Beer

Brewers take a sudden fancy to cider

By Geoff Griggs - Marlborough

This week, I'm going to venture away from the comfortable world of malt and hops and steer into comparatively alien territory – cider.

Mine host charms all

By Geoff Griggs - The Marlborough Express

This week I'd like to pay tribute to two people I know who work in the New Zealand brewing industry and whose dedication and passion has recently elevated the image of this country's beer culture on the other side of the world.

A world of beer is waiting out there

By Geoff Griggs - The Marlborough Express

Ever since visiting San Diego last year to be a judge at the World Beer Cup I've been keeping my fingers crossed that I might be invited again.

Discrimination a bitter experience

By Geoff Griggs - The Marlborough Express

A visit to a local Chinese restaurant last week confirmed that although New Zealanders are becoming more discerning in their choice of beers, in the so-called "Gourmet Province" some restaurateurs have still got a fair bit to learn.

Unnatural and impure thoughts

By Geoff Griggs - The Marlborough Express

As someone who spends his time encouraging people to be adventurous in their choice of beers I find it unhelpful, to put it mildly, when brewers use confusing, ambiguous or downright inaccurate terms to describe their beers.

A delicious reason for existence

By Geoff Griggs - The Marlborough Express

Why should a newspaper have a column about beer?

Real ale a real treat for beer enthusiasts

By Angela Crompton - The Marlborough Express

It took just 45 minutes for enthusiasts to drain a small barrel of hand-pumped beer, but every drop was savoured.

Sunny days bring a Kiwi Beck's brew

By Geoff Griggs - The Marlborough Express

Now that the clocks have sprung forward and the warmest months are just around the corner, we're rapidly heading into the time of year when the majority of Kiwi beer drinkers turn their attention towards quenching golden brews.

The mother of American pale ales

By Geoff Griggs - The Marlborough Express

If, like me, you're a fan of beers like Epic Pale Ale, Renaissance Discovery or Little Creatures Pale Ale, you may know they're all interpretations of the modern American pale-ale style.

For the love of beer in October

The Marlborough Express

Blenheim's beery Oktoberfest

Age-old tradition a winner

By Geoff Griggs - The Marlborough Express

Although it's probably the hottest trend in craft brewing worldwide at the moment, making and storing beer in wooden casks was once the norm.

Here's one for the chocolate lovers

By Geoff Griggs - The Marlborough Express

This week I'm looking at a new brew from Blenheim's Renaissance Brewing.

Ah, that sweaty scent ...

By Geoff Griggs - The Marlborough Express

In last week's column I mentioned Emerson's JP, a beer brewed by Dunedin brewer Richard Emerson as a tribute to his friend and colleague, Otago University brewing scientist, Professor Jean-Pierre Dufour.

A good brew and we all win

The Marlborough Express

Last week may well have been the best in Richard Emerson's life. On Saturday he married his South African girlfriend and on Thursday evening his brewery was awarded the Champion Brewery trophy at the 2009 BrewNZ Awards. The presentation, at Wellington's Duxton Hotel, was the culmination of a glittering awards dinner; an evening that saw Emerson's dominate this year's competition.

Gluten-free and tastes good too

By Geoff Griggs - The Marlborough Express

I've been waiting to bring you this good news for a long time. Beer-loving Kiwis who suffer from coeliac disease can finally buy a locally brewed gluten-free beer. And better still, unlike many of its peers, it actually tastes pretty good!

This French beauty is a keeper

By Geoff Griggs - The Marlborough Express

Having concentrated on extremely hoppy beers in several recent columns, this week I'd like to redress the balance by featuring one of my all-time favourite malt-accented beers that's perfect for enjoying on chilly, late winter evenings as we look forward to spring. It's brewed in France, comes in a wine bottle and you'll need a corkscrew to open it.

Week of discovery brews at festival

By Geoff Griggs - The Marlborough Express

At the end of this month, Wellington will once again play host to BrewNZ, the country's annual celebration of the brewer's craft.

Top pourers perform Belgian beer ritual

by GEOFF GRIGGS - The Marlborough Express

Last week work took me to both ends of the country.

