps.

But this didn't stop McCashin. Having acquired a home for his brewery an old cider factory in Nelson, he then found the solution to the bottle dilemma in its warehouse hundreds of the factory's original cider bottles, complete with rip-top caps. In 1981, Mac's beer was born in cider packaging a unique look that sets the brand apart to this day.

At a time when mainstream Kiwi beers were laden with sugar and caramel colouring (many still are), Mac's beers were made with just four ingredients: malted barley, hops, yeast and water. Kiwis embraced the idea of these so-called "natural" beers and they soon attracted a cult following.

Lion Breweries bought the Mac's brand in 1999 and, having established a state-of-the-art brewery on Wellington's waterfront, closed the old Nelson brewery last year. The company continues with Terry McCashin's original policy of producing only naturally brewed beers without additives.

Announcing the Australian launch, Mac's Australian brand ambassador Kurt Gross reiterated his company's commitment to experimentation: "We have our mainstay beers, but love to make a short-run, limited release when the creative urges hit."

It's a pity then that Mac's has chosen to ignore its more radical styles and send the Aussies three golden lagers. While Spring Tide and Mac's Gold are, in my opinion, pretty standard golden lagers, only Hop Rocker rates as one of the brewery's finest creations. Bursting with the zesty fruitiness of Nelson hops and finishing with a hefty smack of bitterness, it is an excellent example of the new generation of aromatic Pilseners that are stimulating this country's more adventurous drinkers. Cheers!

- The Marlborough Express