Of all the reasons we’re looking forward to our new brewing system the biggest is temperature control.

That’s because until now, we’ve had none. We’ve done everything after the boil — fermenting and re-fermenting in the bottle — at room temperature.

This has made it hard to ‘rinse and repeat’ each batch, and turned carbonating our beer into art vs. science.

We’ll now be able to dial in the temperature for fermenting and drop the temperature for carbonating.

So will our beer still be variable? In a word, yes!

We’ll have much more control of over every step in the process but we won’t be aiming to make our beer consistently identical, like Coke / Pepsi.

Photo: Gladfield Malt

Instead, we’ll be aiming to make it consistently good, like you enjoy from one vintage to another in a wine.

Enjoy!

Paul & Karen

Compared to deciding how big, choosing our brewing system was easy. We wanted equipment made locally, and we needed a custom-fit design.

Fortunately we already knew of the setup at Victoria Store Brewery in Clyde. The 1200L brew system, which sits on a 2-level platform in the middle of Olivers restaurant, is a mini marvel of brewery design and fabrication.

Our system will be similar in design and has the same focus on functionality. We’re looking for a Toyota, not Ferrari, and we love that most of the equipment is from upcycled beer or recyled dairy tanks.

New Zealand is lucky to have fantastic welders — you only need to drive past a Fonterra plant to see just how lucky — and here in the South, a still thriving tradition of can-do and make-do ingenuity.

And we think beer made in Dunedin, brewed on equipment made in Invercargill, is a fantastic way to celebrate our place.

Enjoy!

Paul & Karen

We started Steamer Basin with the idea of being a neighbourhood brewer. With a 50L brewkit, we imagined we could ‘make and sell’ enough beer to get by.

We were wrong.

That’s partly because New Zealand doesn’t give tax breaks to small brewers — unlike Australia, Canada, UK and US — but mostly because of all the non-brewing costs of getting it going.

Even selling beer directly, you simply can’t make enough to justify the time and effort it takes to keep a ‘nano’ brewery running. So in planning our expansion, we spent a lot of time asking “How big?”

In the end we’ve gone as big as our budget and premise allow.

We’re getting a 1500L system that can make 7500L at capacity. We feel it’s the best size for a small brewery like ours, making seasonal beer using local ingredients.

It’s big enough we’ll now be able to say “Yes!” when people ask if:

• they can sell our beer in their bar or restaurant
• we have a taproom at our brewery

We’re really excited about the taproom, for we saw in Oregon how it provides a true brewery experience. You sit in the middle of the working brewery and sample beer fresh from the tap.

We’re looking forward to opening our doors in the coming months.

Enjoy!

Paul & Karen

They say that if you grow slowly you put down strong roots. We hope so, because after 4 years, we’re going to get a whole lot bigger.

So big we can call ourselves a brewery!

We’ve signed up for a lease in Dunedin’s historic Warehouse Precinct, just over the tracks from Steamer Basin wharf.

Picking a location is one of the toughest challenges in starting a brewery, but we had a clear idea of what we wanted:

• a brewery with taproom for people to enjoy our beer
• a meeting place that is family friendly
• a neighbourhood that is walk and bike friendly
• a destination with character that celebrates our place

We’re lucky to’ve found a heritage building that is a great fit for us. And it’s tucked down a laneway, waiting for discovery.

The building needs a lot of work before we can move in, but we’re excited about really becoming a neighbourhood brewer.

We look forward to sharing our progress over the coming months.

Enjoy!

Paul & Karen

There’s a saying that if you want beer to be any good, make it in small batches. Not because smaller is better, but because you brew more often.

We started Steamer Basin only knowing we didn’t know much. But with a 50L brewkit, we figured we could learn fast, brewing 2-3 times a week. We soon learnt that we barely knew anything, ending our first year where we started, with just 2 beers.

We found our path when we visited Oregon and got into our farmers market, inspiring us to make seasonal beer using local ingredients.

We’ve since continued to experiment quietly, striving to make well-balanced beer that’s enjoyable to share. Our ideas are not always great (Kimchi Pils) and don’t always work (Yumberry Wheat), but we always end up knowing more.

We’ve now reached the point where we’re focused on getting better. We’ll still be brewing new beers — we have 2 for the upcoming Dunedin beerfest and a backlog of other ideas — but we’re parking (Little Spelt) or re-purposing (Rye Saison into Sour Rye) any beers that can be better.

