Sunshine Brewery

About Sunshine Brewery

Sunshine Brewery is a craft brewery based at 49 Awapuni Rd in Awapuni, Gisborne, making beer with a distinctly local accent. Its heritage core is named outright for its home town — Gisborne Gold Lager, Gisborne Green Pilsner and Gisborne Black Stout — and the wider range keeps the coastal theme going with Pipeline Pilsner, Máhia Pale Ale, a Mexican Lager and the hazy IPAs No Access and Stockies. Lighter options include Half Pipe, a 2.4% light pilsner, and Pipe Dream, a low-carb pilsner sold in six-packs.

Beyond the core, the brewery runs a constantly rotating seasonal line in 440mL cans: fresh hop India pale lager, feijoa and passion fruit sours, a habanero-and-lime margarita sour, honey Belgian tripel, Waves of Dawn wit, Red Style Vienna Lager, double milk stout, Russian imperial stout and more. These limited releases come and go quickly, which is half the appeal for anyone following along.

Beer is poured at the brewery's taproom and sold nationwide through the online shop, with free shipping on orders over $120 and monthly Heritage subscription boxes for regulars. Gift boxes holding any three 440mL cans, gift vouchers, glass growlers and branded merchandise round out the range. As an alcohol producer and retailer, the brewery and its site are strictly 18+.

Sunshine Brewery, Gisborne: Heritage Craft Beer with a Coastal Streak

On Awapuni Road in Gisborne, Sunshine Brewery brews beer for its own patch and names it after the place. The heritage core reads like a roll call of the town — Gisborne Gold, Gisborne Green and Gisborne Black — and the wider range keeps the coastal theme running with names like Pipeline, Rogue Wave, Sunset Beach and No Access. This is a working brewery with a taproom at its Awapuni Rd site and a well-stocked online shop that ships its cans around New Zealand.

The core range

The backbone of everything is the Gold–Green–Black trio: a golden lager, a pilsner and a stout, each sold in 330ml cans and available year-round. Around them sits a dependable core — Pipeline Pilsner, Máhia Pale Ale and an easy-drinking Mexican Lager — plus two hazy IPAs: No Access, billed as the East Coast hazy, and Stockies, a session-strength version for longer afternoons.

Lighter drinkers are covered twice over. Half Pipe is a light pilsner at just 2.4%, and Pipe Dream is a low-carb pilsner sold in six-packs. Rogue Wave, one of the newer core additions, comes as a 330ml four-pack, and anyone who can't settle on a single style can mix four different six-packs and save 15% at checkout.

The seasonal carousel

Where the core range stays steady, the seasonal 440mL line rotates constantly, and it is where the brewery stretches out. A fresh hop India pale lager arrives as a new release; sours come in several moods, from local feijoa to a passion fruit and guava Catharina and a habanero-and-lime margarita sour. There are Belgian detours in the Honey Belgian Tripel and the Waves of Dawn wit, dark territory in the Double Milk Stout and the Russian Imperial Stout, a Red Style Vienna Lager for lager loyalists, a tropical Sunset Beach Pineapple IPA, and big-hitting hop-forward releases like the Last Chance NEIIPA and the West Coast-style Aegir WCIPA.

These limited cans move quickly — plenty sit marked out of stock on the site between releases — so catching one fresh is part of the fun of following the brewery.

Taproom, subscriptions and gifts

The taproom at 49 Awapuni Rd is the place to try the beers at the source; opening hours are confirmed via the brewery's Taproom and Contact pages rather than this listing. For drinkers further afield, the online shop carries the full can range, and orders over $120 ship free. Regulars can subscribe to monthly Heritage boxes — Gold, Green or a mixed Combo — so the fridge never runs dry.

Gift-giving is handled too: a gift box holds any three 440mL cans, gift vouchers suit the undecided, and merchandise runs from a 1.89-litre glass growler to a Gisborne Gold key chain and branded t-shirts.

Good to know

As an alcohol producer and retailer, Sunshine Brewery's site is restricted to visitors aged 18 and over, and purchases follow the same rule. Anyone planning a visit should confirm current taproom hours before heading out, since they are not published on this page. Beer lovers building a first order could do worse than starting with the heritage trio, adding a hazy IPA, and watching the seasonal page for whatever has just landed — or is about to disappear.

Between the familiar core and the revolving door of limited releases, Sunshine Brewery has assembled a notably varied craft line-up, all of it canned under names borrowed from its home coast in Gisborne.

Signature items

• Gisborne Gold Lager
• Gisborne Green Pilsner
• Gisborne Black Stout
• Máhia Pale Ale
• Stockies Session Hazy IPA
• Half Pipe Light Pilsner

Menu

Merchandise

• Gift Box – any 3 x 440mL cans — Pick any three 440mL cans, packed as a gift.
• Gisborne Gold Key Chain — Branded key chain in the Gisborne Gold look.
• Growler 1.89l — 1.89-litre glass growler for take-home brews.
• Gisborne Gold T-Shirt — Branded tee; currently out of stock online.
• Sunshine T-Shirt — Brewery logo tee; currently out of stock online.

