Tremor-hit NZ brewery to debut exclusive earthquake beers

WELLINGTON - ‘Never to shake your beer’ might have been the norm among boozers, but two Christchurch microbreweries are hoping to turn disaster to their advantage with the release of “earthquake ales”, which were accidentally made after a heavy tremor.

It was when Three Boys Brewery owner Ralph Bungard was brewing his first batch of golden ale on Wednesday after the earthquake when the 5.1 aftershock hit, knocking out power to his Woolston brewery for 45 minutes.

Bungard was at the crucial mashing stage, where even a minute’s delay can change the taste and composition of the beer, while longer disruption can ruin a batch.

“It is all about timing and the delay means this beer will taste very different,” Stuff.co.nz quoted him as saying.

With the power cut disrupting the recipe, Bungard decided to wing it with a new beer, reducing the batch down to 1200 litres of strong 7.1 per cent pale ale, which will be labelled Aftershock in honour of its origin.

“Any longer and we would have had to dump the beer but it’s tasting pretty good now,” he said.

Three Boys also sold 400 litres of the beer to another microbrewery,

The Twisted Hop on Poplar Lane, which has transformed it into a summer ale, labelled Magnitude 7.1.

The Aftershock and Magnitude 7.1 should be available on tap at selected bars, including Pomeroys and The Twisted Hop respectively, by the end of the month.

Regardless of the ales’ popularity they will not repeated. Without an earthquake they would never taste quite the same. (ANI)