Beervana in Wellington NZ - August 9th/10th

[welly2]

Just got my plane ticket and Beervana tickets for that. Is anyone else planning on going along? Should be a cracking event. They're threatening over 200 beers and there's a homebrew competition. I'll take a few bottles of my Coopers DIY kit brew with me. I think I'm in the running with that!

 

[Bribie G]

I went in 2010 when it was held in the old Town Hall.
Loved Wellington, it was almost like travelling overseas.




h34r:

 

[welly2]

I went in 2010 when it was held in the old Town Hall.
Loved Wellington, it was almost like travelling overseas.




h34r:

Agreed! It was like being in another country!

 

[barls]

im flying out the week before.
might see you there.

 

[tallie]

I'll be there - first time I will have been to Wellington, but have heard a lot of great things about the beer scene. Looking forward to it! :beerbang:

 

[welly2]

Can I recommend a few pubs in Wellington, having lived there for two years a couple of years back.

Hashigo Zake - incredible range of beers and they had two handpumps when I was there last time. It's down in a basement and has a vaguely Japanese theme. Never eaten there, food always smelled good though. Just round the corner of Courtney Place on Taranaki Street towards the waterfront.

The Malthouse - same again, massive range of beer, a couple of handpumps (1 at least) - usually packed as it's on Courtney Place. Good pizzas.

The Welsh Dragon - end of Courtney Place, used to be a toilet (literally), is now a Welsh pub. Beers are average (all Monteiths on tap, if I remember rightly, which I find a fairly average beer) but is a "proper" pub and a good night is always had in that place. The landlord is a gem.

The Hop Garden - Pirie Street, Mount Victoria - just out of the main stretch of the city. Awesome food, at least one handpump, quite a few on tap, loads of bottles, the lattice roof is covered in hops, hence the name (very clever).

Those are my old regular haunts and they were all brilliant pubs. There are a bunch more that have opened since I left - D4, The Tap Haus, The Bruhaus and a few others but having never been to any of those, I can't comment.

 

[Bribie G]

Don't forget to make your first stop the Irish Pub on the corner of Courtney Place. Take the opportunity to drink a few pints of what the locals drink on tap, so you can "attune" the taste buds.. Export Gold, Tui, etc.
I think when you visit another country rather than take your prejudices with you, it's important to see what base the locals are coming from. I found the local tap beers, whilst modest in alcohol, to be very clean and quaffable with none of the metallic mouse piss character of VB or Tooheys or XXXX - very well made if bland. The off to the Malthouse :beerbang: :beerbang: :beerbang:

 

[Jace89]

I'm heading over, I cannot wait!

Me and the misses are heading over 2 weeks earlier and are renting a motor home and trekking across NZ. Im as excited as a little school boy, there are some many great places I want to check out I'm not sure 2 weeks is enough.

 

[Bribie G]

Don't forget to spend some time pokin' around Wellington, it's gorgeous and you may be lucky enough to get some T Shirt weather like when we were there.

 

[welly2]

Don't forget to spend some time pokin' around Wellington, it's gorgeous and you may be lucky enough to get some T Shirt weather like when we were there.

welly.jpg

Either that or the wind will pick you up and dump you in Wellington Harbour.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UfFeciu8N7s

 

[wbosher]

Wow I can't believe all of the nice comments about Wellington, I live and work here and think it's a dump. I guess when you live somewhere you often miss a lot of the good things as you just go about your daily life.

 

[welly2]

Wow I can't believe all of the nice comments about Wellington, I live and work here and think it's a dump. I guess when you live somewhere you often miss a lot of the good things as you just go about your daily life.

You think it's a dump? Wow.. I lived there for two years and loved it, I still miss it. I lived down in Island Bay and never got bored of the view on the way home via Lyall Bay, Houghton Bay etc.. it was beautiful!

 

[wbosher]

You think it's a dump? Wow.. I lived there for two years and loved it, I still miss it. I lived down in Island Bay and never got bored of the view on the way home via Lyall Bay, Houghton Bay etc.. it was beautiful!

I was referring mainly to the city itself. Some of the outer suburbs and beaches are very nice in the summer...bloody horrible place in the Winter though unless you're sitting in a nice warm pub out of the wind.

 

[tallie]

Thanks for the tips, welly2 & Bribie. My partner has been there a few times in the last couple of years and has cousins over there, so we've already got a few places lined up. I hadn't heard about the Welsh Dragon though - will have to duck in at some point, as it sounds like my kind of pub.

 

[welly2]

Thanks for the tips, welly2 & Bribie. My partner has been there a few times in the last couple of years and has cousins over there, so we've already got a few places lined up. I hadn't heard about the Welsh Dragon though - will have to duck in at some point, as it sounds like my kind of pub.

If you do, ask for a "man pint" when you order your beer.

 

[Bribie G]

Either that or the wind will pick you up and dump you in Wellington Harbour.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UfFeciu8N7s

Note the electric trolley bus at 1:48 - love those things, took me back to my childhood in the UK before they replaced them with diesels because they were more modern. Idiots.

 

[Bribie G]

If you do, ask for a "man pint" when you order your beer.

Yes one of the Macs Brewery "pint" glasses mysteriously ended up in my luggage and I note that it's more of a schooner size.

 

[Florian]

well, by great coincidence I booked flights to Wellington yesterday to visit an old school mate who married a Kiwi girl and ended up in Wellington.

Only found out afterwards that Beervana is on at the same dates, will be there from Wednesday to Sunday.

Mate started kit brewing a while ago, so chances are good that we'll somehow end up there.
Haven't really looked into the program yet, is it comparable to ANHC, with lectures all day, or is it more a relaxed 'taste all the beers we have' event?

 

[barls]

its a taste the beers we have kinda like the gabf.

 

[wbosher]

Last night we just had the worst storm in about 45 years apparently, since the Wahini disaster..150 to 200kph winds!!!