Archive record · Brewery
Emerson's Brewery
Dunedin, Otago, New Zealand
- Founded
- 1992
- Archive ID
- TB-JHJ4V8DV
- Last checked
- 2026-09-07
Who owns this brewery?
At the top of the chain: Kirin Holdings Company, Limited. Every step is shown below.
- Emerson's BreweryThis brewery
- LionSubsidiary
- Kirin Holdings Company, LimitedConglomerate
Tally Answers Beta
- Who owns this brewery?
- Lion Pty LimitedVerified
From the record
Summary
Founded by Richard Emerson, who is profoundly deaf, and widely credited with starting New Zealand's craft brewing movement. Acquired by Lion in 2012.
A summary written during research. The sourced facts are in the sections below.
Tally’s Take
New Zealand craft beer effectively begins here, in Dunedin, with a deaf brewer who could not hear the boil and judged it by other means. Lion bought it in 2012, which is the arc almost every founding craft brewery follows.
Where it is
-45.87050, 170.51673
Supplied by the research pass; method not recorded
Open on a mapThe Museum
Timeline
- 2012Bought by Lion
Lion pays around NZ$8 million for the Dunedin brewery in 2012 — the first of its two New Zealand craft purchases, and the deal that told the rest of the country's brewers what they might be worth.
The Beer Library
Beers
Emerson's Pilsner
Year-RoundBohemian Pilsner
From the brewery that started New Zealand craft beer, founded by a profoundly deaf brewer who judged the boil by other means.
Drank this? Add it to your passport →Emerson's Pride of the Plains
Year-RoundChampion New Zealand Beer and NZ Lager/NZ Pilsner trophy. (Current/2026 award)
Drank this? Add it to your passport →Emerson's Ingrid Weizenbock
Year-Round2026 class trophy. (Current/2026 award)
Drank this? Add it to your passport →Travel Guide
Plan a visit
On the record
Awards
- 2026
Champion NZ Large Brewery — Large
New Zealand Beer Awards
- 2026
Champion New Zealand Beer — Overall — Emerson's Pride of the Plains
New Zealand Beer Awards
- 2026
Trophy — NZ Lager & NZ Pilsner — Emerson's Pride of the Plains
New Zealand Beer Awards
- 2026
Trophy — Wheat & Other Grain — Emerson's Ingrid Weizenbock
New Zealand Beer Awards
Only awards we could attribute to a named body and year appear here. An empty section means unresearched, not unawarded.
Follow the money
How it changed hands
1 recorded move- 1992Founded
- 2012Bought by Lion
Lion pays around NZ$8 million for the Dunedin brewery in 2012 — the first of its two New Zealand craft purchases, and the deal that told the rest of the country's brewers what they might be worth.
Today the chain tops out at Kirin Holdings Company, Limited.
Show your working
Sources
- controlConfirmed
Emerson's Brewery is controlled by Public company.
Kirin Report 2025 · Kirin Holdings · 2025
PrimaryHigh reliabilitySource accessed 2026-08-05Claim last checked 2026-08-05
Only the claims above are sourced. Everything else on this page is the archive's own research and has not yet been tied to a document — which is worth knowing rather than hiding.
Straight answers
Common questions about Emerson's Brewery
- Who owns Emerson's Brewery?
- Emerson's Brewery is owned by Lion. Lion is part of Kirin Holdings Company, Limited. Emerson's Brewery is based in Dunedin, Otago, New Zealand.
- Is Emerson's Brewery still independent?
- No. Emerson's Brewery is owned by Lion, ultimately Kirin Holdings Company, Limited, and is no longer independent.
- When was Emerson's Brewery acquired?
- 2012. Lion pays around NZ$8 million for the Dunedin brewery in 2012 — the first of its two New Zealand craft purchases, and the deal that told the rest of the country's brewers what they might be worth.
- When was Emerson's Brewery founded?
- Emerson's Brewery was founded in 1992 in Dunedin, Otago, New Zealand.
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