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As a home brewer, Steve Haumschild loved to experiment with products growing around his home in Kailua. That exploratory passion carried over when he and a group of brewing partners decided to open Lanikai Brewing Co. a little over a year ago.
From the onset the team at Lanikai set out to brew every beer with a twist by using a local ingredient. The brewery’s slogan, Island Inspired Craft Beers, reflects their commitment to incorporating items that showcase the abundance of Hawaii’s agricultural riches.
“We’ve defined our company as Island Inspired from Day One. We’re 100 percent committed to using something local (besides water) in every batch we brew and to be in tune with the local growing seasons,” said Haumschild.
It’s a bold risk — you’ll never see a regular pale ale or IPA from Lanikai — but it’s been paying off. The company has grown rapidly in the past year, and in an industry of over 4,000 breweries nationwide, having a unique and defined product can be a huge benefit.
The first two beers released by Lanikai featured ingredients from the Big Island, Haumschild’s home away from home. Moku Imperial IPA has a fragrant and almost hoplike addition of pikake flowers, while the Pillbox Porter features the robust Hawaiian vanilla from the Hamakua Coast.
This summer Lanikai is releasing five new beers, all featuring local fruits. The brewers traveled to Maui to gather Kula strawberries at their peak in May, then ventured to Hawaii island to harvest lychee. And with mango season in full swing, they picked fruit from trees across Oahu.
It’s not just the fruit that is Hawaii-based. Last summer they captured wild yeast near the Hamakua marsh that surrounds the brewery. After sending it to Oregon for analysis, they learned the native yeast behaves similarly to conventional brewer’s yeast while also creating unique floral flavors and aromas. Haumschild says they’ve been experimenting with this native yeast, with fantastic results. The floral attributes pair well with local summer fruit.
To get a taste of Lanikai’s Island Inspired summer beers, visit the brewery, where you can fill a growler (64 or 32 ounces) or try a new 22-ounce bottle filler.
Here’s the release schedule for the beers:
>> June 30: Haulani Kula Strawberry Sour, 6.5 percent alcohol by volume. It uses the freshly picked fruit from Maui along with Lanikai’s native yeast for a slightly tart, fruit-forward thirst quencher.
>> July 21: Da Haole Lilikoi Tripel, 9.6 percent alcohol by volume. The brewers foraged for ultraripe lilikoi to add to this vibrant Belgian-style ale. Its light-blond hue is uncharacteristic of the high alcohol content, while the native yeast creates a slight tartness to balance the sweet lilikoi.
>> July 28: Mr. Sun Cho Lee Lychee Tripel, 9.6 percent alcohol by volume. This one features the same base beer as Da Haole, but with the addition of Big Isle lychee. You might recognize its name from a classic Keola and Kapono Beamer song.
>> Aug. 12: Mango Triple IPA. There’s more ripe mango in Hawaii during the early summer months than anyone can possibly eat, so the team at Lanikai figured out another great way to consume it. Fresh, juicy mango is paired with an enormous amount of hops to create a bold, bitter yet super- fruity IPA.
>> Aug. 28: Forever Summer POG Berlinerweisse. This beer, the first to utilize the native yeast, was launched last summer. Back for a second round, it features guava, strawberry guava, oranges and lilikoi. This low-alcohol, slightly tart ale is crisp and refreshing, perfect for those super-hot August days.
Lanikai Brewing Co. is at 175 Hamakua Drive in Kailua. Hours: 4 to 9 p.m. Thursdays and Fridays, and noon to 6 p.m. Saturdays and Sundays.
Tim Golden, a certified cicerone, shares his obsession with all things craft beer monthly. See his blog, “Beer in Hawaii,” at beerinhawaii.com.
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