- Emerson’s beer founder Richard Emerson sold his childhood home in Dunedin for $821,000.
- The four-bedroom villa, linked to Emerson’s brewing history, attracted interest due to its location.
- Emerson and his sister were pleased the house went to another family after 50 years.
The birthplace of New Zealand craft beer has changed hands for $821,000.
Start your property search
Emerson’s beer founder Richard Emerson sold his childhood home on Brownville Crescent, in Maori Hill, Dunedin, in just over two weeks.
Emerson and his sister put the four-bedroom villa on the market at the end of January following the death of their mother last year. The property had been in the family for more than 50 years.
Columbs & Co sales director James Columb said there had been a lot of interest in the house, thanks to its location in one of the city’s prized school zones, although many buyers were also aware of its link to Emerson’s beer brand.
Emerson was three years old when his family first moved into the 1910s home, which has a private backyard. Photo / Supplied
Emerson’s father George “meticulously maintained” the weatherboard family home. Photo / Supplied
“It was a great location, gets good sun, has a rural outlook, and has easy walking to schools,” Columb told OneRoof. “People could certainly see that they could add value to the property.”
Columb said Emerson and his sister were pleased the house was going to another family. “They are very, very happy. Obviously, a lot of emotion when you have been in a property for so long, but at the same time very pleased to see it go to a new family and another generation of people growing up in the house, which is lovely.”
Discover more:
- King Charles III’s West Auckland mansion has sold
- Winston Peters hints foreign buyer ban may be eased
- Canterbury's 'flashiest motel' for sale - 'so many fond memories'
Emerson was three years old when his family moved into the house but it was upon his return from the UK in 1984 at the age of 21 that he made beer history in the family’s kitchen.
“The memories of grandfather brewing his beer and the UK beers inspired me to brew at home,” he told OneRoof.
The first brews were made with Maltexo malt extract before Emerson moved onto grains. “That was a much more interesting process but made such a mess! After several brews I was politely requested to move the brewing process out of mum’s kitchen,” he said.
Emerson’s first ever beer was brewed in the Brownville Cres kitchen. Photo / Supplied
However, out of that messy kitchen, Emerson’s first ever beer – the London Porter – was created in 1985.
After being kicked out of his mum’s kitchen, he took over some space in a friend’s garage in Ravensbourne to continue brewing. A year later he signed the lease for a commercial premises on Grange Road and Emerson’s Brewery was opened.
Emerson said the house was a “special place” with the “best neighbours”, with whom he still kept in touch.
- Click here to find more properties for sale in Dunedin
