Brave Brewing Company co-owner Gemma Smith says the boutique brewery's new taproom on Queen St is a nice fit with the flourishing amenity of Hastings East. She chats with Mark Story.
Tell us about the new site in the old Herald-Tribune building - what does it offer?
Our new taproom and eatery is such a lovely space. Our building has a rich history and is very characterful, so we've worked with that to marry the old with the new. It was important for us to retain a "friendly neighbourhood brewery" feel, and we think we've done that well. Feedback on the space has been overwhelmingly positive. You'll find 12 taps pouring all sorts of goodies. We are running our own eatery too, and the food has been very well received. It's simple food, done really well, utilising the incredible ingredients that we have on offer here in Hawke's Bay. It's food that pairs beautifully with a beer.
The new digs are only a few hundred metres from your former taproom - what is it about Hastings East that suits your operation?
Hastings East is where we spend most of our time outside of work and we've grown really close to so many of our neighbouring businesses and the people behind them. Hastings East represents so much of what our brand "Brave" stands for. It's people putting themselves out there and following their passions, breathing new life into old spaces. It's creativity and hard work. It's a real community. When the opportunity came up to take the space at Tribune, it felt very right. This is home for us now.
Beer's gone from bloke to bespoke in a relatively short period. How do you keep up with its ever-changing directions?
The craft beer scene in New Zealand has grown and evolved so rapidly in the last few years. Rather than trying to keep up with the changes, and different beer trends, we've actually just been really busy chugging along at doing the things we know we do well. Matt [husband and brewer] and our assistant brewer Adam work tirelessly to keep up with the demand for our beer, particularly Tigermilk IPA. They're busy brewing classic-style beers, but doing it really well. Our beverage manager Tommy also has a lot of fun buying in wild and wacky guest beers from other breweries to put on our taps.
What's the biggest myth about the brewing biz?
Perhaps it's that brewers are really snobby beer drinkers, who only drink fancy craft beers. Matt is definitely partial to a cheeky lager here and there. Brewers appreciate quality no matter the style, and well brewed, simple, clean and crisp beers never go astray after a hard day's work.
Brave's success suggests you've tapped into something more than just thirst.
I think we've had success because we are a friendly neighbourhood brewery, and we don't take ourselves too seriously. Our front of house staff know most of our customers by name. There's always some good old-fashioned banter served alongside a pint. The beer is good, the food is good and most importantly the people that fill our place have been a part of our journey. They feel a sense of belonging in our space. Many of our customers have been coming by since our early Farmer's Market days, when the brewery was run out of our home garage. They've watched our young daughters grow up. We're so humbled by the support we've been shown.