Deals & Packs

• Mix 4 x 330ml 6-packs — Choose any four 330ml six-packs and save 15%.

Subscriptions

• Heritage Combo – Monthly Subscription — Monthly mixed delivery from the heritage range.
• Heritage Gold – Monthly Subscription — Monthly delivery built around Gisborne Gold.
• Heritage Green – Monthly Subscription — Monthly delivery built around Gisborne Green.

Seasonal Beers

• Fresh Hop India Pale Lager 440mL — New-release fresh hop IPL in a 440mL can.
• Habanero & Lime Margarita Sour 440mL — Chilli-and-citrus margarita sour; often out of stock online.
• Last Chance NEIIPA — New England-style imperial IPA; often out of stock online.
• Passion Fruit & Guava Catharina Sour 440mL — Tropical Catharina-style sour; often out of stock online.
• Sunrise 10 440mL — Limited 440mL seasonal release; often out of stock online.
• Aegir WCIPA — West Coast-style IPA; often out of stock online.
• Double Milk Stout 440mL — 440mL milk stout; often out of stock online.
• Feijoa Sour 440mL — Feijoa fruit sour; often out of stock online.
• Honey Belgian Tripel 440ml — Belgian tripel brewed with honey; often out of stock online.
• Red Style Vienna Lager 440ml — Red Vienna-style lager; often out of stock online.
• Russian Imperial Stout 440 mL — Big, dark imperial stout in a 440mL can.
• Sunset Beach Pineapple IPA — Pineapple IPA; often out of stock online.
• Waves of Dawn – Belgian wit 440ml — Belgian-style witbier; often out of stock online.

Heritage & Core Range

• Gisborne Gold Lager 330ml — The namesake golden lager at the centre of the range.
• Gisborne Green – Pilsner 330ml — Heritage-range pilsner in the Gisborne colour trio.
• Gisborne Black 330ml — The dark stout of the Gisborne heritage trio.
• Pipeline Pilsner 330ml — Core-range craft pilsner, a long-standing pour.
• Máhia Pale Ale 330ml — Core-range pale ale in the classic 330ml can.
• Mexican Lager 330ml — Lager brewed in the Mexican style.
• No Access – East Coast Hazy IPA 330ml — The brewery's East Coast hazy IPA.
• Stockies – Session Hazy IPA 330ml — Session-strength hazy IPA for longer sessions.
• Half Pipe – Light Pilsner 2.4% 330ml — Light pilsner at just 2.4% ABV.
• Pipe Dream Low Carb Pilsner 330ml 6 Pack — Low-carb pilsner sold as a six-pack of cans.
• Rogue Wave 330ml 4 Pack — Newer core-range release, sold as a four-pack.
• Mixed 330ml 4 Pack — A mixed four-pack of core cans; availability varies online.

Frequently asked questions

Where is Sunshine Brewery?

49 Awapuni Rd, Awapuni, Gisborne, New Zealand — the brewery's home on the East Coast.

Does Sunshine Brewery have a taproom?

Yes, there is a taproom at the brewery. Opening hours are not shown on this page, so check the Taproom page on sunshinebrewing.co.nz before visiting.

Can I buy the beer online?

Yes. The online shop stocks 330ml and 440mL cans, mixed packs, growlers and merchandise, with free shipping on orders over $120.

What is Sunshine Brewery best known for?

The heritage trio of Gisborne Gold Lager, Gisborne Green Pilsner and Gisborne Black Stout, alongside Pipeline Pilsner, Máhia Pale Ale and the hazy IPAs No Access and Stockies.

Are there low-alcohol or low-carb options?

Yes — Half Pipe is a 2.4% light pilsner and Pipe Dream is a low-carb pilsner.

Do they run beer subscriptions?

There are three monthly plans: Heritage Gold, Heritage Green and a Heritage Combo, delivering the heritage range on a regular basis.

Is there an age restriction?

Yes. As an alcohol producer and retailer, the website and purchases are limited to people aged 18 or over.

Tips

• {"body":"Choose four different 330ml six-packs and the brewery takes 15% off the lot.","title":"Save 15% on a mixed order"}
• {"body":"Online orders over $120 ship free, so pooling an order with friends goes further.","title":"Free shipping over $120"}
• {"body":"Limited 440mL releases like the fresh hop IPL and fruit sours frequently show as out of stock online — catch them early.","title":"Move fast on seasonals"}
• {"body":"Taproom opening times aren't listed on this page; check the Taproom or Contact pages at sunshinebrewing.co.nz before heading to Awapuni Rd.","title":"Confirm taproom hours"}
• {"body":"The three-can 440mL gift box, gift vouchers and the 1.89L glass growler cover most gifting occasions.","title":"Gifts sorted"}