Shucking off the ‘Terrible Twos and Threes’ with typical aplomb, Golden Bear Brewing rattled Mapua’s wharf
Clouds Parted, Golden Bear Brewing's 3rd Anniversary Unfolds
(and undoubtedly some of the locals) with a spirited shindig to launch its fourth year as the go-to local for craft American ale, ribs and wings. Bodies moved, beer flowed, and Freddie Mercury was revived in song on the semi-truck-as-stage with fierce vengeance.
Maria Whoopin' It Up With the 'Don' in Tow!
Local husband-wife beer duo, Fritz Kuckuck and Maria Grau were on hand telling heady tales of their recent trek in NoCal and the western U.S. which included a stop at the Great American Beer Festival (‘green with envy’ was the colour of the day …). Tracy Donelan and her husband, Doug ‘the Don’ Donelan (CEO of New Zealand Hops and former head brewer at Malt Shovel Brewery in Oz) added flair to the soiree which, on the whole, was a booming success. Then again, with good beer at hand, how can things possibly go awry?
Now, admittedly that was last week. Monday the 24th to be precise, and if you’re a clever nut, you’ve cottoned to the fact that today is, in fact, November 2nd. I can see your eyes rolling already. I won’t prattle on with needless excuses. Suffice to say Brewer-Owner Jim Matranga’s Seismic 10 IPA (the bigger, more aromatic offspring of Seismic 9) was pouring so deliciously well, I launched myself into the oblivion of an unseemly buzz for the sake of the written word. My BG or ‘beer guy’ (formerly my ‘BM’ or ‘beer man’ which was an unfortunate moniker in its shortened form and is changed forthwith) will vouch for my
Men. Beer. Talk. The BG (l) and Fritz (r) in heady discourse.
dedication. I reveled, dear reader, in the ephemeral nature of the batch. Unfortunately for me, the next day wasn’t nearly as fleeting despite trying desperately to channel my inner Eddie-and-Patsy. In hindsight, emulating
Drinky Gone to Me Head.
fictional alcoholics probably wasn’t my best tack. Day job fell in somewhere between along with writing deadlines, thank you very much! Coupled with fact that one can lose a satellite internet connection at the slightest whiff of a storm at the Top of the South (hence, making uploading a persnickety thing), and ‘blogdom’ loses its shine quickly. But, alas, that’s the price one pays for mediocre beer writing. As they say, “onward and upward!” or in this case “beer and more beer!”
Like the beloved Bear, things got off to a spotty start as Labour Monday held the promise of a storm and, hence, a fairly stink Bear Birthday Do. But the clouds parted, as they do, and a large Terry Gilliam-Python-esque face poked through the fingers of sun and boomed: “To thee I say, drink well in declaration of this, Golden Bear Brewing’s Third Anniversary!” OK. That didn’t happen. Having been privy to the Cali-style
Forget the Stoli-Boli! Seismic 10 IPA was tipple o' the day!
brewpub’s taps for two of those three years, though, I can unreservedly promise say you will drink well there, as it’s hands-down one of the most improved brewery’s in the country, and I say this without the slightest bit of cheek and every ounce of goodwill.
I don’t recall my first beer at the Bear, though I remember it just making me wistful for favourites from home. I’ve always
Le Beer Menu
been wooed by GGB’s menu – ribs, huevos rancheros, and jerk chicken wings (a girl’s gotta eat …) – but it wasn’t long into Jim’s second year that something clicked (undoubtedly a button on that clever, stainless steel leviathan beauty he calls a brewery) and good beer did pour. And still does. It’s the reason, undoubtedly, that the guy from Santa Monica took home a medal at the BeerNZ Awards this year for his Bear Trappe, a Trappist-style ale chocka with Black Boy peaches. Lip smacking!
Lemon Schlemon! American Wheat Beer is GBB's top seller!
Despite some reviews of it, the Slam Dunkles holds a special spot for me; roasty, malty, and chocolaty, it’s a dark dunkel-style that looks as it should in the glassand is one of my seasonal faves in the GBB line-up. Jim’s American Wheat Beer is beautiful (ooze-lay the emon-lay) and one of his biggest sellers, but it’s in the IPA category that Mr. Matranga’s Cali roots really shine. Pouring right now are the aforementioned Seismic 10 (lemon-orange, pink grapefruit, and a dry, piney finish), plus the Fat Toad, a lush little elixir with plenty of hop-back. Hooligan is also on tap, though at 7.4% abv (might it be a squeak more, I ask, ’cause that puppy barks!), it is indeed a ‘trouble maker” just as the menu boasts. Vandalism
Jim of Golden Bear Rules the School!
nor shenanigans have ensued after its drinking, though I’m fairly certain that following one glass of it, my ‘BG’ was abducted by a marauding band of Pukeko, so drink at your own peril. But whatever you do, should you find yourself in the Nelson-Tasman, make your way to the wharf, pull up a stool at the bar, and raise a glass to three golden years and, praise be to the big hand in the sky, many
Tags: American ale, American wheat beer, craft beer, Golden Bear Brewing, Jim Matranga, Mapua, New Zealand beer, Seismic 10 IPA
