A Beerfanatics Guide to Big Island Breweries (+More)
Looking for Big Island breweries?
If you are a beer enthusiast, you’ll be pleased to know that there are Big Island breweries to work into a “hopped” up itinerary. Five breweries, to be exact. All offer something different and can easily be visited in one trip to the Big Island.
My husband and father-in-law are beer connoisseurs and over the years have educated me on all things beer. I now have a good appreciation for a pint and know when a brewery’s done it right.
If I had to pick one brewery on the Big Island it would be Ola Brewing Company. You’ll see why later.
After the “beer tour” in this post, if you want to carry on the alcoholic tour theme, take a stop at a winery and two distilleries as well!
Kona Brewing Company
Address: 74-5612 Pawai Pl, Kailua-Kona, HI 96740
Hours: 7 days a week 10am-9pm
Perhaps the most famous of all Big Island breweries is Kona Brewing Company, founded in 1994. It has made a name for itself around the world largely due to being bought by Craft Brew Alliance in 2010 and backed by Anheuser-Busch. While the bottles you see in the stores are mostly crafted in Colorado, Oregon, and New Hampshire, Kona Brewing Company’s flagship headquarters still resides in Kona where beer is still brewed.
By visiting the Kona location, not only will you drink beer from the source but you will also get to try their “Backyard Batch” of beers only found at their on-island pubs, here and on Oahu. Their beer varieties stretch across the board: IPAs, porters, wheats, and ales of all colors.
New to 2022, Kona Brewing Company offers brewery tours. For people 15 years and older, the tour will take you down the street from the restaurant to their 30,000sqft brewery warehouse. Four 4oz beer samples are included for people 21+ during this 1hr long tour, led by a Liquid Aloha guide.
Reservations are required and can be booked here.
The Kona Brewing Company restaurant is a first-come, first-served basis. Always expect a wait as this is probably the busiest restaurant tourist destination. Unless you have a large party of 8 or more, reservations cannot be made.
Grab some beers while you wait to be seated. Or shop their souvenir kiosk for all the Kona Brewing Company labeled things.
The restaurant offers indoor and outdoor seating. Indoors has a warm, wood and steel design. There’s a small bar with stools and an open kitchen for watching food getting prepared.
Outdoor seating offers a more tropical vibe with lit tiki torches at night set amongst a wall of tropical shrubbery, my favorite kind of ambience. Each table is then individually lit with an LED light, hopefully not by a white light which totally ruins the mood.
If you are having a hard time deciding which beer flavor to choose you can order a flight of 4 5oz pours. Or the food menu cleverly offers beer pairing suggestions for some of their appetizers and entrees.
Along with their craft beers, Kona Brewing Company serves delicious craft pizza (is that a thing?!). I consider myself a pizza connoisseur (read: high standards) who has a hard time finding quality pizza, my par being Moose’s Tooth in Anchorage, Alaska.
Their homemade pizza dough has their Longboard Island Lager, adding an added yeastiness to compliment your pints. Their topping combos are carefully thought out, with house-made sauces and alluring ingredients.
Also note, this is one of the few restaurants open late in Kona.
Paradise Brewing Company
Address: 75-5669 Ali‘i Dr, Kailua-Kona, HI 96740
Hours: 7 days a week 7am-9pm
I feel like Paradise Brewing Company is a deceptive name. They only have ONE beer! That’s right. One. The Pali Uli Golden Ale.
It’s not a beer to wow the senses but it fits the bill for a refresher after a day in the Hawaiian climate.
Paradise Brewing Company is more restaurant than bar serving breakfast, lunch, and dinner. It’s set upstairs in an open-air, pink-trimmed space with a view overlooking Ali’i Drive and Kailua Bay.
The menu comprises of favorites like waffles, omelets, burgers, loco moco, fish, and steak. Besides their one house beer, the rest of their tap list includes other Hawaiian beers. Or order a specialty cocktail for something fruity.
Ola Brewing Company
Kona Address: 74-5598 Luhia St, Kailua-Kona, HI 96740
Kona Hours: Mon-Thurs 12pm-8pm; Fri & Sat 12pm-9pm; Sun 12pm-7pm
Hilo Address: 1177 Kilauea Ave, Hilo, HI 96720
Hilo Hours: Mon-Thurs 11:30am-10pm; Fri & Sat 11:30am-10pm; Sun 11:30am-8pm
Just a couple blocks from Kona Brewing Co is another up-and-coming Big Island brewery not to be missed! Ola Brewing Company uses Big Island ingredients, keeping their products fresh and local.