Because we’ve learnt that while brewing something new is fun, making good beer takes fine tuning and feedback. That’s why we’re really grateful for your support, sampling our beer and encouraging our efforts (“not bad”).

We’re planning to expand this coming year but even making bigger batches, we’ll work hard to stay small.

Enjoy!

Paul & Karen

All the beer we make started as a local beer somewhere else. We use yeast collected from those places — a Belgian monastery or British brewery — to make our own local beer, using local ingredients.

We brew local because we want to make beer that celebrates our place. But also, we want to support our local economy and environment.

In Hong Kong and Sydney we didn’t give much thought to ‘spending local,’ each city large enough to have its own internal economy. But here in Dunedin we can see the benefit of the multiplier effect.

We see it in the sustained growth of Gladfield Malt and NZ Hops. We see it in the seasonal variety at the farmers market. And we see it in our bank account, having sold our beer to a domestic or international tourist on Saturday.

And then, buying local is good for the environment, too. While we sometimes wish for the variety of a European malt or US hop, we’re lucky to have great products, made by great people, right on our doorstep.

In many ways, brewing with local ingredients is a return to the past. It’s how the classic beer styles we know today developed. But we also see it as the future. It’s how we see Dunedin beer becoming distinctive to our region.

Enjoy!

Paul & Karen

We started Steamer Basin with the idea of being a neighbourhood brewer, making beer local to Dunedin.

We’ve since been inspired by the US trend to make seasonal beer, and by our farmers market to use fresh ingredients. We now have beers with:

• honey
• oats
• rhubarb
• gooseberry
• lemongrass
• strawberry
• plum
• medlar
• elderflower
• stinging nettle

grown or gathered within 100 miles of here.

Of course, none of these ingredients are unique to Dunedin, but all thrive in this region. And combined with Nelson hops and Canterbury grain (barley, wheat, rye, spelt) they celebrate our place.

Based on response at the farmers market, from locals and visitors, we see potential for Dunedin beer to become as distinctive a region as Central Otago wine. Having started with the idea of being a neighborhood brewer, that’s really exciting.

Enjoy!

Paul & Karen

The best thing about brewing small batches is you get to brew a lot. This helps you get better, faster, and gives you chance to experiment.

Since our trip to Oregon in May, we’ve done a lot experimenting. So much experimenting that, at times, we’ve only had ‘white label’ beer to sell.

Looking ahead, we hope to juggle better. But we’re still inspired to make seasonal beer. And after only having two beers for what seems like forever, it’s fun.

We’re now shifting our focus to darker Fall / Winter beers, including a new version of Brown. We look forward to sharing them with you in 2016.

Enjoy!

Paul & Karen

One of the great things about Dunedin is the change in seasons. It gives you a new appreciation for the natural beauty we’re lucky to enjoy.

Photo: Pam Fossen

In May we took some time out to visit the equally beautiful Pacific Coast of America. We needed the break, and it gave us the chance to visit 10 breweries in Oregon, center of craft brewing (there are 58 breweries just in Portland).

We picked up many ideas and from 2 breweries, inspiration to brew more seasonal beer. We’ve now got a roadmap of Spring / Summer / Fall / Winter beers, which we’re aiming to have in place by end of 2016.

You may’ve tried some of those beers – Lemongrass Saison, Oatmeal Stout, Saison – at our Friday testings, and we’ll be trialling more – Pale Blond, Strong Blond, Pale, Dark – in the coming weeks. We have more in the pipeline and we’re looking forward to sharing them with you, at our cellar door and at the farmers market.

You’ll also be able to sample our beer at the upcoming Dunedin beerfest. We’ll have Oatmeal Stout on handpull – your last chance to try until Fall / Winter 2016.

Enjoy!

Paul & Karen

Prior to Christmas we thought we had the ‘final candidate’ for our Mud-edin brown ale. In fact, we’ve brewed 5 more versions since then, still seeking that perfect combination of malt, hops, and yeast.

That’s why:

to help us nail our recipe.

Starting Friday 13 March, we’ll be doing ‘beer testings’ every Friday, 5:00 to 7:00pm, to get your feedback on the latest version of Mud-edin and two other ales we’re working on. You’ll be able to sample a different beer (or 2 versions of the same beer) every week, and with some batches, take a bottle home.

We’ll run these tastings every Friday (excluding Easter Friday) until 8 May, starting with v31 of Mud-edin on Friday 13 March. Come along and tell us what you think!

Paul & Karen