Realbeer Members Top 10 beers of 2009

[Mike Neilson]

Well I thought I would start a topic of the best beers of 2009, my list from 10th to 2009's most memorable most Inspirational and when I was drinking them I was just smiling from ear to ear!!

10) My Smoked Porter, Gold Medal @ NHC

9) Townshends No9 Stout @ Beervana

8) Epic Porter 2007?? or was it 06???

7) Rogue XS Stout 2006

6) MMMMft4CH (Me Joking and Tyler colabaration)

5) Green Flash IPA

4) Yakima Monster Batch 1

3) Pliny the Elder

2) Hallertau Porter Noir

1) 8 Wired HopWired
Has to beer the best beer of '09' not only because its that good its because 98% of its Kiwi!! but because it was raw!! Drinkable and a Shootgun of flavours I couldnt drink this beer enough!! Cheers Soren and long let Brian and Andy to continue to brew along their fantastic range!!!

Cheers

[Matthew]

Don't be embarrassed. Just keep brewing it!

Thanks for reminding me about Emerson's JP09. I loved it. Also Nerdherder D needs to get added. I thought it rivaled Mayhem for Riwaka goodness :D

[Stu McKinlay]

'D' on tap at home right now... if anyone is passing by today or tomorrow.

[jt]

If only there was a better bus schedule past K Bay ...

[Michael]

I keep hearing about this Nerherder brew. I will see if it is at the Malthouse or somewhere to give it a go.

[Steph]

Great list but I am sure that 3 beers from the same brewery don't count as one!!

[Steph]

After the joy of Beervana, I hardly even know where to begin. In no particular order:
1. All of Mike's homebrews were awesome; including the one he brewed for Jonny and me. They def deserve a mention
2. 3 Boys Golden Ale; this is my beer of the moment. Just went to Bar Ed for a pint but it was closed (dam it).
3. 3 Boys Oyster Stout; delicious winter brew.
4. Pelican Saison; scored a bottle after Beervana and fell in love, could drink it til the cows come home.
5. Bridge Rd Chevailer Saison; I really love this style of beer and this was a real find while in Aussie.
6. The Dissident (Deschutes); I only had a wee sip of this but, jeepers it was delicious and slighty sour. The website says to drink it with macaroni and cheese!!
7. Mussel Inn Capitan Cooker; The more I drunk of this, the more I wanted to drink. It was exciting to have it on tap about town.
(Am surprised I have put an IPA or an APA yet...What is going on here?).
8. 8 Wired HopWired; Go Soren - you def deserve all the ups. Am looking forward to purchasing the brew in the bottle.
9. 666 Averice; when are these 66 beers going to become commerically available.
10. Moa RIS in the little bottles Dave sent me; pretty delicious brew. Hope the big bottles taste just a good (as I have 4 in my cellar).

I could go on and on...The Renaissance MPA is always worth a stem or two (no one will give me a pint of it). The Cascade and Coopers stouts are always an awesome deal; you can buy them in the supermarket, they are between $10-15 a six pack and boring buggers at work wont try and steal them off you!! The Wig and Pen range in Canberra was exceptional...shame we can't get their Flanders Red, Vienna or Stout in the bottle over here. I cannot believe I haven't mentioned His Majesty either...As Stu knows, it has been my "year of beer" so I have just had too many great beers. What is awsome is how many are from NZ; and how great it is we can get such good beer here (in Welly especially).

Am off to Hashigo pre and post dinner this evening. Sound like they have an all-star NYE line up so I might need to update before midnight!!

Also have to say I have had more than 10 top beer moments this year:
1. Mike showing Jonny and me how to brew
2. Stewarding at Brew NZ
3. Winning the Beer options with the team
4. Sunday training with the team (the All Saaz) and Russ' awesome chilli con carne
5. Stu coming to my birthday at Bar Ed and Fritha recognising me from my Real Beer photo
6. The WBC; great day (regardless of the outcome). I must load up the photos
7. Meeting all the awesome volunteers at Beervana; I have made some great new friends
8. The arrival of Hashigo Zake (I would say the opening, but it has not been the most memorable of all the nights there).
9. Marlborough beer tasting at Regionals with Roger Pink and Brian (and those 666 beers)
10. The Emerson's JP tasting at mine with all the original JPs using the different yeast strains...What an event.

Maybe lastly, sitting on my front porch drinking Nerdherder in the sun while I write this. Looking forward to the evening ahead, and impressed I still have all my limbs after cracking out the chainsaw for the first time ever today and cutting some trees down in the back garden. Some people where born to be pyros, I think I was born to chainsaw and hedge trim!! (Oh, and going out with Crabbe when he was in Welly was fun too bet you he i sloving those Indian lagers).

[Ally Mcg]

Most inspirational beers for the year for me had me thinking for a bit but here goes (and in no order, other than the way i remember them)

My original Black Francis for CS2. First (and perhaps only) good beer I've brewed. Shame there wasn't more

Mikes American Rye Amber from the same CS - got me being a bit more creative in the home brewery

Pliny the Elder on tap at Russian River - I swear the pint glass had its own aura.

Green Flash IPA at Toronado.

The other beers I had at Toronado - not so much for the beers, which were pretty fine, but for the vibe. That sounds stupidly pretentious, but the place is simply an awesome place to drink beer

Yeastie Boys His Majesty. The benchmark for NZ IPA's has been set

Twisted Hop Sauvin Pils, drinking in the sun after football with a fractured ankle (unknown at the time) when I really should have got home to put ice on it, but the beer was too good.

NZNBC Deliverance Dortmunder - Only one keg at Poms but i like to think i put a good dent in it.

Epic Mayhem in the sun at the end of last summer.

Invercargill Brewery Smoking Bishop. Great beer, great brewery. Would also add the Biman which I don't think gets quite enough love but thats probably just my perception.

Cheers all, and hopefully there will be even more inspirational drinking to be had in 2010

[Bambule]

Ahh 2009, it was a great year for beer, although I'm not going to try and list the top 10 beers for me as I didn;t try nearly enough of them, although I would just list a few memorable moments.

1)Probably the most impressive and inspirational has been the advent (pioneered by YBs in 2008) of homebrewers contract brewing their own beer for commercial sale. Yeasties, 8 wired, Golden ticket... will 2010 see anymore?

2) Although Emersons truly deserved their champion brewer award, most already new they were great..it was fact. What brewery has impressed me most this year has been 3 boys; their beer improved out of sight. Golden ale, IPA and the Oyster Stout we're all incredible at certain times this year.

3)Agree with Steph, 666 brewing, many remained poised for these beers to become commercially available.

4) The WBC in Wellington and actually meeting some home brewers, too many times I feel like a fanatical social psychopath talking beer with people, great to geek out with outher beer nerds.

5) Getting a beer belly, in my mash tun...

6) Converting two locals to all grain brewing and working on two more for 2010.

7) Hashigo Zake, I love the malthouse but Hashigo has it all over it for ambience (pronouced in a french accent).

8) Emersons Brewers reserve at Regionals.

9) Working at brew nz

10) And lastly being able to buy 3 boys, Yeastie Boys, Epic Mayhem & Armageddon, Renaissance and others from Moore Wilsons in Masterton, saved my life.

[jt]

5) Getting a beer belly,

Had one awhile, but boy it's hard work keeping it in good shape

[Pint_of_Bitter]

I think there needs to be a nomination for Galbraiths in here somewhere for the pure reason: - Because it is perpetually faarken there.

Stopped in this afternoon for the first time in a while and it never dissappoints.

[denimglen]

Hey! I nominated them :-P

[Pint_of_Bitter]

True. I seconded it then.