Okole Maluna at Maui Brewing Company
Written by Heidi Osmundsen (Edited by Kelly Hueseman)
Maui, HI – In June 2012 I married the Brewery Tourist himself in St. Louis, MO and we took off two days after our wedding for the sunny island of Maui, Hawaii. We were looking forward to relaxing in the sun, enjoying the Island and hitting up a local watering hole – Maui Brewing Company!
No vacation for us would be complete without sampling a few local brews. While Maui Brewing Co. does offer formal guided tours on Friday afternoons and Saturday mornings, the timing didn’t work with our honeymoon schedule so we stopped by their tasting room on a Thursday afternoon. The tasting room opened in June 2009 and is located off of the Honoapiilani Highway in Lahaina. It’s easy to spot the brewery by the metal silos in the parking lot which point you toward the tasting room.
The tasting room includes a welcoming bar with different varieties of the tropical town’s brews on tap along with a small selection of their merchandise.
We bellied up to the bar and tried a four-flight sampler. I tried the Bikini Blonde lager, Mana wheat, Coconut porter and Barefoot Brew, a golden ale made with local Maui honey (my fave!). Buck, the tasting room’s bartender, has worked the taps for the past two-and-a-half years. He says his “favorite brew is the one in his hand” and that the best-selling beer on the mainland is their Coconut porter.
We finished our beers and then peaked into the brewery to check out the operations. Since we couldn’t tour the facility, this was the next best thing.
Inside we saw their signature cans, both empty and full, stacked sky high. The workers also seemed to be in good spirits. Who wouldn’t be working in Maui at a brewery? Finally, we snapped a few pictures and then purchased a six-pack sampler to take with us to the beach.
On our way to our next destination, we decided to stop at the Maui Brewing Company’s brew pub for lunch. I ordered a 16-ounce Barefoot Brew to go with my lunch and my new husband had the Pau Hana Pils, a Czech style lager. The brew pub is located in an understated strip mall north of the brewery and tasting room along the Honoapiilani Highway just north of the Kaanapali resort area. It’s a great place to cool off from the mid-day hot sun and enjoy some good pub food.
The remodeled brew pub opened in 2008 and the space is open with plenty of seating, TVs and lots of big tables for families or friends on group vacations. We ordered the island sliders with coconut porter barbecue sauce and rings of juicy pineapple. On the side we had pub potato salad. Fun fact, their ketchup has beer in it!
Maui Brewing Co. is committed to being environmentally friendly. They are believers in having strong sustainable practices, such as using cans to package their beers. Because the Hawaiian islands host millions of tourists annually, they feel it’s imperative to keep their 120 miles of coastline, 30 miles of beaches, and other public areas free of broken glass. In addition, the brewery uses biodiesel, local farms and solar power for much of their energy and production needs.
This unique brewery should be admired for its commitment to the planet’s well-being as well as to the local community. As the islanders say, “Okole Maluna” or “Bottoms up!”
Currently Maui Brewing Co. can be found in 11 of the United States, including: Arizona, California, Colorado, Hawaii, Idaho, Maryland, Nevada, Oregon, Texas, Virginia and Washington. They can also be found internationally in Denmark, England, Japan, Puerto Rico and Scotland.
Aloha!
Vitals:
- Cost: $10.00
- Reservations: Yes, you must call 808.661.6205 to make them. (Private tours also available for parties of 10 or more.)
- Free Beer: Yes, you will sample approximately 6 beers on the tour (whatever is on tap at the time)
- Extras: After the tour, you’ll receive a flight of beer at the tasting room and a token good for a pint of beer at the brewpub.
- Official Website: Visit for tour times, contact info, merchandise, and a full history of the Maui Brewing Co.
- Google Page (brewery): Visit for directions and reviews
- Google Page (brewpub): Visit for directions and reviews
- Bonus Tip: Visit the brew pub to sample Maui Brewing Co.’s full menu. Food is not served at the tasting room.