Morton & His Inventions

When Morton Coutts was just 12, he built himself a fully functioning x-ray machine. The next year he built himself a two-way radio station and became the first New Zealander to broadcast a shortwave radio signal and the first person ever to send a radio signal across the equator. Not bad for the old CV, is it?

When Morton then took over the family brewery, he used the same ingenuity and lateral thinking he'd applied to his inventions. And it wasn't long before the spanners were out again. It was here that Morton created the world famous 'Continuous Fermentation', a ground breaking brewing process where raw materials are added to one end of the system and beer is continuously withdrawn from the other - effectively a beer tap that never turns off!

Soon some of the world's biggest breweries were banging on DB Breweries door to also implement Continuous Fermentation. Invention followed invention until his crown jewel...DB Export

the rise to fame

In 1958, the New Zealand Government taxed the price of beer in what was labelled the 'Black Budget'. Needless to say, Kiwi blokes didn't take it so well.

That's where Morton Coutts came in. He spent the next couple of years creating and crafting New Zealand's first export quality beer using the Continuous Fermentation process he invented, hence the namesake: 'DB Export'. Making it locally meant avoiding the high tax that was forced upon imported beers, Beer returned to the hands of the working man, and DB Export went on to be New Zealand's first beer to win 'Best Beer in the World'.

Cheers to that.

the family is born

DB Export went from strength to strength with Morton Coutts at the helm. His ambition to make the best beer in the world didn't stop at his creation of New Zealand's first export quality beer - he set about brewing a beer for every occasion.

DB Export Gold was born, and flowed quickly from the taps with its balanced, refreshing flavours. Liberating men from the wine bar fad of the 80's, DB Export Dry was introduced as a premium substitute – and a damn good one at that. To top it off, men looking for a full flavoured low carbohydrate beer were given what they want – the DB Export 33.

the family grows

Continuous fermentation was met with continuous innovation, and we came up with DB Export Citrus and DB Export Citrus Grapefruit. Mixing natural lemon or grapefruit juice with great tasting DB Export lager, we were able to provide yet another way for men to enjoy a great beer no matter what the occasion calls for. Turns out that the occasions keep on calling, because the Citrus duo have quickly become a fast-favourite nationwide.

What's Next?

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