The Waipara New England IPA from Brew Moon Brewing Company in Amberley gained a top 30 placing in the recent New World Beer & Cider Awards, beating out over 600 other entrants.
The ranking means the beer will be stocked at more than 140 New Worlds for at least four weeks.
While the Brew Moon team are no strangers to awards, having won numerous medals for their wide range of brews at the New Zealand Beer Awards over the years, the glory of appearing in fridges nationwide is a real bonus.
‘‘We are stoked that a beer named after a little North Canterbury town is going to be picked up by supermarkets nationwide,’’ says Brew Moon Brewery Manager Oscar McCauley.
‘‘Waipara translates from Māori as muddy water, so it's a pretty apt name for a Hazy IPA.
‘‘We love naming our beers after our local towns so we hope this win will bring a little bit of North Canterbury into homes all over New Zealand, and open beer drinkers up to what we’re doing down here in Amberley.’’
The awards judges dubbed Brew Moon’s Waipara New England IPA an excellent beer with great hop intensity.
Brew Moon head brewer Andy Duke describes it as a super-fruity, aromatic number hopped with varieties from New Zealand and the United States.
‘‘There’s lots of citrus and tropical hop character, a wee bit of sweetness and a nice clean finish.
The brew is part of Brew Moon’s core offering and has been in production since 2019.
In that time it has won multiple medals under previous Head Brewer, Becs Cope, and more recently under Mr Duke.
The New World Beer & Cider Awards is in its 10th year.
Each of the 600-plus entries into this year's competition underwent an initial round of judging to find 74 Gold Medal standard brews.
Another round of judging resulted in the top 30 list.
Chair of judges Michael Donaldson said it was no easy feat.
‘‘We had a record tally of 74 beers and ciders of Gold Medal standard make it through to the second round of judging.
‘‘This far surpassed previous years, and gave the judges a welcome headache as they sorted them into order for the Top 30, and a further 20 highly commended.
‘‘Those numbers reflect what a cutthroat competition this is, and separating the excellent from the outstanding was harder than ever.’’
Mr McCauley says they are thrilled the amazing judging panel, which includes some of New Zealand’s top brewers, ranked their beer so highly.
‘‘We were up against some absolutely legendary brews, as well as some phenomenal new ones, so this placing is a huge testament to our brewing team here at Brew Moon.’’
Brew Moon Brewing Company is a small, locally-owned brewery and taproom, established in 2002.
North Canterbury’s original craft brewery, Brew Moon, produces an established range of high-quality, popular beer styles alongside a selection of more exotic seasonal brews.
Their brewery, taproom and kitchen can be found at 12 Markham St, Amberley.
Visit your local New World to find Brew Moon’s Waipara New England IPA in stock.
- The full list of winners at the 2024 New World Beer & Cider Awards can be found here.