Their beer selection is IPA heavy, incorporating an array of Hawaiian fruits. You’ll also find lagers, ales, porters, and a pilsner. Drinks are served by your choice of 4oz, 8oz, or 13oz pours.
Ola Brewing Co. is thinking outside the box with weekly release specials and concocting hard ciders, hard seltzers and hard teas! Yes, now your cuppa comes spiked, and it’s surprisingly refreshing!
Hands down though, my favorite on the menu is their Dragonfruit Lemonade Cider. What’s the big turn on? Well first, it’s friggin’ pink! And second, it’s just as sweet and fruity as it looks! I’m usually disappointed with ciders so this drink just jumped to my #2 favorite of all time!
Ola Brewing Co. does a great job with decor. They keep the room rustic and simplistic as most taprooms are, but their statement logo walls add a tasteful splash of color. Sit at their outside tables and watch the sunset (not beachside, but still fulfills a Hawaiian tradition).
Ola Brewing Company opened in 2017 and is already expanding! Besides their flagship taproom in Kona they also now have one in Hilo and it’s just as equally snazzy.
The Hilo drink menu varies a bit from the Kona location, which tantalizes you to visit both!
They also have a kitchen where you can order food to accompany your pints. Hamburgers to make your mouth water and fluffy bao buns. Or get a porter/stout float with coffee ice cream.
Definitely make a stop to either watering hole, or both!
Hilo Brewing Company
Address: 275 E Kawili St Hilo, HI
Hours: Tues-Sun 12pm-6pm; Mon closed
About a mile away from Hilo’s Ola Brewing Company is Hilo Brewing Company. It was established in 2018 by a brewmaster who studied beer abroad in Europe and Mexico before bringing what he learned to Hilo.
The taproom is located in a not particularly convenient part of Hilo town, nor is there a view of anything but the brewery warehouse or the semi-busy street. But this is a hangout for locals and the familiarity and comfortability of everyone creates a family-like atmosphere.
The beer selection doesn’t lean heavy on one particular style. You’ll find about one of every kind on the menu.
Order a signature hot dog or find a food truck/tent set up to satiate your needs. Or bring your own picnic.
Dogs are welcome here.
Big Island Brewhaus
Address: 64-1066 Mamalahoa Hwy, Waimea, HI 96743
Hours: 7 days a week 11am-8pm
On the outskirts of Waimea’s main drag is Big Island Brewhaus, a small pub established in 2011 serving their award-winning craft beers.
Here you’ll find a taste of Europe among the islands with Italian and Czech pilsners and Belgian ales. There are also porters, reds, lagers, stouts, and others to choose from. Try the whole menu with a flight served cleverly in a muffin tin pan.
Seating can be cozy inside or outside on their covered lanai. Their full food menu consists of an eclectic collection of burgers, tacos, quesadillas, falafel sandwiches, and fish.
Along with their Mexican heavy food menu, if you are not feeling like a brewski, you could instead try their lime or lilikoi margaritas. I was a bit disappointed with my lilikoi margarita, although the li hing mui rimmed glass helped make up for it.
Other Spirits
Once you’ve completed your tour of Big Island breweries, continue on this alcoholic journey to other spirit creators on the island!
Volcano Winery
Address: 35 Piimauna Dr, Volcano, HI 96785
Hours: 7 days a week 10am-5:30pm
Unless you are looking for it, you wouldn’t know that in the neighborhood across from Hawaii Volcanoes National Park is the Big Island’s only winery, Volcano Winery. It’s also the southernmost winery in the United States.
Even though it was established in 1986, Volcano Winery wasn’t open to the public until 1993. The owner Lynn “Doc” McKinney planted Symphony Grape Vines at 4,000ft and experimented with blending Hawaiian fruits like guava, lilikoi, and jaboticaba into the wines. These exotic fruit-blended wines were so unique that they received their own category with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms.
In 1999, the winery was sold to a new owner and sadly, in 2000 a fire broke out on the property and burned the Symphony vines. New French American Hybrid vines were planted and that’s what they use today.
In 2006 they planted teas to add yet another unusual ingredient to their wines.
When you visit Volcano Winery you’ll be able to experience wine tastings and even tea tastings.
When you visit you’ll have your own standing table for the tastings. A staff member gives a description of the wine you are about to taste then pours you a glass and leaves you to enjoy and savor the flavors. After a few minutes, when they see that your table has finished your sample, they’ll come back with the next flavor.
This slower paced tasting keeps you from feeling rushed to shoot your samples or having the awkwardness of someone staring at you while you sip.
