This Saturday will host an event designed to bridge the gap between Dunedin’s “town and gown” student population and the general public. The Dunedin Craft Beer and Food Festival, to be held on 14 September, is described by the event organisers as “an evolving platform upon which craft brewers can come together under one roof to showcase their products alongside a selection of the finest local food backed up by top Kiwi music.”
Held at Forsyth Barr Stadium, the event will showcase over 50 unique beverages from over 30 breweries, and more than 15 different food providers. Beers exclusive to the festival will also be present. Emerson’s brewery has been working with Whittaker’s to create a chocolate stout, incorporating cocoa nibs supplied by Whittaker’s, which will feature as the exclusive “festival brew.”
OUSA figures described the event as “something a little bit different, fusing the popularity and great food of the food festivals we run with the more refined ‘quality over quantity’ attitude that comes with the craft beer and cider lovers.”
The festival is not all about beer tasting, however – seminars will be held throughout the day to educate visitors about production techniques and professional beer tasting methods. There will also be a home brew competition, with the winner being awarded the opportunity to brew the following year’s “festival brew.” Farra Fabrication will also be doing a live brew on the day.
A selection of New Zealand musicians – including Sola Rosa, Two Cartoons, Matt Langley, Sympathy Bells and The Kaikorai Metropolitan Bavarian Band – are set to perform live. There will also be a large range of food, including waffles, pizza, churros and breads.
The mix of music, beer and food is expected to bring around 3,000 people under the roof of the Forsyth Barr Stadium. Travellers from Auckland, Christchurch and Wellington are also set to attend, thanks to a partnership deal run by Air New Zealand’s Grabaseat Getaways service.
Breweries from the North Island will also be featured in the festival. “There will be a sprinkling of North Island breweries such as Liberty and Yeastie Boys. Once we got momentum we found they were keen to be here supported by their distributors, and they’re so good we couldn’t not let them in.”
These moves come after criticism over Lion Nathan’s partnership in the festival, which led to the inclusion of Speights in the event. A self-described “beer snob” told Critic he was “relieved” to see this partnership taking a back seat in favour of “true craft beers.”
“I think [the organisers] have done a really good job of balancing their commercial obligations with the spirit of a craft beer festival.”
The festival may become an annual feature, depending on the success of this inaugural effort. “This is the first year … the festival has happened, and we are extremely happy with the progress behind the scenes and the support from the greater Dunedin city. Because of this we intend to continue to develop the event for future years,” OUSA told Critic.
Emerson’s spokesperson Jane Hyde felt that “beer festivals are a hugely popular phenomenon now and it’s pretty exciting that Otago is going to have one of its own.”
Student tickets are $19.90, plus a booking fee. A sizeable student turnout is expected.
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