AN ODE TO NEW ZEALAND INGREDIENTS: THE KIWI SERIES

Many of us know New Zealand from its popularization in the film versions of the Lord of the Rings. Its luscious green landscapes captivated a generation of people from all across the globe.  Since that time, hops from New Zealand’s rich landscapes have also captivated brewers from all across the globe. Although hops have been grown in New Zealand for more than a century, it was only in the mid-20th century that hop research and breeding programs began to take off there.  It is still a fairly small country whose land mass could fit into the lower half of the East Coast of the US making the hop growing regions even smaller and these desirable hops even harder to get.

The inspiration for the project was a collab brew with NZ hops back in 2022 featuring the New Zealand 102 experimental hop now known Super Delic. It was our Head Brewer Megan’s first time working with this variety and the beer got rave reviews from guests at the Taproom. From there, a spark was formed and other brews such as “Light of Earendil” and “The One Beer” became love letters to the New Zealand hop. Head Brewer Megan Parisi notes, “These hops are really beautiful and very powerful. They feature lots of tropical qualities that are different in each one and work well in both lagers and ales which is what drew me to them. They’re very versatile and they pack a lot of punch. Everyone knows Nelson for its vinous, wine grape-like character but getting to know a lot of the other varieties over the last couple of years has been a lot of fun too.” We’re excited to trial a new small batch brew every month for the rest of 2024 at our Downtown Boston Taproom, built for this kind of public experimentation for all us to enjoy.  

While we’ll be continuously trying out new hop blends, the key hop stars will be Wai-iti, Motueka, and Nelson Sauvin. Wai-iti is known as having a great hop aroma with fresh peaches and apricot characteristics, Motueka has a distinctive fresh crushed citrus “mojito” lime character and Nelson Sauvin features distinctive New World white wine characters. Some of these brews will be distinctively dry-hopped to extract more hop essential oils, adding to the aroma of the beer and really highlighting these powerhouse hops.

Here’s a look at the timeline of expected releases:  

April – Looking Glass: New Zealand Pilsner dry-hopped Wai-iti, New Zealand 101 and Nectaron hops inspired by the Mirror Lakes

May – White Sand Beaches: Mexican Lager inspired brew with Waimea, Wai-iti and Nectaron hops inspired by Maitai Bay

June – Beer of Plenty: Persimmon and Orange Ale with Nelson Sauvin hops inspired by the Bay of Plenty region

August – Spa Day Lager: Mojito-Inpired Lager w/ Motueka Hops inspired by New Zealand’s Geo-thermal hot springs.

And more to come!