Beer tour N.Island advice, please

[Barbara Joppa]

I blame you all. You have turned me into a craft beer obsessed nerd with your talk of amazing beers out there to be had. When I am thinking of where we could go on holiday, all I can think to do is tour around looking for great NZ beer. No more tropical beaches with great diving but crap beer for this girl. We will also need to plan the trip for when the garden is done (May?)

 

We will likely only take a week (limited annual leave, plus paying for a kennel for two dogs is $$$) so we will limit this first trip to the North island. We are based in Auckland so we need ideas for where to travel heading towards Wellington.

I have checked out beertourist.co.nz but many of the listings are out of date. And it is always great to get advice from you (since, as I said, this is your fault).

 

Advice of where to go, what to miss, who does tours, etc?

Cheers!

[JoKing]

Come visit me in New Plymouth if you like.

[jt]

Yea, call in on the way home, phone in the malt & hop order from Wanganui and it'll be all weighed & packed by the time  you get there :-)

[Raffe]

Also near New Plymouth is the Wassail Brauhaus, (www.brauhaus.co.nz) a great B&B and brewery. The beer is lovely and the host great for a yarn.

[Pilgrim]

And after you've called in to see Joking, you would be remiss not to stop in at 'The Pilgrim's Rest' in Wanganui. Any member of RBNZ is welcome to tour 'The Weary Pilgrim' brewery.

[Greig McGill]

Well, you know you're welcome here in the mighty 'tron, and yes, I still have that beer waiting for you, though it's tempting me each day! I was going to bring it to the WBC, but figured all those other thirsty pissheads will drink it and you'd get nowt but a drip! ;)

 

Anyway, come here, we can do:

 

* A nice tasting around here, with a few local homebrewers and maybe the Devil himself if we draw the pentagram and chant the occult rite properly. He usually has some good beer ready for tasting. His last summer ale was a stunner.

 

* A session at Gothenburg (Hamilton, and possibly NZ's best Belgian/Euro selection, bar none)

 

* A session at the legendary Ruakura Campus Club

 

* A session at House on Hood

 

* Maybe a visit to one of the smallest microbreweries in NZ - Shunters Yard - if we can tee it up with them.

 

Cheers,

 

Greig.

[Andrew]

If I was to give advice. I'd say do it the other way around. I'd fly to Christchurch (flights are really cheap). Make you way through the Christchurch bars and brewpubs, maybe go to Dunedin and see Green Man and Emersons? Then make your way up through the hop growing area (visit Mussel Inn etc) and get the ferry across to Welly and soak up the big craft beer bars (Malthouse & Hashigo).

   Thats just my view. There are some great breweries in the North Island but not so may craft beer bars in places like Taupo, Rotorua etc. Best bang for you buck would be in the S.I and bottom of the north in my mind. By the way, great idea, do you need a luggage handler?

[Andrew]

Allllso, I like the sound of Greigs line-up. Martin Bridges SOBA man of honour, we need a bus trip from Auckland arranged!!!

[Greig McGill]

Didn't we try that last year? I don't think anybody was keen.

 

Hrm, also, on the topic of Rotorua, I've been meaning to blog about The Last Drop Village Inn. What a fantastic night I had there last Saturday. I might combine it with the one I've been meaning to write about how amazing Tahi bar in Warkworth was. I never seem to get around to these things!

[Andrew]

We could have had our own SOBA meeing! I was in Rotorus last week as well. Struggled to find a good bar though. Now I know where to look out for.

[Greig McGill]

I think I tweeted! ;) Twitter: where it's at, yo. *flashes gangsigns*.

[Andrew]

I do apologise.....homey. Must try harder next time.

[Stu McKinlay]

grabaseat to Dunedin... then Chch, Blenheim, Nelson (and surrounds, which need a couple of days) and then fly home. Yeh, I like Andrew's idea.

 

In Wellington though?  Try this... Get accomodation at northern end of CBD.  Bus out to Newtown for lunch and a few pints at Bar Edward. 15-20min walk to The Hop Garden on Pirie Street for pints and nibbles.  You could stop at Regional Wines and Spirits on the way. Salivate there and make a purchase for them to ship home for you. 5min to Malthouse for a couple more, 3min to Hashigo for one or two... 5min to Bruhaus for another one or two... and maybe dinner there... or dine at D4, where you can have also your last couple before collapsing into bed.  An easy walk, and will give you enough of an impression of the place to see where you'll settle in for a session the next day.

 

And there's plenty of great beer-friendly restaurants now too!!