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 2025 plus our favourite food pairings for each beer.
Isthmus 3D IPA - Supreme Winner
Type of beer: IPA
Brewery: Isthmus Brewing
Flavours: Champion beer — rich, smooth and hoppy.
Judges’ comments: Isthmus Brewing is the Auckland creation of husband and wife team Hamish Ward and Caroline Muller-Ward. Hamish was the head brewer at Deep Creek. Isthmus 3D IPA offers a multi-dimensional flavour experience. There’s a classic American hop character on the nose, featuring grapefruit and pine, wrapped in rich caramel malt that supports and enhances the hop expression.
For more on this beer visit: https://www.isthmusbrewing.co.nz/
Buy this beer: Visit online shopping
Garage Project Pernicious Weed
Type of beer: IPA
Brewery: Garage Project
Flavours: Diesel, passionfruit and sauvignon blanc.
Judges’ comments: The first ever beer released by Wellington legends Garage Project, this strong IPA is 8% ABV. It has a bold but balanced flavour profile with diesel, passionfruit, sauvignon blanc, a chewy malt character, and a thumping bitterness.
For more on this beer visit: https://garageproject.co.nz/
Buy this beer: Visit online shopping
Parrotdog Thunderbird Bright IPA
Type of beer: IPA
Brewery: Parrotdog
Flavours: Mellow, hoppy, sweet easy-drinker.
Judges’ comments: Wellington’s Parrotdog deliver a crystal clear beer with all the flavours you’d expect in a hazy, including sweet hop notes and mellow bitterness. Thunderbird Bright IPA is back in the Top-25 for the second year running and wowed the judges with “perfect clarity” and a vibrant hop character delivering sweet citrus, offset by a tingling bitterness that lingers but doesn’t dominate.
For more on this beer visit: https://parrotdog.co.nz/
Buy this beer: Visit online shopping
McLeod's Blue Sky
American Pale Ale
Type of beer: Pale ale
Brewery: McLeod's
Flavours: Grapefruit, mandarin, biscuity malt.
For more on this beer visit: https://mcleodsbrewery.co.nz/
Buy this beer: Visit online shopping
Hallertau #2 Pale Ale
Type of beer: Pale Ale
Brewery: Hallertau
Flavours: Soft caramel malt, zesty lemon hops.
For more on this beer visit: https://hallertau.co.nz/
Buy this beer: Visit online shopping
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 25 from the New World Beer & Cider Awards 2025.
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 2025
Best New Zealand cider and alcoholic gingerbeers for 2025
Best New Zealand lagers and pilsners for 2025
Best New Zealand stouts and porters for 2025
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.