In Wellington, three friends called Matt were about to officially launch their brewery. Named for the fact one of them had a pet parrot and they called each other “dog” (an origin story they now admit to finding somewhat embarrassing), Parrotdog had been in existence in some form since the end of 2009, when Matt Kristofski did his first home brew on a kit given to him by the father of his then girlfriend. He joined forces with his flatmate Matt Warner to save money, and they began serving their beer at parties. The home brewery needed a name, of course, so Parrotdog it was. A friend in London even designed a logo for them, which remains in use to this day.

Saving money on booze was the priority in those early days, but they soon switched focus to the product itself. “Our passion for craft beer was building through places like Hashigo Zake,” says Kristofski. “We were drinking beer from Tuatara, Emerson’s, Epic, Renaissance.” Parrotdog wasn’t a pioneer of the New Zealand scene – the above names get that honour – but the early 2010s was when Wellington began taking shape as New Zealand’s craft beer capital. And Parrotdog, along with a contemporary by the name of Garage Project, as well as bars like Hashigo Zake, The Malthouse, Bebemos, Little Beer Quarter and Golding’s Free Dive, were at the forefront.