Tuesday 26 June 2012

Maui Brewing Co.

Sometimes, you look at a business and just say to yourself "what the hell are they thinking?". For example, the Orkney Islands host two breweries. The climate on Orkney must be something special to lure two breweries there, given that they have to import all the ingredients to make the beer, bar the water, which I'm told is plentiful. And then they have to freight the majority of the beer back to the mainland for it to be sold. Mental, I tells ya.

Orkney is about 10 miles off the coast of the Scotland. Maui, one of the islands that makes up the 1500 mile long Hawaiian archipelago, is 750 miles from mainland USA. One has to question why Garrett Marrero decided to found Maui Brewing Co there. I mean, why on earth would you want to live in a blue-oceaned, sun-beaten paradise, making craft beer (in the American sense)? It would be easy to paint the whole thing as some slacker "Aloha, whoah, surf's up dude" idyll, were it not for the fact that you don't make good beer without putting in a lot of hard work. And that hard work is evident in the beer.

The beer that perhaps most people will be initially drawn to, Big Swell IPA, is a really solid IPA - think Odell IPA, in terms of that classy Anglo-American crossover, where malt and hops actually work together to produce a rounded, integrated whole. Slightly more off the wall, but showcasing a local ingredient (at least, I'm assuming they use Hawaiian coconuts rather than importing them from the Maldives, although given the island brewer mentality, nothing would surprise me), is their Coconut Porter, which really does taste faintly of coconut, and is a pretty damn special porter to boot. Smooth, silky and slightly unctuous, with a heap of mocha flavours. Aces.

Not simply off the wall, but actually packing a bag and leaving for a long holiday from any semblance of sense is the Mana Pineapple Wheat. When I tweeted about this beer, someone mentioned that they thought it smelled and tasted like urinal pucks. All I can say is that it doesn't, it tastes like a wheat beer with pineapple in it, which is to say a completely bonkers riot of fruit and spice. I liked it, but I can see why others might not, because it treads the tightrope of being fun, and some people think that anything fun shouldn't be taken seriously. Which is a shame, because we can all use a little fun once in a while.

11 comments:

  1. They brew some good beers.

    Neither brewers mentioned are as crazy as the Alaskan Brewery. Same issues but huge distances involved.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I know, it beggars belief. I initially though that perhaps Garrett M was from Hawaii, but no, he relocated there to start a brewery. Mad as a bundle of sticks, clearly.

      Delete
  2. People might just not like the taste, without necessarily being fun-hating puritans. (The Coconut Porter did nothing much for me, although I'd try it again if I got the chance.)

    Oh, and... that definitely wasn't you in North on Saturday?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Phil, I wasn't in North on Saturday, so that definitely wasn't me. I'd be happy to think that whoever it was you said hi to was taller, better looking and slimmer than me, although I fear that they were probably shorter, hairier and fatter.

      I guess that does across as a bit mean-spirited - I just meant that it didn't smell or taste of urinal pucks, and that anyone who did was probably taking an overly-dim view of an unusual beer.

      Delete
    2. Ah, that makes more sense.

      As for the guy in North, to judge from your picture he was a bit beardier, but otherwise very similar-looking. Maybe you've got a fan.

      Delete
  3. Well, the cellarman looks pleased with it!

    ReplyDelete
  4. Great beers! they had them in the brudnenell in leeds, great addition.

    ReplyDelete
  5. I've had both Big Swell & Mana Wheat - I really was not thrilled with Mana Wheat. I thought it was way too sweet.

    ReplyDelete
  6. The boss is a great man but I can come up with some logical conclusions. One that region is very premium in real estate, local people cash-rich. Two very cool to have a brewery in each and every US state. Three Alaska and Maui both have daily flights in and outgoing so it's not too much of an issue.

    ReplyDelete
  7. Hi - can I ask where you purchased these Maui beers from? I'm having a hard time getting hold of this in the UK. My husband and I spent our honeymoon on Maui and I'd love to put together a case of these for his Christmas present - take us back there a little :)

    Thanks in advance!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hi Anon,

      they are available fairly widely through specialist channels in the UK - their importer, Vertical Drinks, might be able to point you towards a local stockist

      Delete

Sorry about the word verification - the blog was getting spammed to bits.