For $12pp you’ll get 6 pours starting with the reds, white, then honey wines. When it’s in stock you can add on their estate wines. Unfortunately, the price of your tasting does not apply to any bottles purchased.
Add a cheese platter to pair with your tasting. For $10 get a tasting of their estate teas.
If you want to keep the party going, order wines by the glass or bottle and bring it outside to picnic on their tables amongst the Mauna Loa backdrop and vineyard.
Kuleana Rum Works
Address: Kuleana Rum Shack 69-201 Waikōloa Beach Dr, Waikoloa Village, HI 96738
Hours: Wed-Sun 3pm-9pm; Mon-Tues closed
Kuleana Rum Works has been distilling rum since 2013. Their Hawaiian Kuleana Rum Agricole uses 40 varieties of Hawaiian heirloom sugarcanes off of their farm. Because agricole has to be made with FRESH pressed sugarcane and takes some expertise to create, less than 5% of the world’s rum is crafted this way.
They also source high quality rums from around the world and meticulously blend them into a one-of-a-kind combo: the Huihui, Nanea, and Hokulei.
At the back corner of Queen’s Marketplace in Waikoloa you’ll find Kuleana Rum Shack: their restaurant, bar, and tasting “room”. Order a flight of all four rums in 0.5oz pours.
Once you have a clear understanding on their flavoring notes, order yourself one of their specialty cocktails. I can attest that their Kuleana Mai Tai is the finest mai tai I have ever had.
Their food plates are served with 4 star quality aesthetics and taste delicious too.
12th Hawaii Distiller
Address: 74-5467 Kaiwi St Unit 1-5, Kailua-Kona, HI 96740
Hours: Mon-Fri 9am(ish)-5pm(ish); Sat-Sun closed
12th Hawaii Distiller is, you guessed it, the 12th distiller in Hawaii state. Their niche is making one-of-a-kind spirits distilled from local Big Island Hawaiian honey. You’ll also find other Hawaiian incorporations in their alcohol.
The Distiller’s Reserve is aged in Hawaiian Kiawe wood barrels. The vodka uses local purple potatoes, a Hawaiian staple. The Hawaiian Kona Coffee Spirits rightly uses 100% Kona coffee.
The distillery, opened in 2017, is located in the industrial district of Kona, about a block or so away from Ola Brewing Company. They offer tastings and will give you an informative explanation of everything you need to know about their spirits.
Once you’ve sampled all the flavors, decide which bottle(s) to bring back with you. The coffee spirits is a popular one.
😋 Check out other delicious items on the Big Island:
Shave Ice
Kona Coffee
Malasadas
Ka’u Coffee
Final Thoughts on Breweries on the Big Island
Are you surprised to find so many Big Island breweries and other alcoholic creators on the island? The island produces so many distinctive flavors I hope more brewers and distillers will utilize all the potential resources for making creative spirits.
Also consider brewery hopping as a way of passing away the time if it rains on the Big Island.
🌺 Big Island Travel Planning Guide 🌺
🚨 Should I buy Hawaii travel insurance?
YES — I recommend Travel Insurance Master because you can compare multiple options with one click. With plans starting at $5/day per person, why not give yourself piece of mind? Better to have it and not need it than need it and not have it!
🚗 Is it safe to rent a car on the Big Island?
YES — It’s totally safe to drive on the Big Island. And unless you plan to chill by the resort pool the entire time, renting a car is pretty much a necessity on the Big Island! Jeep rentals are popular. I recommend Discount Hawaii Car Rental, as they have some of the best prices around.
📞 Will my phone work on the Big Island?
PROBABLY — Most, if not all, cell providers work on the Big Island. However, be prepared for some dead spots in the more remote parts of the island. For example, I always lose service driving through Hawaii Volcanoes National Park.
🛏️ What’s the best way to book my Big Island accommodations?
For Big Island hotels, Booking.com is amazing because you can often reserve your room with no money down. If you are looking for an Airbnb condo with a kitchen and more space, don’t forget to check VRBO for potentially better prices and options.
✈️ What’s the best site to buy Big Island flights?
I recommend looking at Skyscanner for finding cheap flights. Pro Tip: check if flying into Hilo is cheaper than flying into Kona.
🛂 Do I need a passport to visit Hawaii?
NO — If you are a US citizen, you do not need a passport as Hawaii is part of the United States. If you are from out of the country, the same passport and visa requirements are the same as entering anywhere in the United States from your country.
🧳What should I pack to the Big Island?
Pack for tropical weather but also prepare for colder than expected nights and early mornings, so a light sweatshirt is recommended. Check out this list of 5 Things Not to Forget to Pack.
