Kona Brewing Company Castaway IPA

Kona Brewing Company Castaway IPA
Style: IPA

Alcohol Content: 6%

From: Kailua-Kona, Hawaii, USA

Purchased from: Great British Beer Festival

http://konabrewingco.com/

Well Aloha everybody and welcome to another review from Beefsbrewey. As you may of guessed, this week we are reviewing a beer from Hawaii called Castaway from the Kona Brewing company. The Company was founded in the spring of 1994 by father and son team Cameron Healy and Spoon Khalsa. Setting up shop on the "Big Island" in the outskirts of Kailua-Kona, the company now distributes to 36 states and 10 countries, with more than 220,000 barrels of beer sold in 2012. After three restaurants and a airport franchise later, Kona decided to install a 229 kW solar energy generating system capable of generating 60 percent of the breweries energy needs in early 2010. This soon turned out to be one of the final investments the family in made in the brewery before handing the keys over to Craft Brew Alliance later that same year.

Colour: Pours a bright copper with a slight yellow hue. As soon as the liquid hits the bottom of the glass a depth charge of brilliant white foam will rise from the depth and stay for the duration of your drinking experience. This drink is a thing of pure beauty!

Aroma: Just like an tropical Hawaiian beach, notes of delicate flowers mix with sweet, juicy pineapple. As the drink warms, subtle hints of sweet peach iced tea and crisp pine being to shine though. A lovely fresh nose, that's ever so sweet and inviting.

Body: Whilst on holiday, I always love to kick back with a light, refreshing beer whilst I watch the surfers wipe out in the waves. Castaway IPA is the perfect match for this scenario. Refreshingly crisp, with just a slight amount of clogging on the back of the throat to help ensure you savour every sip. The soft carbonation tickles the back of your throat all the way down to your stomach. Perfection!

Taste: The pineapple from the notes nose translate through to taste. The sumptuous pineapple notes soon give way to a dry, spicy and warming finish. The warming helps to round out the flavour and includes hints of the aforementioned peach notes. Considering that this IPA contains a "meagre" six percentage alcohol content, the ABV really powers through and is actually rather surprising. As the drink warms, the blending of Galaxy, Citra, Simcoe and Millennium hops seem to get more bitter as the drink progresses. A very lively beer that I would love to drink more and more of.

Wilson!!!

Similar to: http://beefsbrewery.blogspot.co.uk/2013/10/partizan-brewing-ipa-bobek-amarillo.html

Different to: http://beefsbrewery.blogspot.co.uk/2014/01/victory-prima-pils.html

For the latest news on reviews follow me on twitter @beefsbrewery or like me on Facebook at Beefsbrewery

Maui Brewing Company Aloha B'ak'tun

Maui Brewing Company Aloha B'ak'tun

Style: Belgian Stout

Alcohol Content: 7%

From: Lahaina, Hawaii

Purchased from: The Beer Bouquet, Putney
http://mauibrewingco.com/

At some point in life every man will get the dreaded "man flu". This week was my turn to get the bug. My symptoms are as follows; Arms as heavy as lead, a nose running like a tap and a live heavy metal band playing in my skull. Just what you want over the weekend. After being drugged up to the eyeballs, I some how managed to stumble into the office. Of course one of the worst parts of being ill is that you can't drink. So as I dry out for a few days, I have to dig deep into my little black book to bring you some reviews that I have yet to write up. Here is one of them, Maui Brewing Aloha B'ak'tun.

The Maui Brewing formed in 2005 on the Hawaiian Island of Lahaina. In their nine year existence, the brewery has won numinous awards and opened a successful brewpub. I have always wanted to try their coconut porter, but alas, I can never get hold of it. So when I saw a limited edition Belgian stout by Maui, I snapped it up immediately.

Oh Aloha!

Colour: Pours a dark, oily black with a fluffy tan coloured head. This dissipates down to a few clumps of foam after a few minutes.

Aroma: Big, bold coffee and cocoa note cascade out of the glass like Niagara Falls. This is complemented by mild notes of cloves, cinnamon and spicy pepper. It's all very Christmassy I must say.

Body: Thick and oily like a traditional stout should be. The mouthfeel is incredibly similar to that of the fantastic Kernel 1890 export stout recipe that I reviewed last month. The coffee notes blend perfectly with the oily texture to coat the back of your throat. This ensure a slow, lingering drinking experience. So take your time and unwind.

Taste: This drink has an incredibly complex palate. So here goes! Massive hints of coffee and bitter dark chocolate will fill swam you taste buds. This is then swiftly cut through by a peppery, smoke filled aftertaste. This sensation comes from the addition of the hops, cinnamon and chipotle chillies. These additional ingredients add a great depth to the flavour and help to reinforce the sear quality of this brew. The only slight negative thing I could say is that there seemed to be a slight metallic/acidic aftertaste to this beer. Perhaps this comes from the the use of a can instead of a bottle. That being said, it's very rich and extremely satisfying, a perfect winter warmer.

Similar to: http://beefsbrewery.blogspot.co.uk/2013/11/ellezelloise-hercule-stout.html

Different to: http://beefsbrewery.blogspot.co.uk/2014/01/wild-beer-company-scarlet-fever.html

For the latest news on reviews follow me on twitter @beefsbrewery or like me on Facebook at Beefsbrewery