Beer Styles

What is a New Zealand Pale Ale? A pale, top-fermented beer with pronounced hop fruitiness, where the hops come from New Zealand. It belongs to the American Pale Ale family: golden to copper in color, medium bitterness, a body that doesn't feel sweet. The difference lies in the aroma, since Nelson Sauvin and Motueka smell of gooseberry, lime, and passionfruit, not grapefruit and pine like the classic American varieties.

The Hazy IPA is the cloudy sister of the Pale Ale, a style that originated in the US and is often brewed in New Zealand with local hops. It has more original gravity, more alcohol, and deliberately low bitterness; the haze comes from hop oil, protein, and often oats or wheat in the malt. Comparing a clear IPA to a Hazy, you'll taste the difference in the mouthfeel: the Hazy feels soft, almost like fruit juice, keeping the bitterness in the background.

Both styles have found a home in Nelson, because the hops grow right outside the door. Brewers can use freshly harvested cones and achieve an aroma that fades after transport in Europe. That's why beer lovers see the region as a travel destination. The hops grow just minutes by car from the breweries, and that short trip from field to brew kettle is a real argument for freshness.

The figures below come from the 2021 BJCP guidelines, a competition reference guide. Individual beers fall outside these ranges, since every brewery sets its own accents in hop quantity, malt, and yeast.