Steam Brewing Company - Warehouse. An image of the warehouse floor space from the upstairs office, have been water blasting the floor by the boilers, and the long stack on the floor in the foreground is the stack for the second boiler currently being installed.

Luke & Kieran with a pint of Monk's Habit to celebrate another win at another beer awards. (Photo featured this week on the front page of the Howick & Botany Times, and page 3 of H&P Times)

C&B Ellerslie - VIP & Chubby IV Tasting

Last night we put on a 50 litre keg of Chubby IV for the VIP customers at Cock & Bull Ellerslie (and anyone else who happened to be in the pub). From about 5.30pm I stood at the bar getting everyone coming up to buy beer, a free pint of Chuby IV. Most people on first taste thought it was very bitter, which it is at 42 IBU's (making it the most bitter beer we have on tap currently). We had given away nearly 100 pints in just 4 hours.

I found after a pint most people had were truely understanding the flavours, and bitterness. The beer is very challenging at first with the bitterness at 42 IBU's, and alco/vol of 5.75% and very big hop flavours. On the other side though it finishes very dry and clean out the palate well only leaving some hop flavours, and a level of bitterness that encourages you to drink more.

The next tastings coming up for the VIP's and Chubby IV are
Wednesday 25th May, Cock & Bull Lynfield
Wednesday 1st June Cock & Bull Hamilton

AIBA - Best in Class Trophy

Luke (right) with Best in Class trophy for Monk's Habit, with guys from Malt Shovel - Tony, Rob (background) Doug and Dean, at the 2005 Australian International Beer Awards, Melbourne, 5th May 2005

Chubby IV - Pre Release Party for VIP members

Tonight at Botany Cock & Bull from 6pm we are having a special pre-release of the award winning Chubby IV.

Chubby IV is an American Amber Ale at 5.75% alc/vol. It won Bronze at the 2005 New Zealand International Beer Awards and Silver (International Ale section) and Bronze (Australasian Ale section) at the 2005 Australian International Beer Awards.

So before it even arrived on the bar it was an award winning beer. Not bad for a first time recipe of a beer we thought might taste good. Just hope the punters enjoy it as much as the beer judges

Monk's Habit Awards to May 2005

2 x Supreme Champion Beer winner
12 x Best in Class
17 x Gold
10 x Silver
2 x Bronze

from April 1997 to May 2005

No other beer in New Zealand consistently wins Best in Class like Monk's Habit!

Full ‘steam’ ahead for champion Kiwi brewery

New Zealand’s top performing boutique brewery, Steam Brewing Company, has once again dominated the Australian International Beer Awards on behalf of the Kiwi contingent. Proud owner of both Steam Brewing Company and Cock & Bull pub chain, Kieran Meyer, is humbled that a small, wholly New Zealand-owned brewery has yet again taken on the world's best and come out on top.

Steam Brewing Company led the Kiwi charge at the Australian International Beer Awards – announced in Melbourne on May 5 - bringing home more silverware than any other New Zealand brewery, including some of this country’s ‘big’ players. The Australian International Beer Awards attracted amber liquid entries from breweries around the globe including the U.S.A, England, Japan, Italy, Australia, Wales and Malaysia.

Steam Brewing Company’s impressive trophy and medal haul included one trophy and two gold medals for its high-strength Monks Habit ale; a silver and a bronze medal for its English-style Fuggles ale; and one silver and one bronze medal for its flavoursome Chubby IV brew.

Steam Brewing Company substantially increased its production capacity last year when it bought the entire Auckland Breweries operation - with an annual production potential of two million litres of beer. By comparison, Steam Brewing Company’s original boutique brewery in Pakuranga had an annual brewing capacity of 300,000 litres.

“These awards demonstrate how successfully Steam Brewing Company has made the transition from being a small brewery into a medium-sized brewing company without losing any of the quality of our beers,” Mr Meyer said.

Based in South Auckland, Steam Brewing Company predominantly brews for the independently-owned Cock & Bull chain of pubs – at Ellerslie, Lynfield and Botany in Auckland, and at Te Rapa on the outskirts of Hamilton. A new Cock & Bull pub is scheduled to open in Newmarket, Auckland, on June 15.

"For years, drinkers at the Cock & Bull pubs have known how good our beers are – that’s why we’ve been growing so fast as a company, with new bars opening in Hamilton and Auckland,” Mr Meyer said.

Steam Brewing Company head brewer, Luke Nicholas is rightly proud of his beers saying: "This latest impressive trophy and medal haul from Australia shows what can be done when you invest in a quality product. We're not about being the biggest... but we are about being the best. And with a 'best in class' trophy, two gold, two silver and two bronze medals from just four beers entered, we've shown that by far.”

Cock & Bull has also won awards for its business acumen claiming the prestigious Westpac Trust Supreme Award, HANZ Excellence Awards including the 2004 HANZ Awards for best beef and best lamb dish bringing the total medal and trophy collection to over 150 National and International awards.

More Awards for Monk's Habit

2005 - Australian International Beer Awards

Monk's Habit - Best in Class, International Ale
Monk's Habit - Gold, International Ale
Monk's Habit - Gold, Australasian Ale

Fuggles - Silver, Australasian Ale
Fuggles - Bronze, International Ale

Chubby IV - Silver, International Ale
Chubby IV - Bronze, Australasian Ale

(Dark Star was not awarded any medal, possibly too hoppy)
(Blue Goose, Buxom Blonde and Classic Draught not entered)