Another blog about hops and I could not be happier if Quade Cooper fell over Gareth Morgan

Well, the pungent maelstrom of Hopstock 2016 has passed but that does not mean the tidal surge of fresh hopped beers is any way subsiding. My Hopstock experience was a small but intense storm – to celebrate my birthday (the last day of Hopstock) I held a mini-pub crawl and tried four different Hopstock ales. In a feat of incredible disorganisation I got exactly one stamp on my Hopstock passport. It looked like a weak performance but, still, the beers were very nice.

As green leaves before the hop hurricane fly (Hopstock 2016)

To amusement of many, I have a diary and it is made of paper. I also have the sneaking suspicion it is pink but this has not been confirmed by a trustworthy source. [1] In this diary I put in all the important annual events – my birthday, International Talk like a Pirate Day, Saint Andrews Day, International Talk like William Shatner Day, Wrestlemania Day and Super Bowl Monday. For the record, the next of these august dates is my birthday (18 April) – just saying.

Hip Hop Hooray: Bitter by Nature (Hopstock 2016)

I am a modest man with much to be modest about but I remain delighted that the New Zealand craft beer community collectively decided to mark my birthday with the now annual Hopstock festival. The fourth Craft Beer Capital Hopstock festival will take place across 21 of Wellington's best beer venues (including Malthouse and the Fork & Brewer) from April 13 to April 18 2016. Hopstock is a celebration of New Zealand's hop harvest, specifically the fresh-hopped beers that can only be crafted in a very small window following the annual hop harvest.

The six biggest stories in beer this year (Exclusive)

This morning I finally checked my confidential email account ( This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it ). [1] I can’t believe it has been six months again already... Anyway, in between thousands of LinkedIn requests from desperate brewers (no), kind offers from Nigerian princes to give me millions of dollars (no), repeated Tinder invites from Rhonda Rousey (I said “no” Rhonda) and seventy three offers of free New Zealand Herald subscriptions for life (look, if I said no to Rhonda you have no show, tiger) I did actually find the six biggest stories in New Zealand craft beer this year. [2]

Here they are in no order of importance:

This morning I finally checked my confidential email account ( This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it ). [1] I can’t believe it has been six months again already... Anyway, in between thousands of LinkedIn requests from desperate brewers (no),

Biggie Smalls – Lets rap about beer

The Notorious B.I.G returns to Malthouse on Friday 1 April... sort of. Iconic East Coast rapper Christopher George Latore Wallace, better known by his stage names The Notorious B.I.G or Biggie Smalls, was gunned down by a still unknown assailant in Los Angeles in 1997. Regarded by many as the most talented rapper in history, his prodigious musical influence lived on, including works by Jay-Z, Eminem, Lil’ Wayne, Snoop Dogg and even Michael Jackson. [1]