Hawaiian Beer

A Rainbow in Winter

Aloha. As we wade through the winter months, sometimes it is nice to reset to the tropics. But if you don’t have plans to travel, Hawaiian beer might just be your transport of choice. Hawaii is home to several established craft breweries, each with it’s own take on infusing the best of Hawaii and beer. There is a good post on the various breweries on prideofmaui.com

Today I am focusing on tests for beers brewed by Kona Brewing company. Kona Brewing offers variety 12 packs: Island Hopper and Liquid Aloha. I picked up the Island Hopper variety pack that includes their Big Wave Golden Ale, Longboard Island Lager, and Fire Rock Pale Ale and Cast Away IPA. A more recent version includes a seasonal ale (See Pic below). In addition, I tested Kanaha Blonde Ale and that is included in the results below.

Island Hopper

Longboard Island Lager

The first test is Longboard Island Lager. This Lager has an ABV of 5.8%. Malts used are Pale 2 Row Premium, Extra-Special Malt, Carapils, Honey, Dark Malt. And Hops are Millennium, Cascade. This Lager is available year round and distributed fairly broadly. Test for Longboard resulted as <5ppm, in other words, negative.

Castaway IPA

Castaway IPA has an AVB of 6%. Malts include Pale and Caramel and hops used are Millennium, Galaxy, Citra, and Chinook. Results for Castaway came in at above 5ppm, in other words, positive. This kit was a little skewed to the left, so the results (red lines) didn’t line up with the letters. If there is a mark over the T, no matter how faint, the result is positive.

Big Wave Golden Ale

With a fairly low ABV of 4.4%, Big Wave Golden Ale also has a low calorie content of 132. Test results come in at <5ppm, or negative. I tried this ale with no negative reaction. It is crisp, lovely, great for summer and doesn’t feel like it weighs you down like heavier ales. This test was really clear to read. There was zero line over the T, and clear red lines over C and O, resulting in <5ppm, or negative.

Fire Rock Pale Ale

Fire Rock Pale Ale has an appealing color, reminiscent indeed of fire, and weighs in at 5.8% ABV. A mix of several malts, including 2- Row Premium, Extra-Special, Carapils, Honey, and Dark Malt with Millennium and Cascade hops. The initial test on this was just too hard to read, it could have gone either way, but I re-tested and the results indicated negative.

Kanaha Blonde Ale

Although it was not in the Island Hopper Variety Pack, I wanted to add in Kanaha. Made with Pale and Carmel malts and Millennium, Mosaic, Amarillo hops, this Blonde ale has the lowest ABV of 4.2% and, while not a “lite beer”, carries only 99 calories per 12oz bottle-woah! This Ale passed at <5ppm. I enjoyed this refresher, with a hint of tropical fruit, it is bright and goes down easy.

Kona Brewing Co is very widely distributed, available in all 50 states and beyond, so it is easy to find in your local store and on most on-line beer delivery apps. All of the beers mentioned above are available year-round. I updated the Test Outcomes table with results from this series, you can click on the table below to expand it and see the results in a quick tabular view.

Peace and Mahalo,

via GIPHY

Photo via: on Visualhunt.com