Your local guide to the best breweries in New Zealand: from South to North

New Zealand has excellent options around the country for innovative craft beer at pubs, tap rooms and breweries. Photo / Evan Dvorkin

Dive into New Zealand’s craft beer scene where festivals are just the tip of the iceberg. Discover its true spirit in the buzzing local pubs and taprooms. Let Brett Atkinson lead you on a city-wide hop, showcasing the array of unique brews available all year round in the heart of our major cities.

Northland and Auckland

Wood-fired pizza partners with McLeods’ award-winning brews at the Pizza Barn in Waipū's former post office.

Further south in Matakana, 8 Wired’s Barrelworks specialises in sour and barrel-aged beers, and food trucks drop by most weekends.

Clayton and Geoff Gwynne of McLeod's Brewery, Waipu. Photo / Supplied

Food trucks — including Lucky Taco and Miso-ra Ramen — regularly team with beers from Urbanaut and Yeastie Boys at Urbanaut's Kingsland brewery, while other nearby venues along the Auckland Beer Mile include The Beer Spot, the Auckland taproom of Wellington's Garage Project, and Galbraith's Alehouse. Try their British-influenced ales and definitely book ahead for Galbraith's popular Sunday roast.

At the city end of Dominion Rd, Churly’s Brew Pub & Eatery offers housemade charcuterie partnering with big and bold beers from Behemoth Brewing. Settle into an Auckland winter with Behemoth’s smooth Good Morning Vietnam imperial stout made with Vietnamese coffee.

Elsewhere in Auckland, Epic’s Onehunga taproom is open on Friday, Saturday and Sunday afternoons, with one of the country’s pioneering craft breweries also partnering with local food trucks.

Hamilton

There are now Good George brewpubs around the Waikato region — and also harbourside at Mission Bay and Wynyard Quarter in Auckland — but their original Hamilton location in Frankton’s historical Church of St George is still the best.

More world-famous-in-the-Waikato beers are poured at Brewaucracy’s taproom just north of the city in industrial Te Rapa and the best bar in town on Hood St’s after-dark strip is Craft. Open the unmarked door at nearby Wonder Horse for more crafty surprises.

Wellington

Rightly regarded as one of the world’s best beer cities, the nation’s capital combines some of NZ’s trailblazing craft breweries with more recently established neighbourhood brewpubs. Begin northeast of the city at Brewtown in Upper Hutt where Panhead, Boneface, Te Aro Brewing and Kereru all have adjacent taprooms.

North of the city in Paraparaumu, Tuatara and Duncan’s Brewing both have cellar doors — while further north on the Kapiti Coast, the Salt & Wood Collective showcases local beers from North End Brewery.

Garage Project is just one of Wellington's must-visit craft beer breweries and bars. Photo / Rebecca Zephyr Thomas

Back in the city, there's always interesting brews on the 40 taps at Fork & Brewer, with maestro Kelly Ryan continually tinkering with new hops, yeasts and brewing styles. Even more innovative are the beers from Garage Project in Te Aro. Fans of brewing's more experimental trends should seek out GP's barrel-aged sour beers and wild-fermented Wild Workshop brews.

Reflecting trends in popular beer destinations like Portland, Oregon, Wellington’s new band of smaller, neighbourhood-focused breweries include Heyday Beer Co, Fortune Favours and Choice Bros at Husk Bar & Eatery. A final essential Wellington beer destination is Parrotdog’s taproom south of the city at Lyall Bay.

Christchurch

There’s more craft beer and wood-fired pizza wizardry at Cassels & Sons Brewing amid the heritage vibe of The Tannery in Woolston — their warming and winter-friendly Milk Stout was judged the world’s best in 2019 — while Pomeroy’s Old Brewery Inn is another contender for the city’s cosiest drinking spot.

Keep an eye out for local brews from the Beer Baroness. The city's pre-earthquake heritage also echoes at The Laboratory in Lincoln where beers with quirky scientific names are served among salvaged and repurposed building materials from the central city's laneways.

Queenstown & Wānaka

Adventure sports followed by beer is a tried-and-true combination, and brewers such as Searchlight, Altitude, Cargo and Canyon are all maintaining the tasty tradition around Queenstown. Try to visit from Friday to Sunday for the best opening hours.

Nearby in Arrowtown, Lake & Wood Brew Co’s beers are available to partner great burgers and grilled chicken at Slow Cuts. Across the Crown Range in Wānaka, Rhyme & Reason, Ground Up and Wānaka Beerworks are all helping to make the Southern Lakes region one of NZ’s most surprising beer destinations.

Dunedin

Brewing history abounds in Dunedin, and Emerson’s first beers were crafted back in 1992. Humble beginnings have evolved to include their sprawling and modern taproom and cellar door, a good place to try seasonal and experimental brews not available throughout the country.

Emerson's Restaurant and Brewery in Dunedin. Photo / Supplied

This story was originally published on June 17 2020 and has been updated.