Pearn’s Brewery site , Kumara.1971.

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DescriptionPearn’s Brewery, Kumara. In 1971 I met an elderly gentleman in Kumara and he was able to direct me to the site of the old brewery. Jack Pamment(please correct if I have his name wrong) was the dray man for the brewery and one day was returning a near-full cask of apperently bad beer. Mrs Pearn asked him what was wrong with the taste and Jack replied that he does not drink. Mrs Pearn then told him he was of no use so he replied that he was resigning on the spot and the next day he signed up for WW1. (and a warning from my personal experience...do not wander around the vicinity of this as their are...or were... near hidden open mine shafts).
Photo from 1971. — at Milford Beach.Date of Photo1971Map^[1]ContributorBrian Ronson

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Location (city or town)KumaraPersonJack PammentMrs PearnOrganisation (eg business)Pearn’s Brewery

From Facebook

Date Created27th April 2020CommentsGlenn Johnston One of Pearn's brands was John Bull Ale, another was Pearn's XXX.

Glenn Johnston Kumara near the town boundary heading south on the old main road. (not the current State Highway)

Janet Stammers I was a young boy brought up in Church Street or called Third Street. From 1936.The house according to the deed was built for the local brewer a Mr Ford about 1904. The story does that. The brew always had plenty of body in it as the water was sourced from the stream passing the local cemetery at the top of the hill!
Ron Fensom Q.S.M
Halswell Christchurch.

Glenn Johnston Regarding the water; they used well water for the beer brewing but other water for other purposes. Ron's story deserves to be true but the water from the source he refers to was used by the brewery but not for brewing with. See attachment.

Jeremy Sutherland Thanks Brian Ronson, tried to find it about 15 years ago but failed. I have never seen a photo of it 'in action', was it demolished, burned down or go by the traditional West Coast method?

Brian Ronson Do not know....I guess it was demolished and materials salvaged and ‘repurposed’.

Sharleen Davidson Katrina Lawson Thought Don might be interested

Katrina Lawson Sharleen Davidson yep. We were just looking at that.

Chris Kelly Is the brewery on greenstone rd

Glenn Johnston Yes it was. That was the old main road.

Brian Ronson I should add that Jack Parment told me what the first job he did at the brewery every morning. It was to pull out any sacks (which contained drowned unwanted kittens) from the stream feeding the brewery.

Heather Newby i used to see those sacks in the blaketown lagoon too

Glenn Johnston Pearn had an adopted daughter, Teresa, who married Phil Kortegast from the Hokitika Brewing and Cordial dynasty.

Noeline McCaughan I remember the brewery, it was a large wooden building on the Western side of the road up to Sandy's Hill, it burned down around 1942/3. Much to my surprise (I was six years old) was the view down into the cellars after the fire. I had had no idea they were there.

Glenn Johnston Thanks Noeline. I checked my old maps and it shows up on them. A dam is shown uphill across the road on the eastern side.

Brian Ronson
A few weeks ago…after my visit of 50 years ago… I went back to visit this site again which is on Greenstone Road, about maybe 800 meters from the main road. The stream is still there, on one side of the road and acrossing under the road to where the brewery was. The brewery site is now

completely covered in trees
etc and impossible to see anything.

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Pearn’s Brewery site , Kumara.1971.

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