Top 10 New Zealand Beers of 2006

Having been a bit busy of late, and everyone getting their top 10 beers list in already, I have finally compiled the official RealBeer.co.nz Top Ten New Zealand Beers of 2006.

Using the usual method of totaling up all the awards won from the three beer awards in Australia & New Zealand. I know that this method was controversial last year and probably will be again this year. The awards were given to the beers that were judged blind by multiple panels of experts.


So here is the Top 10 Beer

1. Epic Pale Ale - 1x Supreme Champion, 2x Best in Class, 2x Gold, 2x Silver
2. Monks Habit - Cock & Bull - 2x Best in Class, 2x Gold, 2x Silver
3= Macs Sassy Red - 2x Best in Class, 1x Gold, 1x Silver
3= Steinlager - 2x Best in Class, 1x Gold, 1x Silver
5. Limburg Olde Reserve - 1x Best in Class, 2x Gold,
6. Emersons Taieri George 1x Best in Class, 1x Gold, 1x Bronze
7= Alpine Ale - Dux de Lux - 1x Best in Class, 1x Gold,
7= Canturbery Draught 1x Best in Class, 1x Gold,
7= Mayhem - Epic 1x Best in Class, 1x Gold,
7= Speights Distinction Ale 1x Best in Class, 1x Gold,
7= White Rock Wheat - Martinborough 1x Best in Class, 1x Gold,

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Kiwis raise glasses to a record year

Stewart said: "We're not necessarily drinking more - we're certainly drinking better."

We are spending at least 25 per cent more on alcohol than we did nine years ago. We spent almost a billion dollars on alcohol in supermarkets this year, according to AC Nielsen data.

Mainstream beers and white cask wine were the only categories not to pull in piles more cash than last year - the spend on premium beers was up an astounding 22.2 per cent and white bottled wines up 15.1 per cent.

Red and fortified wines were close behind, ringing up an extra 13.8 and 10.6 per cent respectively.

Overall wine sales in supermarkets leapt from $500m in 2004 to $607m this year, while beer jumped from $287m to $344m in the same period.

Nicki Stewart, chief executive of the Beer Wine and Spirits Council, said across the board, alcohol consumption was either climbing or steady. "Beer - overall consumption, total, is flat. Wine has risen a little bit but not as much as it has in the past. Spirits are up - mainly due to the RTD market."

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Beer as if it mattered

Tis the season for talking about the best beers of 2006 and the good people at Hallertau assembled "a mix of beer drinkers and beer makers" to rate a large number of New Zealand beers according to the ratebeer.com methodology.

The results are fascinating but more importantly they are here.

Pre-Christmas Happy Hour

As the festive season is almost upon us and the mainstream media getting ready to hibernate, I thought I would put up some summer links to recent articles over at the Ale Files:

The Cellar Vate Beer Club decide on their beer of the year as the winners of this year's tastings go head to head here.

From the Wellingtonian (with kind permission), my top ten beers and top five Wellington bars here.

From the Free Radical (again with kind permission), my top ten beers and top ten places to drink nationwide here.

Also from the Wellingtonian, I give a frank assessment of the Loaded Hog here. This article has produced more feedback than anything else I have ever written with the only criticism being that I was not harsh enough.

Tasty details here about a big beer and food matching session at the Pride.

Finally, a bit of news. Heineken are releasing their 5-litre Draught Keg in New Zelaand. It says the patented system will keep the beer fresh for up to 30 days after opening. I haven't tapped my sample yet but it certainly looks pretty funky. Picture here.

Cheers

Neil

Beer on the Radio

I was recently interviewed for half an hour about beer in New Zealand by MP Mark Blumsky for his regular radio show.

The show will air at 9:30am Saturday 23rd December (Prime Time!) on Access Radio which broadcasts in the greater Wellington region on 783AM and on the Internet.

Topics include SOBA, awards, tours, tastings and recommendations.

Cheers

Neil

Lion keeps ready money

Lion Nathan gave its shareholders a Christmas present of sorts by deciding not to pay over the odds for New Zealand ready-to-drink maker Independent Liquor, raising the prospect that it will make capital changes instead.

Rumours of an escalating price war, with a price tag of over $1 billion for the company founded by the late Michael Erceg, were worrying investors, who felt that it would further delay the brewer's attempts to improve its profitability.

Lion Nathan has enough problems on its plate - ranging from intense competition in the Australian premium beer as well as in the New Zealand beer market, over-production in the Australian wine industry and the headache over its ownership of Wither Hills -without it paying too much for Independent Liquor. It would have been risky integrating into its existing multi-stream business a specialist company that provides ready-mixed drinks, or RTDs, for the youth market.

