IPAs and pale ales are beloved for their hoppy character, often complemented with herbal, fruity or citrus flavours.
Dive in to discover the best of the best New Zealand-made IPAs and pale ales for 2023 plus our favourite food pairings for each beer.
Baylands Skull Cracker
Type of beer: IPA
Brewery: Baylands Brewery
Flavours: Resinous, peach, nectarine, malt, hops
Judges’ comments: Baylands Brewery are making a name for themselves for bold, hoppy beers. They won the famed West Coast IPA Challenge in 2021 and whenever there’s a hoppy beer contest they are always among the contenders. The brewery takes its name from the street in the Wellington suburb of Newlands where they started as a garage operation, but they are now based in food-centric Petone with a brand new taproom. This monstrous double IPA lives up to its name. While it’s a big IPA at 7.5% ABV it drinks super smoothly, with a punchy diesel nose followed by a sweet-resinous flavour that has peach and nectarine in the wings before finishing clean and balanced, the bitterness just edging the sweet malt and alcohol.
Pairing Recommendation: Big IPAs like this want indulgent food such as a cheeseburger with bacon and pickles
For more on this beer visit: baylands.beer
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Bootleg Apehanger IPA
Type of beer: IPA
Brewery: Bootleg Brewery
Flavours: Tropical/diesel NZ hops
Judges’ comments: Bootleg Brewery is based in an old dairy factory in Matangi, south of Hamilton. The brewery was not even a year old when they stunned the Kiwi beer scene with Apehanger IPA winning the champion IPA at the New Zealand Beer Awards in 2017. Six years later, and with a raft of other breweries now making plenty of IPAs, they’ve proved this beer is as good as ever with a Top 30 appearance. The name is a reference to the 1970s-style apehanger motorcycle handlebars and this is one revved-up beer the judges said, praising the “great intensity of tropical/diesel NZ hop flavour” in a “well-balanced, nicely made beer.”
Pairing Recommendation: Punchy but fruity hops & robust bitterness hold their own with the sweet richness of pulled pork.
For more on this beer visit: bootlegbrewery.co.nz
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Martinborough Brewery Hop Elixir IPA
Type of beer: IPA
Brewery: Martinborough Brewery
Flavours: Grapefruit, rockmelon
Judges’ comments: South Wairarapa’s only craft beer brewery cleverly describe themselves as “a carbonated thorn amongst a heck of a lot of rosé”. In the heart of wine country, Martinborough Brewery has a taproom in Ohio St, right in the town’s popular tourist area. Good beer amidst the brilliant wines is a welcome addition and their first appearance in the Top 30 shows that brewer Eugene Black, who learned his craft at Wellington’s Occasional Brewer, is on the right track. This spectacularly bright IPA is light and spritzy with grapefruit and rockmelon characteristics. The judges loved the good looks, silky mouthfeel and building bitterness, calling it “very drinkable”.
Pairing Recommendation: This elegant IPA is ideal for lighter meats with an edge, such as roast chicken or pork schnitzel.
For more on this beer visit: martinboroughbeer.com
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Urbanaut Bronx Double IPA
Type of beer: IPA
Brewery: Urbanaut Brewing Co.
Flavours: Nectarine, blueberry
Judges’ comments: Of the three Urbanaut beers in this line-up two of them are examples of “single hop” beers. While the Silver City Hazy showcases Citra, the Bronx Double IPA is all about Mosaic, the uber-popular hop of the moment. As the name suggests, Mosaic hops are multi-faceted and bring an array of flavours including some savoury notes of pine, capsicum and even sweet onion. Here, those savoury notes are swept away by a river of nectarine and blueberry. It’s a truly three-dimensional beer, with the 8% ABV not reflected in the athletic, lean body. There have been some great double IPAs come through this competition over the years and this is up there with the very best.
Pairing Recommendation: Big and bold, and with a New York state of mind? A NY-style hotdog with the works.
For more on this beer visit: urbanautbeer.com
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Best New Zealand pale ales 2023
For the perfect bridge between a dark stout and a light lager, grab one of NZ’s best pale ales. Boasting a light body that’s bursting with flavour, pale ales are approachable for the novice, yet still beloved by beer connoisseurs worldwide. Expect bright hops and toasty malt.
