4 August 2015 - Best Beer HQ

North End Fieldway APA review

North End Fieldway APA review

ABV: 5.8%

The can: I’m seeing more and more craft beers in cans these days, and I must say that I’m a bit of a fan: cans are quicker to cool, they let in no light, and I can fit more in the fridge.

North End Brewery: We’re a small brewery on the Kapiti Coast formed by a brewer, a waiter and a chef. We brew aromatic, food friendly beers that are as at home on the dinner table as they are at the beach, the bach or the bar. Join us as we change the world one can at a time.

Blurb on the can: Our hop forward pale ale is bursting with hops grown across the Strait in Nelson. Sweet lemon, lime, and mandarin marmalade is joined by a hint of the herb garden and tempered by malt from the Rangitikei. A home grown classic.

IBU: 50

Taste test: When I reviewed Galbraith’s New American Style Pale Ale the other week, I wondered where the hops were; I just couldn’t find them anywhere. Well, it turns out all the hops were all in this Kiwi version of the APA.

If you’re looking for a perfectly balanced pale ale, Fieldays APA probably isn’t the beer for you. Instead, this zesty beer is made with hop heads in mind. This one is a bit of a lip smacker, with an oily mouthfeel – no doubt because of all the hops.

Indeed, according to the North End Brewery website, Fieldway APA is made using Waimea, Pacifica, NZ Cascade and Wai Iti hops. No wonder it smells so aromatic.

Is it the best beer ever? North End Brewery’s Fieldway APA is a good straight-forward Aotearoa pale ale that’ll likely please most hop heads. It’s not an everything-but-the-kitchen-sink IPA like either Garage Project’s Bossa Nova Tropical IPA or Liberty Brewing’s Knife Party IPA, but there’s enough here to get your engine running.

What else should I drink? I also enjoyed North End Brewing Co.’s Super Alpha, a Pacific Pale Ale with a twist. I think I prefer the Fieldway APA, though, but that’s just me.

Craft Beer New Zealand / review /