Nelson: Brewing dynasty is hops mad

From left, Founders Brewery owner and head brewer John Duncan with his sons Callum and Matt. Photo / Supplied

A family with 150 years of brewing history boosts Nelson's craft-beer capital claim, writes Justin Henehan.

The Founders Heritage Park and Hop Museum has been described as the end of Nelson's craft brew trail, but it's also the beginning.

Founders Brewery owner and head brewer John Duncan greets me inside the huge former grain-cutting windmill that acts as the gateway to the Founders Heritage Park.

Built in 1986, the park was created to preserve Nelson's colonial heritage. John points out his grandfather, Henry Duncan's, two-storey weatherboard house as we stroll through the miniature town. A lane, shaded by tall trees, is a welcome respite from the scorching sun, as we head to the site's cafe and brewery and the newly established hop museum. The building is instantly distinguishable by its steepled roof.

John's family goes back 160 years in Nelson. His great grandfather, Joseph R. Dodson, arrived in New Zealand in 1854 and immediately bought a share of brewery Hooper & Co. The newly minted Nelsonians must have appreciated the fizz he brought to the fledgling city because they elected him mayor in 1874 and then again in 1877.

"Brewing's in the blood," explains John, who came back to hops and grains after a stint at Redwood Cider in Nelson and then at Penfolds Wines as a wine technician.

When John rekindled the family brewery he began tracing the family tree, a task made difficult because of the family tradition of naming grandsons after grandfathers and the marriage of his grandmother, Mary-Ann Dodson, to Henry Duncan.

"It got quite confusing, because it was sometimes just HRD, or JRD," John says. "I've still got my great-grandfather's gold cufflinks, which are engraved JRD -- my initials."

The family connection is important, John says, but there was no pressure on his sons to join the family firm.

"I set this up while my sons were still at school. A bit like me, they just fell into it. My two sons [Matt and Callum] do most of the brewing now."

The family hop vine has stretched up from J.R. Dodson through wars, the threat of prohibition, tragedy and triumph all the way to great-grandson John and his sons, who are busy building on Nelson's credentials as the craft beer capital of New Zealand.

But don't tell Wellington, John says.

"There is a gentle rivalry between Nelson and Wellington to be the craft beer capital," he concedes.

But, it's a hop and barley comparison: Nelson's take is very different. And the Founders Heritage Park, the terminus of Nelson's brew sip and stroll session, exemplifies this.

John says Nelson's long history of brewing is a combination of things: "It's a good climate; people like to live and work here; and it's had a history of German settlers coming in early and also English settlers."

But what makes Nelson special for brewing is its position on the globe, John says.

"Hops are latitude sensitive; we're at 41 degrees south. So you have Nelson, Tasmania, a bit of South America and South Africa. It's to do with light hours. And then in the Northern Hemisphere it's the same -- 41 degrees north -- where you have the Czech Republic, for example."

The hops and brewing industry has grown to the point that visitors are coming specifically for the beer, but more than malt drinks are bringing people to Nelson, John says.

"The brewing industry adds another layer of interest to the Tasman region; you've got the arts and crafts, the national parks, the marine environments, mountain biking. It's a good fit with the arts and crafts and the wine industry."

But if it weren't for a few thirsty soldiers, the Founders brewery wouldn't exist at all. In 1911 a referendum initiated by the temperance movement fell 4 per cent short of the threshold for the imposition of prohibition. And again, eight years later, prohibition was avoided by a hair's breadth when another referendum fell just 1 per cent short of the threshold. Tenacious as it was temperate, the temperance movement still pressed the Government to ban the sale of liquor in the "interests of national efficiency". As a compromise the Government introduced 6pm closing for all pubs in 1918 and what became the six o'clock swill stayed with us until 1967.

"The story of prohibition told in the Hop Museum outlines how important the beer industry was to the local economy in those days," John says. "That was the push. If we'd had prohibition the whole industry would have fallen over."

The brewing industry also forms an important part of Nelson's social history, he says.

"In the early days the school holidays were timed to coincide with the hop harvest. Whole families used to catch the train to Nelson and go out and pick the hops."

The museum boasts a replica brewery complete with all the weird contraptions of the age; an old malt mill, mash tun, a replica kettle, heat exchange, and an open fermenter and next to it an ancient-looking picture of a brewer dwarfed by a foaming brew in progress.

"The breweries back then were all ventilated with louvres," John explains. "Hygiene wasn't so much of a concern and there was plenty of wild yeast floating around."

Sarah Hinton and daughter April visiting the new Beer and Hops Museum. Photo / Supplied

Maybe the most prized artefact of all is the "lost suitcase" containing the recipe books of John's grandfather, Henry Richard Duncan, which was uncovered among some old brewing paraphernalia in the garage of John's brother, Nick.

"I'd been trying to find some of the old recipes for years," John says. "I'd been to libraries and the museum and no one seemed to know. Then when the park founded the Hop Museum, my brother said he had this suitcase and he'd bring it around. And I opened it up and there were the recipe books."

The brewery has produced one beer from the books, the Lost Suitcase Golden Ale, and John says more are to come. "The next one I'm going to do will be for a beer festival here in March. It's a recipe for an AK ale -- a [mild bitter] once popular in 1900s England."

The discovery of the suitcase took on more significance when an important moment in the family's history was found documented in its pages -- the death of John's grandfather, Henry.

"He'd started a brew at quarter to six and dies after turning on the steam. The brew was completed by H.R. Dodson's cousin. It was quite poignant to find that record."

Founders Heritage Park

Founders Heritage Park is a showcase of Nelson's history and home to a variety of artisans and activities for the whole family.

As well as the Founders Brewery and Cafe and Hop Museum, there are arts and craft days, the Nelson Railway Society, vintage-inspired fashion from Madcat Skirts, Lori Davis Painting and Art School, the Natural Living Yoga studio, Nelson Cooperage (the only remaining cooperage in New Zealand), the Tasman Forge and more.

CHECKLIST

Getting there: Air New Zealand flies direct to Nelson from Auckland up to 10 times daily. One-way 'Seat' fares start from $79.

Details: Founders Hop Museum is at Founders Heritage Park, 87 Atawhai Dr, Nelson. Open 10am to 4.30pm every day except Christmas Day and Good Friday. Family pass $15, adults: $7, children under 12 free.

The writer travelled as a guest of Nelson Tasman Tourism.