Hopping back in favour

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Just as sauvignon blanc is not to every wine lover's taste, many beer drinkers find our boutique pilsners a bit too lively, or hoppy. In the 1990s, after the first new hop varieties were unleashed, brewers tended to go overboard and their beers were sworn to by a hardy few.

But with consumer tastes diversifying along with the proliferation of micro-breweries, brewers have begun to bring more balance to fuller-flavoured beers.

Emerson's Chris O'Leary is one who believes there's room for subtlety.

Highly hopped beers "may win awards but drinkers cannot stomach more than a couple", says O'Leary. "What we've missed is finding a balance." He concedes that may be more the fault of the brewer than the hop.

"There's always room for beers that push the envelope but there's a need to find a balance between the four ingredients: malt, hops, water and yeast."

Croucher Brewing's Paul Croucher says some boutique brewers remain reluctant to use local hops, sourcing traditional ingredients including American hops for trendy pale ales. "Some brewers don't like the character of New Zealand hops. There's a bit of snobbery, a bit of Kiwi-cringe syndrome, but we really like them."

He's a big fan of the Motueka variety for the company's pilsner while its pale ale contains three Nelson hops.

Josh Scott, of Blenheim brewer Moa, says the new hops are helping local brewers create uniquely New Zealand takes on international styles.

"Just like with sauvignon blanc, our growing conditions are ideal.

"We have some of the most aromatic and herbaceous and high alpha hops in the world. Having 100 per cent New Zealand hops is part of our selling point."

It's not just boutique brewers who are experimenting with the new flavours. Big players Lion Nathan and DB are looking to aromatic hops for an edge in the premium beer sector. DB-owned Monteith's uses southern cross hops for its new Single Source brew, while Lion Nathan uses Nelson sauvin and Pacific jade (a bittering hop) in Steinlager Pure. Lion subsidiary Mac's makes significant use of hops.

Lion technical manager Malcolm Brier says our hops research is world-leading, extending to tracing the DNA of the hop to try to identify markers for bitterness and particular flavours.

"The market is going more premium," says Brier. "People are paying more and expecting more finesse and flavours and these recent hops offer a great range of aromas and flavours."

His DB counterpart Doug Banks says local hops have helped his company's brands, including Monteith's, pick up international awards.

"Our hops have been developed in isolation from the rest of the world and have a unique aroma - nice, soft and well-balanced and delicate hop aromas. They are world class hops which [without the research programme] would not have been developed.

"The important thing is to keep it drinkable. Especially in summer, you want beers with high drinkability."