On The DL is a weekly series of reflective journal entries inspired by beer journeys past. Be it state, city, brewery or locale, the Drink Local crew loves to share a look back at the big things, the little things and the people that make the beer community so special.
We’re back at it again at On The DL with a very special craft beer community to talk about. People think about Hawaii for a variety of fantastic reasons; incredible waves, rich culture, absolutely beautiful biodiversity, some of the world’s best coffee, relaxation and tourism. Hawaii means a lot of things to a lot of different people, with the most important perspective being that of native Hawaiians. But one thing that I don’t think that many people think about at all is the beer.
If you’ve been following us for the past few weeks, you may be surprised to hear this from me, but Hawaii is brewing some really great beer! The most impressive thing about Hawaii beer is just how much of Hawaii that’s present within the flavor profiles of their beers. At Drink Local we love trying to gain an understanding of the communities that our beer tourism has allowed us to experience and we don’t think that we’ve had beer that communicates with us in the way that Hawaii’s has. We’ll get into all of that, but for the purposes of this journal entry, we’re going to be talking specifically about beer on The Big Island and on O’ahu.
The first time the Drink Local crew engaged in Hawaiian beer tourism was in 2012. To be quite honest, there wasn’t very much at the time as far as small batch goes. But on The Big Island, there was already a place that was brewing great beer and stimulating the imagination of craft beer lovers and brewers all across the Hawaiian islands. That place is Big Island Brewhaus. Elevated high above sea level in beautiful Waimea, Big Island Brewhaus seemed to shine like a beacon. I never imagined that I’d go to Hawaii and travel high into the mountains for a craft beer brewing taqueria, but if the massive crowd of happy, chill beer lovers that were there at the time was any indication, I did the right thing. I haven’t been there for eight years, but I still vividly remember the food being so fresh, the vibe being so right and the beer being so good!
There are places that have been in Hawaii for a long time like Kona Brewing and Maui Brewing Company, both of whom have mainland distribution. But for us, what Big Island Brewhaus represented was a dream. That dream being the ability to have something special that is unique to Hawaii itself within the craft beer community. Something that feeds off of and bleeds back into the culture, cultivating a symbiotic relationship with the people and the land and hopefully creating new opportunities for the community to express itself in new and exciting ways while still paying homage to where they came from. That’s why when we returned to Hawaii in 2017, we were so glad to see that the laws on microbrewing had been relaxed to a point that allowed craft beer lovers to innovate and bring some fresh and much-needed lifeblood to the local scene.
We really saw this growth manifest in O’ahu. Back in 2012 when we visited, there wasn’t much to do at all by way of craft beer, but in 2017 it had already developed into a tight-knit and passionate community. We loved how creative and fueled by art the various locations that we were able to visit were. Beer lovers were always so engaging and willing to talk to us about history and culture. Hawaii is always beautiful and there is so much to see, no beer goggles required, but quite simply, the growth that had taken place in just five years has really made Hawaii a one-of-a-kind place for beer tourism.
To really highlight the unique ways in which craft beer culture is presented on O’ahu, I want to start by talking about Grace In Growlers. We really liked this spot because even though we’ve been to hundreds of craft beer bars and taprooms around the world, Grace was the first that we’d ever been to that provided self-serve taps. On top of being such a novel experience, it was a great way for us to try tons of local beer from all over Hawaii in whatever portions that we preferred because they allow customers to pay by the ounce. I’m sure that there are other places like this out in the wild blue yonder, but in Hawaii, Grace In Growlers is a true unicorn. The last thing that I want to mention about Grace In Growlers is that they appear to be dedicated to the important cause of combating homelessness and giving back. From what I understand, Grace In Growlers finds inventive ways to contribute a great deal to the community that they are able to call home. If you’d like to read more about that, I recommend checking out the profile in Hawai’i Magazine.
A personal bit. If you can’t tell by now, Drink Local is Misato and I. We love beer. We’re married. Hawaii is where we chose to spend our honeymoon. There’s nothing unique about that. A lot of people do it. But regardless, Hawaii holds a special place in the hearts of the Drink Local crew. That’s why we’re especially glad that their craft beer culture is so pure, passion-inspired and beautiful.
