Booze Review: Woodstock Whiskey Lemonade

Posted 4:19pm Sunday 2nd March 2025 by Gin Swigmore

Woodstock have officially hopped on the ‘soft drinks made alcoholic’ bandwagon with the release of their Ginger Ale and Whiskey Lemonade. This move seems to follow on from the trend of brands making ‘healthy’ RTDs, which just taste like water that’s been left in your Read more...

The Critic Pie Review

Posted 8:14pm Sunday 2nd March 2025 by Adam Stitely

The pie. It’s simple, it’s working class. Like L&P and DIY, it’s in our DNA, and just like pavlova, Aussies just don't do it the same. The pie is the go-to meal from any petrol station, dairy or else any other place the marginally cooked food gives you a 50-50 chance of Read more...

Girl Power, Girl ... Pilsner?: Critic's rejected booze reviewers

Posted 3:44pm Sunday 23rd February 2025 by Lotto Ramsay

Critic Te Ārohi just found out about all this "feminism" stuff, and we think it's pretty neat. To show what great allies we are, for our hundredth year of publication Critic has our first ever female booze review moniker! Sometimes the reviewer behind the pseudonym is female, too. Read more...

Booze Review: Emerson’s Dirty Bird IPA

Posted 6:49pm Sunday 23rd February 2025 by Gin Swigmore

Welcome back to another year of booze. We’re kicking things off with a bang thanks to the new Emerson’s Dirty Bird, the latest member of the Bird Dog family for all you IPA nerds. Though new on the scene, Dirty Bird is sure to become a household name with its captivating taste, one Read more...

Booze Review: Parrotdog Birdseye

Posted 4:19pm Saturday 7th September 2024 by Chunny Bill Swilliams

Parrotdog is patriotic. It’s New Zealand owned and made, and nothing screams New Zealand more than nationwide pride in birds and an economy so dire you’ll have to sell a kidney to afford a box. There wasn’t a price listed on these bad boys, and with there only being three boxes on Read more...

Booze Reviews: Lemon Ice Grog!

Posted 6:57pm Sunday 25th August 2024 by Chunny Bill Swilliams

Grog! is the Australian version of Prime, and that means two things: one, like anything truly Australian, an obscene amount of alcohol is needed; and two, this drink has reached Hyoketsu levels of shameless breatha-targeted marketing. The pretty colours are perfect for an audience who hasn’t Read more...

Booze Review: Kingfisher Strong

Posted 4:46pm Saturday 17th August 2024 by Chunny Bill Swilliams

Kingfisher Strong, unlike the kōtare, is an allegedly exotic and foreign beer. Yes, it may be foreign, but this beverage tends to be about as exciting as that one wounder at a party showing you his Year 12 1st XV highlights on Hudl whilst unironically calling them his ‘glory Read more...

Booze Review: Mac’s Apparition

Posted 7:58pm Sunday 28th July 2024 by Chunny Bill Swilliams

The Mac’s line of beers can aptly be described as fake craft beer. Like weed, Mac’s beers are a gateway to the expensive, harder shit. Before you know it, this drop will have any soon-to-be graduate breatha loudly expressing their political views over a pint and reflecting on their glory Read more...

Booze Review: Steinlager Classic

Posted 6:01pm Saturday 13th July 2024 by Chunny Bill Swilliams

It’s been argued that Steinlager is New Zealand's beer. It's what defines us as Kiwis compared to the god awful beers that Australia produces. Steinlager is like Speights' older cousin who lives in Auckland; a bit more classy, but punishing whenever they speak. After tasting, we Read more...

The 23rd Annual Critic Fish & Chip Review

Posted 6:11pm Saturday 13th July 2024 by Hugh Askerud

Winter has come, and the fish and chip gods demand justice! If fish and chips are a summer food, then why do they have all the key components of a hearty winter feed? Potatoes, grease, convenience, shame. Perfect for cold days, or cold journalists in dire need of their yearly sacrifice – this Read more...