Aloha Pittsburgh

Since the early days of starting my writing on this blog, I've taken a fascination with beers from breweries based in Hawaii. If I remember correctly, it was around the time in which I started this blog that Kona Brewing Company started shipping some brew into the States. I came across two beers from the Aloha State in Maui Brewing's Bikini Blonde Lager and Coconut Porter and completely fell in love.

Seemed like it was totally on a whim, but last night it appeared as if a former Pittsburgh resident took to Twitter to reach out to those of us in the online beer community here in Western, Pa.

@BurghBeerSnob Check out this upcoming brewery in Hawaii... founded by Pittsburghers! http://t.co/nIpiySXO3L
— Darren Garvey (@darrengarvey) August 7, 2013

It looks like there's potential for Pittsburgh to have a stake in the Hawaiian beer landscape. The proposed brewery (currently a Kickstarter project) would be called Stewbum & Stonewall. The name comes from nicknames of the fathers of the two proposed owners of this brewery and of course I go geeky over a Civil War reference.

One unique thing about this idea for a brewery is that (I found this within the Kickstarter page) the brewery plans to feature other local Hawaiian beers alongside its own in the taproom. That's something very unusual and unique. Best of luck to them. I figured that passing this along might help get an extra backer or two for this brewery.

Vive le Pittsburgh.

Beer Review: Maui Brewing Bikini Blonde Lager

Serving Type: Can

ABV: 4.5  percent

Appearance: Bikini Blonde Lager pours a dark gold. The body is mostly hazy, which is sort of uncharacteristic for a Helles Lager (at least in my experiences with them). I was still able to notice a good multitude of rising carbonation bubbles. The head of the brew was a crisp white and foamy. it also slightly receded after a few seconds, but there was a nice creamy layer of foam for the duration of the drink.

Smell: The aroma consisted of a touch of sweet malt and a strong yeast presence. There was also a small bit of floral hops that made this feel very spring or summery. It was a crisp, fresh smell.

Taste: This was very sweet and malty up front, initially. The floral hoppiness of this contributed to a clean, crisp and bitter finish. I also caught a fruity sensation in the aftertaste a few sips into this beer. Still, that wasn't enough to make me classify this as a fruit beer. It still compliments the rest of the product quite well. We can't forget about that appetizing layer of foam that was atop the beer. It provided a touch of creaminess.

Overall Rating: 

I really enjoyed this beer. If anything was wrong, it was a bit too malty. I would have preferred a bit more balance. This is a goody for beach drinking. Especially if it's hot outside. I've heard and read rumors that this beer is no longer brewed as well as that it's still in existence. Whichever the reason, I was lucky to finally come across this. I'll continue to look and see which of the two aforementioned rumors is true.