Covid-19 Delta outbreak: Good George releases vaccine-themed lager

The brewery hopes the beer will be a 'conversation starter' and get people off the fence. Photo / Supplied

Good George Brewing has released a limited edition beer for "legends that vaccinated".

The Hamilton-based craft brewery, which made headlines at the start of the pandemic last year when it converted some of its distillery facilities to make hand sanitiser to fight the shortages, has now launched a special vaccine-themed lager, called Vacci-Mates.

The goal, the brewery says, is for the new brew to be a "conversation starter to encourage those who are on the fence (or on the couch) to get vaccinated".

"We're brewers, not vaccine experts. But we've listened to the experts and the evidence is clear," Good George head of community Daniel McGregor said.

Vacci-mates lager. Photo / Supplied

"Lockdowns are devastating for us all in the hospitality industry and they are an unwanted reality until we reach a higher level of vaccination, so we brewed this beer to shine a light on that and put a stake in the ground," he added.

According to McGregor, despite some anti-vaccine sentiment still prevailing on social media, even in the face of overwhelming data showing the vaccine is safe, the feedback from the community has been, overall, positive.

Where to get a vaccination in Auckland - without a booking

"There were a couple anti-vaxxers that reached out to say they won't be buying it. While we respect those people's opinions, we're exercising our right to share ours," he said.

"There's a lot of noise in the conversation around vaccinations but for us it's pretty simple – we want to be back in our bars with customers, and getting the jab is the way to end the need for lockdowns and allow us and our teams to get back to what we do best. We think Aucklanders especially are missing the pub.

"We called it Vacci-Mates because we want to highlight the good that comes from vaccination, the ability to make a shift back towards normal. So much of the dialogue focuses on the negative and people who choose not to vaccinate, we wanted to focus on the upside when you do," McGregor added.

The craft brewery is also walking the walk, and support staff members who choose to vaccinated, by offering them an additional day's leave if they show proof that they've had both their doses of the vaccine.