McLeod's Paradise Pale Ale
Type of beer: Pale Ale
Brewery: McLeod’s Brewery
Flavours: Hop aroma, caramel malt, resinous
Judges’ comments: McLeod’s are based in the Northland Scottish enclave of Waipu and named for the nearby McLeod Bay. Their Pizza Barn, attached to the brewery, is a must-visit for anyone travelling to Waipu for sun, surf or golf. They quite rightly claim they live in paradise and hence that’s the name they’ve given to their flagship pale ale, a beer that pops up in this competition on a regular basis and has won a number of gold medals and popularity contests. A sweet, juicy hop aroma bursts out of the glass and blends seamlessly with the light caramel malt to produce a resinous and smooth drinking experience before the bitterness and minerality sneak up to create a dry, moreish finish. An absolute classic.
Pairing Recommendation: Sweetly hoppy with a building bitterness that wants lean meat like venison or duck.
For more on this beer visit: mcleodsbrewery.co.nz
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Monteith's Tight Lines Pale Ale
Type of beer:Pale Ale
Brewery: Monteith’s Brewing Co.
Flavours: Stone fruit, citrus, tropical mandarin, biscuity malt
Judges’ comments: One of the biggest developments in the beer industry in the past few years is the growing strength of ‘mainstream craft’ — beers from big brands that offer the kind of flavour normally associated with hip craft breweries but for a lower price. That move says a lot about the changing palates of New Zealand beer drinkers and Monteith’s embraced that flavour revolution with last year’s new release, Tight Lines. The judges just raved about a well-made beer packed with stone fruit, citrus and tropical flavours: “Tropical mandarin aroma, hoppy but well integrated with clean biscuity malt flavour.” Give it a go.
Pairing Recommendation: Stonefruit and caramel malt make this a match for Moroccan lamb.
For more on this beer visit: monteiths.co.nz
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Panhead Supercharger APA
Type of beer: Pale Ale
Brewery: Panhead Brewery
Flavours: Malt, hops
Judges’ comments: Supercharger, aka the Orange One, is a force of nature in the Kiwi craft beer scene. Its huge popularity across a wide demographic of beer fans, from craft nerds to petrol heads, from corporate offices to building sites resulted in a multi-million dollar sale of Panhead Custom Ales to Lion in 2017. And there’s a reason Supercharger is so popular: it’s just so tasty and perfectly balanced between malt and hops. The judges couldn’t stop raving about it: “Great looking colour and foam. Nice hoppy-malty beer. Nice body and mouthfeel. A good hoppy pale ale and a great example of a drinkable beer.” In the pantheon of New Zealand craft beers this is one of the greats.
Pairing Recommendation: Robust, well-rounded and looking for something similar like pepperoni pizza.
For more on this beer visit: panheadcustomales.com
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Thirsty for more top New Zealand beers?
If you’re after dark beers, lagers or more unique craft varieties, don’t forget to check out the articles linked below, or browse the Top 30 from the New World Beer & Cider Awards 2023 using our Beer Finder.
Not sure what you like? Our craft beer guide will walk you through what makes craft beer special and the different styles and flavours you can find in Aotearoa.
Related articles:
Best New Zealand craft beers for 2023
Best New Zealand cider and alcoholic gingerbeers for 2023
Best New Zealand lagers and pilsners for 2023
Best New Zealand stouts and porters for 2023
About the author
Michael Donaldson is one of New Zealand’s most renowned beer writers and was named Beer Writer of the Year by the Brewers Guild of New Zealand for a third time in 2018. He has been the Chair of Judges for the New World Beer & Cider Awards since 2016.
His writing appears in North & South, The New Zealand Herald, Stuff and Drinksbiz. He is also the editor of The Pursuit of Hoppiness magazine published by the Society of Beer Advocates (SOBA). He is the author of New Zealand's definitive beer history Beer Nation - the Art and Heart of Kiwi Beer as well as The Big Book of Home Brew: a Kiwi Guide and The Hopfather, the biography of Emerson's founder Richard Emerson.