Photo: Peter Janssen
What makes classic New Zealand pub? According to travel writer Peter Janssen it must be built before 1967, have been continuously serving beer and have some architectural integrity.
He's written a book about the country's famous and beloved watering holes, New Zealand Pubs, and joined RNZ's Summer Times to talk about some of his favourites.
The Station Hotel, Hunterville
The Station Hotel, Hunterville. Photo: Peter janssen
"It's a classic small pub. It was built alongside the railway line in anticipation of the railway coming. Lots of pubs were transport hubs, either coaching stops, ferries or railways.
"It was originally called The Hunterville Pub, and then it changed its name to The Station when the station came. And it's a lovely little pub, well run. It's got lots of memorabilia inside, and it's just a classic."
The Kentish Hotel
The Kentish Hotel, Waiuku. Photo: Peter Janssen
"The Kentish Hotel in Waiuku. I would call it New Zealand's oldest pub. It has never changed its name, never burnt down and never moved.
"There are some which have older licenses, but they've been burnt down. The famous Duke of Marlborough has been burnt down four times. The Kentish was built in 1852 and licensed in 1853."
The Top House, Nelson lakes
"The Top House is beautiful. It's tiny, and it's made of cob, it was part of a chain of small cob hotels and ran through the middle of the South Island, and they were for drovers, people who were droving sheep.
"Originally, the hotel would have had paddocks all around it. The drovers would come and stay in the pub and then move on to the next one."
The Woodstock, Hokitika
The Woodstock, Hokitika. Photo: Peter Janssen
"A gold fields pub, it was on a low flat originally, down by the river, and then the road changed, so they hauled it uphill with horses and the rollers were beer barrels.
"And now it sits high, and you got a lovely, big terrace. You look out over the Hokitika River, over the whole valley. It's well run, got food, it has music on the weekends. It's got little cabins out the back you can stay and of course, it's got a ghost. They've all got ghosts."
Dansey's Pass Pub, Central Otago
Dansey's Pass pub Photo: Peter Janssen
"If you're looking for an experience, you should go up the Waitaki Valley, go over the Dansey's Pass.
"It is still the original coach road. It's narrow, windy, but take your time. And then on the North Central Otago side is the tiny, little Dansey's Pub.
It was built in stone and the stonemason was paid in beer. He got a pint for every stone shaped and laid."
