Brewjolais was first created in 2006 at Mac’s Wellington brewery and was brewed annually for five years running until Mac’s brewing relocated to Christchurch. Unfortunately, the 2011 Christchurch earthquakes interrupted this tradition, but now Brewjolais is finally back!
This year’s hops were harvested just days before New Zealand entered lockdown when a special ops team from Mac’s and Little Creatures went on a mercy dash to Motueka. Hops were picked fresh off the vine from the very finest selection of hop varieties at the coincidentally named Mac Hops farm, then flown back to Auckland arriving at Little Creatures newest brewery in Hobsonville where, mere hours after being picked, they were added to the brew to produce what’s known as a “Fresh Hop” beer.
The beer was brewed at Little Creatures Brewery in Hobsonville to take full advantage of the unique brew kit which includes a hop back to get the most out of the whole hop cones. Something that Little Creatures does with all of their beers. Now the special brew is nearly ready for Kiwis to enjoy!
“Each year’s vintage is always a little different, as is the tradition with Brewjolais. This brew is a dry, hoppy one with notes of tropical fruits, nectarine and mandarin zest that lingers well after the last sip”, said Mac’s Brand Manager, Ben Fisher.
Little Creatures Brewer, Udo van Deventer, said the end result is an unfiltered beer that retains as much character of the hops as possible. “It’s a delicious medium bodied Mac’s with some juiciness, but a dry finish accentuated by some lingering bitterness that cleanses the palate”.
"The original plan was to provide kegs to bars across New Zealand, but there’s so many things that didn’t go according to plan! But thanks to Little Creatures and Crafty Canners, we’ve managed to get Brewjolais canned on site and it will be available from 12 May. It’s definitely a brew to remember given the hurdles we have jumped over to bring this to market! Hopefully this is a tradition we can reignite and continue for years to come," said Fisher.
