Beervana: Pre-game 1.0

271 brews from 96 breweries is the official count from the organisers. If the hype is to be believed, this year's edition of Beervana will be the biggest and best yet.

But beer nerds have the usual problem. "I can't drink 271 beers in one session, so what will I drink?"

Planning is a big part of beer festivals for most beer nerds, and should be for you. Making a list of must-haves, must-nots and maybe-dos helps to cross of the beers you have already had and the ones you probably won't like, and prioritise those you can't miss.

So, in my helpful little way, I'm going to throw out there the beers I know I will and will not have. And with them split into territories, my job is easy: a must and must not from each regional, the festive stand and a random "wildcard" I can't not leave behind.

So without further waiting, the North Island regions and my pick of the festives...

Northern

Beers from the land north of The Tron. The breweries up there are the ones I have probably had the least from, so sorting the must from the must-not was tricky. To be honest, I'll probably have a few from here. However, self-imposed rules are self-imposed rules...

Must have: While sour beers are hardly my go-to, Hallertau Funkonnay (6.5% sour ale) was an easy choice. Now-retired blogger Alice Galletly did a very good job of letting me know that this is a beer I have to try. Any beer aged in chardonnay barrels has my interest after Yeastie Boys aged their Rex Attitude in some.

Must not: As nice as this beer is, I really have no need to drink Scott's Gluten Free Pale Ale (4.5%). Delicious of course, and a must-have for any of the gluten-free out there. However, I have bigger fish to fry.

Central

I'm glad that, finally, there will be some beers from #manawatumeke at Beervana! Massey University's Palmerston North-based micro-brewery is sending down a couple drops. Heck, I'm proud to say my former university brews beer. Does yours?

Must have: As excited as I am about university beer, the must have must go to the Brewaucracy Bean Counter (4.2% vanilla porter). The brainchild of Greig McGill and Phil Murray, this is bound to get me excited. I loved the vanilla from Renaissance's Craftsman last year, so am hoping for something same-but-not-but-still-good.

Must not: Croucher, I love you guys but I've had enough Patriot (5.5% American Black Ale) to last me quite a while. A great beer others should have, but one I shall miss.

 Wellington

Home-town support goes a long way, so these beers are sure to be popular. I still spend most weekends in the city, so am looking forward to making my way through some of the drops.

Must have: Most beers at the festival are looking fairly strong, so it is great that the Lobethal/Yeastie Boys collaboration called Bruce (3.5% ordinary bitter) manages to make its way in. I'm a fan of session beers, and am thinking this may be the drop to start on. Also, the tasting notes described it as looking "naked" *cue the funk music*.

Must not: Speaking of funk, I very much doubt I'll be having any of Funk Estate's Coconut Rough Stout (5% spice/fruit beer). I had some at the recent SOBA Winter Ale Festival, and think that was enough for me. If you're into your kinda-sour beer - which I remember this being -  do give it a go.

Festive

On the Beervana website, it says the beers in this category cannot be relased until after the BeerNZ Awards. But when all the tasting notes first hit the website, the festives were included. I made sure to download a copy then, so am fairly sure I'm covered on any embargo-breaking front. And if I am... well, TV One seems to be getting away with breaking this one. I'm sure a beer list is not as big as that, nor is my blog as popular as a national news channel.

Must have: Once again, it's them Yeastie Boys. This time, they've teamed up with Moon Dog to create -wait for it - Peter Pipers Pickled Pepper Peated Purple Pale Ale (9% strong fruit ale). A beer which looks like unicorns, smells like a horse and cart and tastes of clamped nipples has to be tried to be believed.

Must not: A hard choice, but it has to be the Renaissnace Brewing Great Pumpkin (6% spiced pumpkin beer). Funk Estate also have a pumpkin beer, but it was brewed at Massey - talk about bonus points!

Tomorrow (hopefully), I'll post about the South Island regional bars. I'll also pick out my wildcard brew. Until then, let me know what you are hanging out for at Beervana. Are some of my picks well off? Are there some I absolutely need to try? Any I should steer well clear of?

Until then, cheers!


Post-script: So it turns out the Yeastie Boys/Moon Dog spooning session festive will not make it to Beervana in time - unchur indeed! So, back-up festive favourite goes to Liberty Brewing's Rennals Towards Muriwai (11% festive brew). Anything which claims to absorb light while having a maximum bitterness and sweetness rating has got to be awesome.