Agonising Golf: Best Beer Bar in Wellington

Fork and Brewer bar

New Zealand must be one of the top beer countries in the world, when it comes to variety and excellence.
If you're a beer connoisseur, go to the Fork and Brewer in Bond street in Wellington. It must have the greatest range of beer in the city.
After attending Brew NZ 10 years ago, I discovered dark beers. I also discovered a number of NZ boutique breweries, many of which have grown and prospered over that time.
That was in the days when the Brew NZ festival was a lot more fun. Bars and restaurants would 'adopt' brewers and feature their beers, often matching them with food. You'd take your map and make your way around as many establishments as suited. (Being Wellington, you could walk around most of them so there were no worries about drinking and driving.)
We found the people behind the bars as passionate about the beer as the brewers, and would often spend more time at the places where the staff took the time to discuss the brewing process and the ingredients.
You'd have a couple of free tasters and then buy a glass of whichever one took your fancy.
At one bar we talked with a couple of Aussie brewers and ended up going to several bars with them. It was a great evening's fun and walking around the various venues helped you sober up between drinks.

Fork and Brewer taps

Now the Brew NZ is held at one large venue and I've stopped going because it's just not fun any more. You have to pay to get in, then you have to pay for samples and some of the brewers are in a hurry to move you on so they can get the money from the next punter.
And they've changed the name to the ridiculous 'Beervana'.
That says it all.
But I digress. This is supposed to be about the Fork and Brewer, who have 40 different beers on tap. And very original taps they are, too. A whisk, a flute, a roller skate. Several that I couldn't name, and it looked like every one was different. All placed on what looks like a very large wooden barrel.
My personal favourites include Tuatara Porter and Yeastie Boys 'Pot Kettle Black'.
Most of the beers are made in NZ but I did notice one Aussie beer, and it's a good one. Fat Yak pale ale. Having despaired of ever finding a decent Aussie beer in Queensland, last year we found Fat Yak. We've even bought it here in NZ - it's a great drink on a hot day after a round of golf.
We asked the barperson's opinion on the best beer and she pointed to a blackboard that listed all the staff picks. One of them was the Epicurean 750ml bottle of Coffee & Fig Imperial Oatmeal Stout. It sounded wonderful but when she told us it cost $35, we decided to wait for a special occasion.

And these days, with brewers producing such flavoursome beers, why wouldn't you celebrate with a special beer, rather than champagne?