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    • Rare Beer Record
      • $17,385 - new record! We’ll be sending one of those giant cheques to our friends at Rare Disorders NZ 🥳On a serious note we want to say thanks to all of the breweries and beer drinkers who joined us for the Rare Beer Challenge. It’s because of you we are able to make a record donation to Rare Disorders NZ A special thanks to 16 Tun and the Auckland beer drinkers who tried a Rare Beer, your support has helped make this record donation a possibility.Above all else we are most proud of the awareness the Rare Beer Challenge has been able to make for an under funded organisation fighting for more than 300,000 New Zealanders. Cheers for Rare!

    • Cuba Dupa 2023
      • Cuba Dupa you were amazing 🤩 After the disappointment of last year there was no doubt this was going to be big and boy were we right - Our city knows how to put on a party🕺💃 This year saw a whole new array of out-of-this-world offerings come to the heart of Te Whanganui-a-Tara. The Cuba Street precinct was alive with colour, art, music, theatre, dance, food and over 1200 artists performing over the weekend.  To all of you who stopped by the Fortune bar or dove mouth first into a tropical haze (AKA the Cuba Dupa beer) thank you! We can’t wait to see you next year.

    • A Farmhouse Ale with a side of pancakes
      • -Author Denise Garland, Pursuit of Hoppiness Lingonberry pancake farmhouse ale brewed by Heyday Beer Co. was this month crowned the 2023 Rare Beer Champion, beating out 20 other wacky, wild and just plain weird beers to take out the winner’s cap. The Rare Beer Challenge is an annual event hosted by Fortune Favours to raise funds and awareness for Rare Disorders NZ. Breweries create a unique beer inspired by the charity, promoting it — and the cause — on social media. Now in its third year, the event was extended beyond just Wellington, with several breweries from across the country invited to take part alongside those based in the capital, and the 21 beers were poured at both Fortune Favours in Wellington and 16 Tun in Auckland. It’s my second year being a judge in this event and this year, it was a real pleasure to see that the majority of breweries are finally understanding the “rare” part of this beer challenge, and really pushing boundaries of what a beer can be. Among the entrants, we had an energy drink beer, a beer made with lentils and south Indian spices, a short rib ragu beer, and a dampfbier — a style none of the judges had even heard of, let alone tried before. Not only were the majority of beers rare, but tasty too — a fine line to draw, and something that’s important when every sale of your beer raises money for charity. Heyday’s winning beer, The Big Lebrewski, was a farmhouse ale back-sweetened with lingonberry concentrate and maple syrup that really did taste like pancakes, but without losing the beer behind it. Not only was it a tasty and well-made beer, but Heyday was clear in how it linked to rare disorders; they explained how they chose to highlight a rare ingredient — lingonberry — to signify the attention Rare Disorders NZ brings to those suffering from a rare disorder or disease. The final piece in judging this competition is how the breweries promote Rare Disorders and in that respect Heyday knocked it out of the park. They not only put up posters about their beer and the challenge, but also created oversized bowling pins branded with their beer and rare disorders logo, posted three social media posts and a video about their beer, the challenge and how it all linked to Rare Disorders, and also commissioned a hop rug by Wellington artist Maze Rugs, which was auctioned off to raise money for the charity. The second place getter, Alibi, also had a strong social media promotion of their beer, the event and Rare Disorders, and explained how the cherries used in the beer represented both oxygen-carrying blood cells and the heart. And my, was Alibi’s barrel-aged cherry sour delicious.  In fact, most, though not all, of the breweries which scored in the top five did all three things that the judges look at well: brew a unique, yet tasty beer, explain the beer’s link to rare disorders, and promote the Rare Beer Challenge and Rare Disorders. But the thing most breweries are still struggling with three years on from the start of the competition, is connecting their beer with rare disorders. Panhead nailed that aspect this year. Their Heart of Gold Aurum Ale was made using 17 ingredients, to signify the one in 17 New Zealanders living with a rare disorder. They also named their beer with a nod to a rare disorder, and after a song — as they explained it — of companionship and love. Breweries who designed their beer with inspiration from rare disorders at the core generally scored higher with the judges than those that took a beer they had sitting around or were brewing anyway and entered it. There were also several beers that had thought carefully about how they could make a rare beer and conveyed that but didn’t make the link to rare disorders. Just adding weird ingredients to a beer, while cool, isn’t enough in this competition either. Another big part of the scoring is also down to the promotion of Rare Disorders NZ and the Rare Beer Challenge in the leadup to the event. There were some amazing Instagram posts and stories from some of the entrants, including another epic effort from Fortune Favours, but others didn’t promote their beer or the event on social media at all, again missing out on points. But overall, the event was a resounding success. Punters in both Wellington and Auckland enjoyed their nights drinking barrel-aged flower beers, beer-sake hybrids, smoked barrel-aged cask beers, and blackcurrant fig leaf barley wines. The creativity shown by breweries this year was through the roof, and the Rare Beer Challenge raised more than $17,000 for Rare Disorders NZ — a new record. Cheers to that.

