What's eating the NZ craft beer scene?

What's eating the NZ craft beer scene?
Beer nerds will flock to Beervana in Wellington this weekend for beer, but not as we know it. (Image: Beervana)
Pattrick Smellie
New Zealand’s most dedicated hop-heads are descending on the annual Beervana festival in Wellington this weekend against a backdrop of some of the most difficult trading conditions the craft brewing industry has faced for at least a decade.Hops are scarce and expensive. Barley and wheat supplies and prices are affected by the war in Ukraine, so malt costs a bomb. Beer excises have risen more than 13.5% in two years because excise changes are tied to the rate of inflation, and the closure of the Marsden Point oil refinery has sent the...

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