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Lion Nathan to sell Auckland brewery

Lion Nathan, Australia's second-largest brewer, will sell a brewery in New Zealand after dropping its bid for drinks group Independent Liquor, the Australian Financial Review said on Friday.

The paper said that Lion had planned to move the brewery in Auckland to a site where Independent has a plant.

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A New Breed of Beer Drinker

He drinks skinny chai lattes, knows the names of at least 10 clothing designers, visits the beautician and obsesses about weight gain...

Jose Vidal tells us which half-dozen the six-packed Macstrosexual will be picking up at the supermarket.

Hardly a word about the beer or the brewer.

Full story.

Independent Liquor sold to consortium

Independent Liquor (NZ) has been sold to a consortium of private equity firms Pacific Equity Partners and CCMP for an undisclosed sum, Independent Liquor said in a brief statement

The consortium beat off brewers such as Lion Nathan and DB Group owner, Asia Pacific Breweries controlled by Heineken, who pulled out because the price was judged to be too rich.

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Other Story

Tui Beer - Hidden Message in New Tui Commercial

The new tui beer commercial that has been screening this year (the one with the boys sneaking into the tui brewery to steal the beer) has a hidden message at the end.

It says:
Bird watching is a pastime we all enjoy.
Now you can even get more of an eyefull, straight to your mobile phone.
Just text TUI to TUI (884).
Texts cost 20c per message

Tui have been well known for putting easter eggs in their ads, they had messages in one of their older ads saying thank you for taking your time to watch the ad.

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Liquor bidding war too rich for Lion

The decision could be good news for New Zealand consumers, as it will probably see a third big player remain in the market, something that will keep competition keen.

Lion Nathan has confirmed it is on the hunt for buyers for its Auckland Brewery site, thought likely to fetch up to $150 million.

Agents CB Richard Ellis have been appointed to identify potential buyers for the 5.2 hectare prime Newmarket site.

Spokeswoman Liz Read said Lion was looking at the best option for production for the long term.

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1869 Ale Declared "Absolutely Amazing"

It was brewed in the year that the Suez Canal opened, Charles Dickens embarked on one of his last literary tours and the Cutty Sark was launched in Scotland.

But the recently-discovered cache of 1869 ale should have been undrinkable, given the conventional brewing wisdom that even the best beers are supposed to last no more than a couple of decades. Beer experts, however, say the 137-year-old brew tastes "absolutely amazing".

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Glass Tip: Flash

Regional Wines Christmas Gift Selection

Regional Wines has picked 6 of their favourite locally made boutique beers and packaged them in a stylishly understated gift box, perfect as a christmas gift or to take along to a BBQ. Click here for a lowdown on the contents. $28.75

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Lion Nathan looking to raise capital for Liquor bid

Trans-Tasman brewer Lion Nathan is reported to be considering issuing a hybrid equity instrument to help fund a A$1 billion ($1.15 billion) bid for New Zealand drinks group, Independent Liquor.

Lion Nathan was one of an initial six bidders which had expressed interest in the A$1.2 billion ($1.4 billion) business.

Investment bank UBS, which is running the sale process, said in August it expected to have announced a buyer by Christmas.

The deadline for bids for Independent has been set for midday tomorrow, and it is expected that private equity firm CCMP Capital and a consortium comprising two other private equity operators, Pacific Equity Partners and Nikko Principal Investments, also submit bids for the business.

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Waipa Brewery - Rotorua - For Sale

Waipa Brewery started life in 1996 in a warehouse on Old Taupo Road Rotorua as "Rotorua U Brew". This was a concept to encourage the general public to come and brew their beer in a professional environment and guarantee a high quality product.

Now, ten years later, we are a fully fledge commercial brewery and brew bar in the heart of Rotorua, where the beer is still being made by the same brew master, who is a true master of the Waipa Premium brands

For Sale on Trade Me. Ends 5th Dec

Nice bottle, shame about the beer

The first mistake I made, apart from buying the beer, was pouring it into a glass.

It is a beer that is made to be drunk from the bottle (at least you can look cool while you are drinking it).

The beer was a rich, golden yellow with a nice head that settled quickly to a watery wisp.

The nose was slightly sweet, with a hint of grain and maybe corn. It was fairly tasteless in the mouth initially, with just a hint of sweetness, and it was also almost devoid of flavour through the middle – perhaps with some malt character if I was being generous.

There was no evidence of hops in the finish – only some bitterness left in the aftertaste.

For a beer that looks so appealing, it was extremely disappointing to find it so tasteless. The lack of flavour can not be blamed on the pure filtering. This beer had no flavour from the start.

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