Festival Showcases Auckland’s Burgeoning Beer Scene

Festival Showcases Auckland’s Burgeoning Beer Scene

The City of Ales craft beer festival returns to Auckland this Saturday for a sold out event. Held at The Maritime Room in Viaduct Harbour the festival is the most successful small beer festival in Auckland. After three years, 2015 will be slightly larger but will still maintain the relaxed, intimate feel that attendees have been praising since the first festival back in 2012.

The growth of the festival reflects the growing popularity of craft beer in New Zealand’s largest city. When the festival was first established in 2012 it focussed purely on beers brewed in and around Auckland. Since then it has grown to encompass beers from across the North Island, with breweries such as Wellington’s Garage Project, Taranaki’s Brew Mountain and Taupo’s Lakeman all represented.

A key component of the festival since its inception has been the pairing of good beer with good food. All ticket holders get a voucher for a full portion of food from a menu which is designed to complement the beers on offer. Organiser Martin Bridges says the approach is a reflection that beer and food go so well together.

“It is worth noting that almost all of the restaurants listed in the Metro magazine “Top 50 Restaurants in Auckland” now feature a craft beer selection on their drinks list. Craft beer drinkers love to explore the range of flavours that good beer contains, and these match well with food.”.

The festival will follow it’s now-traditional format of two three-hour sessions (12pm-3pm & 4pm-7pm) which gives attendees plenty of time to sample the 25+ beers on offer. Beers are served in a 200ml glass, putting the emphasis on sampling a wide range of beers rather than on overconsumption. The organizing team work hard to make sure there is an exciting range of beer styles on offer, from Pilsners through Pale Ales & IPAs to hefty Stouts and even a number of barrel-aged and sour beers. Several beers will be making their Auckland debut at the festival.

The City of Ales festival (June 27) is presented by SOBA, the Society of Beer Advocates, and is an R20 event. Tickets (costing $40 and including a souvenir glass, 2 beer tokens and 1 food token) can be purchased from Eventfinder.co.nz.

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