    • The Official Beer of Cuba Dupa
      • CubaDupa Beer 2023  - Enter the Fortune Favours beer portal for a sensory experience that will have you diving into a tropical haze. Fortune Favours is proud to be the official beer partner of New Zealand’s most iconic street festival - Cuba Dupa. We  have travelled to other worlds and created the perfect tropical refreshment to accompany the feast of arts and entertainment on offer at CubaDupa 2023. Fortune Favours beer portal will be set up in the Ghuznee St carpark, offering festival cocktails,  the Cuba Dupa Hazy Pale Ale and a pop up tattoo studio from Union Tattoo.  The official beer of Cuba Dupa will also be available from the Swan Lane stage, the Southern Cross bar and various bars around the city.

    • Rare Beer a chance to say cheers for charity
      • A drop that tastes like prunes, barley wine, or smoke - those at the Rare Beer Challenge being held in Wellington and Auckland today will get to decide for themselves. While the concoctions might sound unusual, the challenge was raising much-needed funds for Rare Disorders, with $3 from each pint going to the charity. On a backstreet in Lower Hutt, at the Abandoned Brewery production centre, head brewer Charlotte Feehan offered up a taste of her monstrous creation - a double IPA brewed with energy drink. "Yeah look, I'm not going to lie, it's a lot better than I was afraid it was going to be," she said. "There's only a certain amount of trial and testing that you can do you know, you can put energy drink syrup into a finished double IPA and taste it, but then all that sugar's still there, so it's a lot of educated guessing and then a lot of hoping for the best." On the more savoury side of things, Waitoa Beer brewer and co-owner Tom Baker was inspired by the Italian cooking he perfected during lockdown. Step one - add pasta to the grains. "Before we separated the wort from the grains into the kettle, I got the short ribs and just browned that up, tomato paste, browned that up too. Then so we had to glaze the bottom of the kettle with this red wine, let that go, let the alcohol evaporate out of that," he said. "Fill that up and that's where the sofrito goes in, so the onion and the celery and the carrot." So, if anything goes, what did not make the cut? "I decided against garlic, I just thought that was too risky and parmesan cheese, I left that out too, the parmigiano reggiano, it's just too risky to put cheese in a beer."   Waitoa Beer brewer and co-owner Tom Baker. (Source: rnz.co.nz) Rare Disorders chief executive Michelle Arrowsmith said while each type of illness the charity focuses on was uncommon, collectively they affected 300,000 New Zealanders. The charity advocates for an equitable healthcare system that works for people with a rare disorder. "There's around six to seven thousand clinically defined rare disorders and there are many more rare disorders that yet don't have a name or haven't been fully clinically diagnosed," she said. "So we think actually that there's probably over 10,000 rare disorders."   Rare Disorders chief executive Michelle Arrowsmith (left) and Fortune Favours founder and event organiser Shannon Thorpe. (Source: rnz.co.nz) Fortune Favours founder and event organiser Shannon Thorpe said it was the third time the challenge had been run, with more breweries coming on board each year. "It's not like a lot of other beer competitions where it's about technically how well the beer's made and how well does it fit a certain style guideline," Thorpe said.  "This competition it's all about connecting that beer with rare disorders, so it's about using innovative different brewing techniques, interesting ingredients and telling that story." Panhead innovation brewer Ziggy Mountier said it was shocking to hear one in 17 New Zealanders lived with a rare disorder. He took an eclectic mix of 16 gold-themed ingredients and one non-golden ingredient to create a symbolic pale ale. "So we've got everything from Golden Promise malted barley, golden kūmara, East Kent Golding hops, Golden Queen peaches, Belgian Golden Ale yeast," he said. "We even played Heart of Gold by Neil Young during the whole brew process." A chance to say cheers for charity. By Soumya Bhamidipati of rnz.co.nz

