New Zealand is the envy of the beer-drinking world for the access we all have to fresh hop beers. The relatively small size of Aotearoa and the geographically central nature of Nelson’s hop farms means most breweries can get their hands on once-a-year freshly-picked hops within the narrow harvest- time window.
Drinking a beer brewed with hops fresh off the bine is a special experience — there’s a romance to it, and a flavour experience you don’t get with every-day beers which used dried and pelletised hops. By imparting more of their essential oils than their processed counterparts, fresh hops bring different flavours than we get year-round. There’s an oily, resinous character to the mouthfeel and an extra layer lush herbaceousness.
Naturally fresh hops are best used in hoppy beer styles such as New Zealand-style pilsner, pale ale, IPA and hazies. And within those different styles, the different hop varieties bring a spectrum of flavours, from lime zest to passionfruit, to white grapes, pineapple and even red berries.
Each of these styles showcases hops in a different way and as a result each matches with food differently, but in keeping in the “harvest” theme, look for fresh and seasonal ingredients.
Pilsners
New Zealand-hopped pilsners are relatively sweet compared with their European counterparts and push the envelope on the passionfruit and sweet-lime flavours. The hops you’re most likely to see in these include Motueka (mojito lime) and Riwaka (passionfruit).
🍽️ Pair it with:
Look for fresh herbs to ping off the zestiness of fresh hop pilsners. Thai beef salad with fresh coriander & mint. Pork & chive dumplings. Fish sliders with fresh dill, or something as simple as bruschetta made with chargrilled bread and topped with fresh tomatoes and just-picked basil.
Pale ales
With some malt richness to back up the redolent hops, pale ales are well-balanced between sweet and bitter, with the fresh hops adding an extra layer of mouth-coating resin. One of the preferred hops here will be Nectaron, with its pineapple tropicality.
🍽️ Pair it with:
Fresh meats and anything on the barbecue suits a pale ale. Filipino-style BBQ chicken with a traditional tomato and grilled eggplant salad. Butterfly lamb with mint sauce. Pork chops with pineapple salsa.
IPA
A proudly punchy IPA gets an extra flavour boost from fresh hops and a layer of herbal dankness, with Nelson Sauvin a perennial favourite with its big bitterness and huge sauvignon blanc and lychee characters.
🍽️ Pair it with:
Go big and generous with a fresh-hop IPA. A Kiwi smash burger with the works including fresh avocado and beetroot. Jalapenos are in season, turn them into poppers and feel the flavours hop. Nashville-style chicken with home-made fresh coleslaw.
Hazy
You’ll see a lot of hazies on the fresh hop list as New Zealand hops are tailor-made for these fruit bombs that deliver peach, mango and even red berries and bubblegum thanks to the new superstar hop SuperdelicTM.
🍽️ Pair it with:
The sweet, lush profile of hazies are a great accompaniment to a wide range of food, from something as simple and light as freshly-made sushi with a smear of wasabi, to Asian noodle dishes, to steak and pepper sauce with truffle mash. Believe it or not, they are perfect dessert beer to go with a seasonal-fresh feijoa and apple crumble.
More about fresh hop beers...
