Waikato Draught

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Waikato Draught
Brewery	Lion Breweries
Style	Lager
First Brewed	1925
Alc. vol.	4.0%

Waikato Draught is a lager-style beer brewed by Lion Breweries, part of the Lion Nathan group. It is mainly sold in the Waikato region of New Zealand, but can also be found in selected stores across the country and specialist stores around the world.

[edit] History

Waikato draught was first brewed in 1925 [1] and has been one of the biggest selling beers in the region ever since. Willie the waiter, a cartoon character used to promote the beer was created in 1945. At this time Waikato Draught was selling 400,000 gallons of beer each year and was being brewed from the Innes Family Waikato Brewery.[2] In 1961 New Zealand Breweries(later to become Lion Nathan) acquired Waikato Breweries from CL Innes.[3]The brewery stayed open in Hamilton until 1987 when it was closed down. From this time production of Waikato Draught was moved to the Lion Breweries in Newmarket, Auckland.

In 2005 Waikato Draught was awarded a gold medal in the NZ draught category at the BrewNZ New Zealand beer awards.[4]

[edit] Flavour

Waikato Draught has a strong malty flavour and a well-defined bitterness. It has a smooth and clean texture, and a hoppy and spicy aroma. The bitterness of Waikato Draught refreshes the palate. The robust ale flavours are a good match with hearty meat and potato meals.[5]