Field Theory by Hadyn Green

Huh, I never noticed that was what that urinal was ... eww, won't be looking at it quite the same way again.

Wheat beer is the stuff!

has urinals shaped like an open mouth with large red lips

Yes, that is well-dodgy. But it does remind me of some fine urinals I once experienced in a bar in Glasgow. A large perspex screen behind which was fitted 4 or 5 TV's, each featuring political talking heads of the day (Thatcher, Reagan, Gorbachev, it was circa early 90's). As succinct an anti-poltical message as I've seen.

Ah beer
It is amazing how many fine wine makers really like beer
Stuff up at vintage and you have buy a case of fine beer (the wine makers do have fine palates and are picky 'cause that is what you need to be a WM)
Consquently autumn is more a time for beer drinking rather than wine drinking.....well beer after work, a long lunch with some of the wine library is part of the deal for cellar hands

Rasberry beer, do try last years Emmisons JP well worth the search

Those Malthouse urinals are repellent. Photo from another squicked patron.

I should apologise (slightly) for the horrible mangling of HST's book at the start. It was just the theme for the evening.

@Raymond: I'm not a fan of berry-flavoured beers. But I will try most things. Did you mean Emmersons?

@Stephen et al: the urinals are fairly sick and seemed to be aimed at the beer-swilling jagermiester-shooting munter crowd ("those urinals are fuckin hot bro!") which is pretty much out of synch with the rest of the bar. I think they would do better to remove them and fairly soon.

If I remeber correctly (& I might not) "Rattle-Snake Bar" (now the Bog Irish Bar) used to have a 'splash-guard' made of glass and it was as intimidating as a guillotine designed for mass circumcision.

The best toilets in a Christchurch bar had to be the ones in the Litchfield St Lounge bar (opp. the bus exchange) with pron pasted on the walls in some sort of ironic art, and it matched the manequins as bar stools etc. Quite the Bohemian type bar, and although aware of the irony at the time I appreciated the wall paper in its original concept.

@Raymond: I'm not a fan of berry-flavoured beers. But I will try most things. Did you mean Emmersons?

I was in Canada a couple of years ago and found they had a fairly good beer culture. Their mainstream beer wasn't too bad, and a couple of smaller suppliers that I tried was good.

They have a fascination with raspberry flavoured beer there. I tried one, and couldn't see the attraction at all. It was like mixing ribena into your beer.

the urinals are fairly sick and seemed to be aimed at the beer-swilling jagermiester-shooting munter crowd ("those urinals are fuckin hot bro!") which is pretty much out of synch with the rest of the bar. I think they would do better to remove them and fairly soon.

The consequences of moving to Courtenay Place. The Malthouse seems somewhat stuck between being a place for serious beer-lovers and just another laddish pub.

Kyle: I was at a brewery in Vancouver a little while ago (Granville Island) that offered a Maple Cream Ale that had maple syrup in it. After a quite nice APA, it tasted like beer milkshake.

I just realised that I forgot to link to BrewNZ and the Awards results (pdf)

I'm still a little confused as to what constitutes a Dark Lager and what constitutes an Ale, but gotta love the Hereford Bitter on a winters night at the Dux de lux. The Ginger Tom on a sunny Sunday afternoon is cool too, it's kind of like the drunk you get without having a drink, hic'.

I'm still a little confused as to what constitutes a Dark Lager and what constitutes an Ale,

Dark Lager is bottom fermented and I think... amount/ time malt is roasted i.e.the more you have and the,longer you roast, it gets darker. Ale is top fermented.

Yes Hadyn
Emmersons JP, it is a limited brew made each winter, last years one had raspberry in it
When I started drinking (legally) old blokes used to drink Stout (Vita Stout?) with a squirt of raspberry in it
This is far superior

"Emmersons JP, it is a limited brew made each winter, last years one had raspberry in it"

I'm pretty sure that the Emerson's JP released last year was a Tripel, and this year's is a brown ale flavoured with new cherries.

If you've tried fruit-flavoured beer that tasted like a fizzy drink, you probably got a Belgian lamic (made with an eclectic cultivar containing many different types of bacteria and fungi) that had been sweetened. Lambic beers are often tart and somewhat sour, and some breweries, such as Timmermans, add sugar to make it more palatable for the first-time drinker. Fruit are often added, the most popular being cherries (kreik) and raspberry (frambois). It's quite possible to find unsweetened lambics in boutique beer sections throughout most of New Zealand, and I strongly recommend them to anyone who's had an unfavourable experience with sweet fruit-beer in the past. Unfortunately, even compared to local microbrews, the price is prohibitive.

I am adding a lot of beers to my "should try" list. Though I think that was the strength of Beervana in that I didn't have to drop a tenner to try a new beer.

And considering the last few comments, perhaps people could pimp their favourite tipple?

ps. are the mp3 links working?

Caillan Crowe-McAuliffe
Yes, you are correct
I made a mistake it is chery flavoured
My sons bought some for me as I had expressed an interest in cherry flavoured beers, 'cause they sound interesting
They told me that it was last years brew but you have the true facts
For father's day they bought me some lambic so I will try that next
Thank you for the history

ps. are the mp3 links working?

Ones I tried were.

I've tried a cherry beer and I was unimpressed. However, I can't remember anything else about it, so it might have been something crap.

My ladyfriend was in Belgium a while back and had a cherry beer, she was quite impressed.

When I started drinking (legally) old blokes used to drink Stout (Vita Stout?) with a squirt of raspberry in it

This reminds me of a London pub story: I was talking to a publican while he was serving someone else. He poured two beers and then tipped something into each one before handing them over the bar to two guys. "What was that?" I inquired. "Lime," he answered, "it takes the bitterness off. Usually the girls get it but this time it's these two". He jerked his thumb accusingly towards the two patrons who were standing well within earshot.

Nice.

Cheers for that Sofie.
I'm just not that familiar with the brewing process, but I'll remeber it as Ale being tops down and Dark lager as bottoms up ;)

I'm just not that familiar with the brewing process,

Yes, friends brew and I must say, for someone who ain't particularly keen on beer, I can appreciate a good one. We enjoy Galbraith's for his excellent selection, and great landlord shouts and.....:)chuzzz