    • The Big Lebrewski Pancake Beer takes the cake.
      • The 3rd annual Rare Beer Challenge was bigger than ever with 21 breweries from around New Zealand taking on the challenge of brewing a rare beer for Rare Disorders NZ. Aucklanders were also treated to a taste of rare with 16 Tun pouring Rare Beers over the weekend.  Heyday Beer Co. took out the top prize with their Lingonberry Pancake Ale, based on the 90s cult movie The Big Lebowski. Rare Beer new comers Alibi Brewing Co. took out 2nd place with A heart Full of Cherries Barrel Blended Tart Ale aged on Cherries. Last years winners Choice Bros took out 3rd place with SAKE BOMB Ginjo Beer. Top marks went to innovative breweries who were able to make the connection to Rare Disorders through their beer and marketing efforts.  Rare Disorders NZ couldn’t of been more happy with the turn out and the quality of the entries. RDNZ is the reason why we are able to host the Rare Beer Challenge and aside from the donations from beer sales, we are most proud of the awareness the event is able to generate for this little organisation with a big heart.  Thanks to everyone who managed to join us for the Rare Beer Challenge, we’ll see you again in 2024. Special thanks to all of the breweries that took part and our sponsors Gladfield Malt, NZ Hops and Kegstar for your support.  Cheers to Rare.

    • Fortune Favours The Cyclist
      • We’re all about doing our part when it comes to sustainability, so we asked our staff what we could do to make it easier for them to cycle to work, the overwhelming factor being there was no where to safely park their bikes. After a little research we found that Wellington City Council offer the Active Transport Workplace Fund which helps business in Wellington encourage their staff to actively commute to work. We were able to use this fund to build a safe and secure bike parking shelter for our staff to use. We also encourage our customers to use it too if there's free space. This project could not of happened with without the help of the Sustainable Transport team at WCC, you guys are legends - thanks. Massive thanks to Project Stainless Wellington Ltd and Tilley Group Ltd for their fabrication genius.

    • Rare Beer Challenge 2023
      • The Rare Beer Challenge is back for 2023! With a line up of 21 breweries this is the biggest year yet for the Rare Beer Challenge. The Rare Beer Challenge is a fundraiser for our mates at Rare Disorders NZ, we ask breweries from around NZ to use weird and wonderful ideas along with rare ingredients and brewing techniques to produce their version of a rare beer. This is competition where brewers can let their imaginations run wild. There are no specific rules except- each brewery has to produce 2 kegs and help promote rare disorders along the brewing journey.  Last year's winners Choice Bro's who produced an Imperial Isotonic Sports Beer will be joined by: Whistling Sisters, Choice Bros, HeyDay, Parrot Dog, Bone Face, Fortune Favours, Double Vision Brewing, Garage Project, Mean Doses, Tuatara, Altitude Brewing, Abandoned, Waitoa, 8 Wired, Fork and Brewer, Panhead, Emerson's, North End, Sawmill, Liberty and Eddyline. This is your opportunity to come along and try some truely unique beers, it's all for a great cause! The Rare Beer Challenge will take place on 10th March from 5pm at Fortune Favours, 7 Leeds St, Te Aro, Wellington.  

    • New Zealand's Strongest Beer
      •                                          Here at Fortune Favours HQ we are all about pushing the limits when it comes to new beers and our entry for this years Rare Beer Challenge was no different. Head brewer Dale had the idea of making New Zealand's strongest beer - coming in at 31% this beer was not for the faint hearted.  Hyper Fuel 31% is New Zealand’s strongest beer, it has been fortified and is comparable to Port or Sherry. ⠀⠀How it was done:⠀Produced high gravity wort (highest we’ve done in the brewery) and fermented with a high attenuative yeast = very strong base beer. We then distilled a portion of the beer and blended the distilled beer spirit back into the remaining base. Beer has been fortified by adding spirits before but as far as we know never to this extent. Our rigorous (google) research has not uncovered a beer fortified using distillate from the original beer itself. So this technique seems so rare it’s never been done before! The Rare Beer Challenge and New Zealand's strongest beer hit the news headlines, check out the link to watch FF founder Shannon knock back an early morning shot of Hyper Fuel on national TV.

    • Rare Beer Challenge Champions
      • Wow what a night! The Rare Beer Challenge was huge, thanks to the hundreds of you who came through to try the beers and support Rare Disorders NZ Congratulations to 🏆 Choice Bros for taking out the title with their version of a rare beer - A LA LA LA LA LA LONG Imperial Isotonic Sports Beer.🥈2nd- Bone Face Brewing - Cola and Tayberry Sour⠀🥉3rd - Waitoa Beer - Peach Lichtenhainer

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