I don’t know many Hawaiian words. I’m working on it. But I do remember one word that I knew right away. I was walking down the streets of Waikiki back in 2012 and then I heard it. “Pakalolo! Pakalolo!” Now I’d never heard that word before in my life, but I could tell by the inflection that this patron saint of good vibes said it with, exactly what it meant; Bomb Ass Weed. You know your boy had to do it! One of the reasons why coffee, avocados, flora and fauna, the majesty of Hawaii is so epic is because relative to many other developed land masses worldwide, Hawaii is quite young. Their soil is created as a result of the fusion of basaltic lava, limestone and volcanic ash, all mixed with some of the most uncorrupted sea water on earth. Everything is fresh. Of course this translates to the Pakalolo.
If you get the chance to go to Kaka’Ako, you’ll find a wealth of things to do there. Our favorite was just walking around with our mouths open. The reason is because Kaka’Ako is essentially an arts district. There is so much street art there. It’s a place where artists from all over the world are invited to congregate and produce murals. It’s an absolutely gorgeous area. It also happens to be a place where a lot of breweries and crafty spots are located.
If you’re from Hawaii, sometimes it may be hard to find mainland craft beer, and if you’re not from Hawaii you may want some Hawaiian craft beers to take back to wherever you’re staying. That’s why I want to talk about Village Bottle Shop. Village is a great taproom for tourists and locals alike because they specialize in both providing fresh, local beer and take-home options for craft beer lovers and they also provide a nice place to chill and drink in-house. I always talk about how much I love bottle shops, and to find one this good on O’ahu was one of our favorite unexpected surprises.
There are two great breweries within walking distance of Village. The first I want to mention is Honolulu Beerworks. The other is Aloha Beer Co. I mention these two places together because they are on opposite sides of Village location-wise, and they are on opposite sides of the spectrum philosophically. Where Honolulu is bright, sun kissed, and committed to artistry, Aloha is much more contained and openly exudes a classic inspiration, with the vibe of a speakeasy. The fact that they’re both doing different things from an aesthetic perspective while managing to brew a wide ranging variety of core and inspired beer styles makes it mandatory that visitors try both and that locals make frequent stops.
O’ahu is such a splendid and diverse island that one can really get a different kinda vibe depending on what parts they choose to experience. Whereas Waikiki feels very touristy and rapid-paced, the next place I want to spend some time on is Kailua, which is a lot more chill. Drink Local is of course, very invested in the locals, and Kailua very much feels like a local enclave.
After having some poke and picking up some local brews from Hibachi, we checked out Lanikai Brewing. What I loved most about their beer is that you could really taste and smell the floral, fruity, and tropical flavors and aromas in every style they brewed. My favorite thing about them however was their one of a kind view. I don’t know why or how their backyard looks like that, but it was one of the most majestic views I’ve been able to casually take part in at a brewery.
The coolest experience that we had was at Three Peaks – Island Craft Beer & Gifts. It was essentially a glorious growler shop for locals when we visited. The funny thing about this experience is that we didn’t actually get to try the beer! So why did we love it so much? Quite simply, beer enthusiasm. Steve, one of the owners did not have a license to provide tasters at the time that we went (he does now!). He did have some delicious tap coffee for us to taste and we got the chance to spend some time talking to him. He explained to us how Whole Foods & Stone Brewing came in and lobbied to get beer law relaxed so that microbrewers could thrive and do work. He patiently and whimsically opined about coffee, about beer, about local culture, his wife, his incredible growler machine (ask him about it!) so many real life things. The thing is, he knew it was our last day in Hawaii. We couldn’t buy a growler of beer. He had nothing to gain. Despite this, the kindness that he demonstrated towards us is something that we’ll never forget and it’s really what Drink Local is all about. If we ever get the chance to go back, that’ll be our first stop.
The final place that I’ll mention on O’ahu is Beer Lab in Honolulu. What a fantastic place. From their comic book inspired aesthetic to their commitment to experimental small batch beer, we absolutely loved what they were doing. Their beer is so good, so flavor forward and you can feel the future of Hawaii beer emanating from every corner of the establishment. Beer Lab is a must visit for locals and tourists alike. For locals, they are always doing something new. For tourists, they provide a unique experience that quite simply can’t be replicated. If I lived in Honolulu, Beer Lab would be my go-to.
If you want to see more of Hawai’i through the eyes of the Drink Local crew, we’re always populating our Instagram and will be spending this next week dropping images directly related to this week’s volume of On The DL! And we’d love for you to follow us on Twitter so that you never miss an update!
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