Hops over the top, but not the price

By GEOFF GRIGGS - The Marlborough Express

Last week I didn't know whether to laugh or cry when Brian Thiel, of Blenheim's Renaissance Brewing, told me an Auckland liquor retailer had refused to stock his latest seasonal release on the basis that it was too expensive.

Big reception planned for seasoned travellers

By Geoff Griggs - The Marlborough Express

By the time Pete and Melissa finally arrive in Wellington in mid-August, they'll have crossed Cook Strait about 120 times!

Ale moves into pages of history

By Geoff Griggs - The Marlborough Express

I'm devastated. I've just heard that production of one of my all-time favourite beers, Thomas Hardy's Ale, has ceased.

DB fights to keep `radler'

By Rachel Young - The Marlborough Express

DB Breweries is not backing down over trademarking the term "radler" despite a group taking legal action.

Emerson's pays tribute like no other

By GEOFF GRIGGS - The Marlborough Express

Three weeks ago one of the country's most eagerly awaited limited-release vintage beers made it into stores.

Harrington's hit the nail on the head

by Geoff Griggs - The Marlborough Express

Looking back over my columns I notice that I've hardly ever given a mention to Harrington's of Christchurch. It's high time I set that right.

Full-bodied ale delicious now or later

Geoff Griggs - The Marlborough Express

As is the case all over the world, this country's largest brewers specialise in the mass production of easy-drinking lager beers.

Fine-value stout, in returnable bottle to boot

Geoff Griggs - The Marlborough Express

Ex-patriate Lancastrian Tom Jones began his association with craft brewing in 2004, while working for Emerson's, arguably New Zealand's leading craft brewer.

Two brews that hit the mark

GEOFF GRIGGS - The Marlborough Express

In 1990, when I first visited New Zealand, the choice of beers wasn't what it is today.

The news just got better on the fine beer front

Geoff Griggs - The Marlborough Express

Dodson St Bistro & Alehouse opens

Beer pioneer has mammoth taste

GEOFF GRIGGS - The Marlborough Express

This week's column was inspired by a series of beer and cheese tastings that were held last week in Wellington.

Ancient brews of Belgium

GEOFF GRIGGS - The Marlborough Express

The concept of beers made with fruit might seem strange, but long before hops were adopted as the norm, brewers used all manner of herbs, spices and fruit to balance the natural sweetness of grain.

For exceptional value, try this German lager

The Marlborough Express

With many craft beers costing around $7 for a single bottle and some even more I'm often asked to suggest some less expensive options.

Sons continue brewing tradition

The Marlborough Express

Matt Duncan has brewing in his blood. Along with his brother Callum, Matt represents the sixth generation of brewers in a Nelson family which can trace its lineage back to the region's first brewer.

Outrage over beer label

Rachel Young - The Marlborough Express

A Blenheim man is leading the charge against a brewery which has trademarked what he considers a generic term.

Hop on board for taste of our best

The Marlborough Express

Tasting tours of Marlborough's wineries have been available for many years but, to my knowledge, there's never been a beer equivalent.

Take a gamble on a glass of Roulette

The Marlborough Express

With a reputation as one of New Zealand's most innovative craft brewers, Blenheim's Graeme Mahy has already seen keen interest in his fledgling brand, 666 Brewing, from around the country.

For a taste of Britain, head to Auckland

The Marlborough Express

In Britain today, like in most places around the world, the most widely consumed beers are golden lagers.

How can a company own a style?

The Marlborough Express

Brewers' rights

Sun shines on Nelson

The Marlborough Express

What a difference a week makes! Last Saturday Pip and I were getting drenched at the Havelock Mussel festival; a week later we were bathing in the warm autumn sunshine in Nelson's Founders Heritage Park.

Great time, but where was the local beer?

The Marlborough Express

As far as I'm concerned last Saturday's Havelock Mussel Festival ended up as a complete washout and not just because of the weather.

Anything but twisted a perfect night of beer and cheese

The Marlborough Express

The opportunity to sample the great cask-conditioned ales at The Twisted Hop brewpub is usually reason enough for Pip and I to make a trip to Christchurch.

Mac's set to hop into Aust market

GEOFF GRIGGS - The Marlborough Express

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.