Lanikai Brewing Company

Awesome brews. Awesome dudes. Moku IPA stands tall with all the many West Coast brews I’ve enjoyed in Nor and Cen Cal. Potent triple tap only was outstanding. Over 10% and delish !!! Will be having a few more before its back to Cali.
All the best and see you again soon I hope.

Loved the one dollar samples and Trey was so nice behind the bar serving up good tasters. Tasters only and they fill growler to take away. Their IPA REEF super deserve huge props!

Lanikai brewing has some of the best craft beer I’ve ever tasted in the Islands, right up there with Maui Brewing. Before new years, I stopped by to fill a couple of growlers and sample their offerings. I had never tried Lanikai Brewing but had heard good things.
The tasting room is hidden in a back alley by the river, but easy enough to find once you park and walk around. I guess I was spoiled when I visited the free tasting room at Mehana on the Big Island, so just a heads up: tastings of the two bottled brews are $ 1 a piece and seasonals $ 2. The IIPA didn’t really impress me much, but the Pillbox Porter was knock-​your-​socks off good. They tout tahitian vanilla with real vanilla beans, which made this wonderful creamy porter that reminded me of the White Mountain Porter at Big Island Brewhaus.
The first seasonal was the Poha Loa, a Belgian Blonde with Poha berries. It was light and friendly with a unique sour kick, which was incredibly innovative but something I didn’t care for too much. The second seasonal was the Closeout Dark Ale, which was a very rich ale with locally sourced chocolate. Strong chocolate notes with a bitter finish, like those eighty-​something percent cacao bars you can buy. I’m really glad I got to try this one.
While we were there, we were waiting around for a little while for the Closeout Dark Ale due to an over-​carbonation problem. The poor guy behind the counter would pour a pitcher with 70% head and wait for it to settle before serving.
It should also be noted that I purchased a bomber of the Pillbox Porter after that, and had a strangely similar problem. The bottle had sat for a few days, but upon pouring into a pintglass, the beer would inexplicably foam up and become 60−70% head. I thought that maybe I had accidentally shaken the bottle or put it down hard, but it continued to do so without explanation. I can only conclude that I had a bad batch, and Lanikai has some problems with their carbonation process to iron out.
Growler fills were $ 16 for the bottled brews (normally ~$ 10 for a 22oz bottled) and $ 24 for the seasonals.
The beer is so good that I’ll definitely be back to visit, and will try more bottles in the future. Hopefully the problem isn’t prevalent and I can continue to enjoy the fantastic beers they serve up.

This brewery is fantastic! Their staff is awesome, facilities are great and the beer is tasty as it gets! Their Pillhouse Porter is one of the best vanilla porters I have ever had and the IPA is off the chart! Just picked up two growlers of their specialty beers on tap… can’t wait to enjoy those with friends. Do not pass this place up… go meet the owners/​brewers and staff and have them pour you a pint!

Excited to see the craft brew scene starting to grow in Oahu; even more so in our favorite place in the world, Lanikai.
Visited the brewery and met one of the owner/​investors. He was super friendly and you could tell he was equally excited and proud of what they were producing.
Never been a big porter fan, but their Pillbox Porter turned me into one. At the time visiting, they only ship amongst the islands and not the mainland yet. Hopefully, that will change soon.

It’s tough to find a good range of beers on the island. Your choices here are basically Kona, Rogue, Goose Island, and, God help us all, those damn Green Bottles that locals love for reasons that will forever escape me.
Lanikai Brewing doesn’t have much to choose from, but the quality of their beer is pretty nice. It’s a bit pricey, but it’s worth it just to try something different. Swing by and check it out.

Before we moved to the area, we scoured the island for interesting microbreweries and planned to visit them. On Thanksgiving weekend, we went there three times trying to do a tasting, but kept being shut down because Unilocal doesn’t have a contact number and they were open different hours than listed because of the holiday.
Once we were able to visit, we were stoked and hopeful. We had already tried the Pilbox Porter and the 808 Imperial at Whole Foods, and heard rumors of a POG weisse. We were able to try the two seasonal beers on tap, one was a Hibiscus and Honey, the other was a Pale Ale, both very good and very flavorful. We ended up getting a growler of the Pale, but not until I grilled the man behind the counter on when the POG would be re-​released (a few weeks still).
We will definitely be returning, at least to try the new beers, but even if you have your own glass, these growler fills are expensive!!! I was a little in shock, but after I got home I did the math and the guy charged me $ 26 for the fill and the glass when I had brought mine from my home. Grr… That said, the quality is good, and I love to support local business. Super excited to have them in town, and hearing murmurs of Kailua Brewery coming soon… but until then, I’ll probably fill my growlers at Whole Foods.

This brewery is great! They’re making some wonderfully unique beers. I got to try their «Forever Summer» spontaneously fermented Berliner weiss — the first wild ale brewed in Hawaii! Pipeline Porter and their fresh-​hop pale were also exceptional. Best beer I’ve had in Hawaii by far. They fill growlers and sell 22s of their porter and IPA.
If you’re visiting the brewery, it’s a little hard to find. Don’t be deterred by the small alley. Look straight down it when you’re stopped at the light and you’ll see their sign. There is indeed a small tasting room back there!

I visit Honolulu fairly regularly and was very pleased to see some new breweries as I was planning this trip. Lanikai brewing Company was one of them.
It is hard to see from the road and we passed it the first time, but turn around and pull into the warehouse because there is a tap room! Super nice guy behind the counter explained the ingredients of each beer and chatted with us. We tried everything on tap… The 808 Imperial IPA is coming home with me.

Beer is on the above average scale. Cons are they sell or sold their 22oz bottle at the brewery for $ 12 and I found it for $ 10 at Tamuras (a local beer store)! How can it be cheaper at a store than direct from the brewery! Second, they charge $ 2 for a small sample at the brewery (about a 2oz pour). Come on!
Tasting is believing for a customer to buy an expensive brew. To me that’s lame and tacky! Hint: the small things will keep big customers away!

Small, yet mighty brewery alert! It is really hard to see the signs and impossible to see the brewery unless you pull into the small driveway/​alley/​road (?).
Once inside, the brewery offers a small tasting room with free tasters (for now I assume). We tried three beers they had… summer, Porter and IPA. Bought a bottle of the porter. It was really good.
I look forward to seeing their beer on the mainland, bruddah.

It’s not the kind of beer tasting room you can sit around in for a few hours, but I’m giving it 4 stars any ways because their beer is some of the best I have tasted. I love IPAs and porters/​stouts. The 808 and the Pillbox are in my top five.
The guy at the counter was super friendly and explained the local ingredients they use in their beers. Had to buy a shirt for me and the hubbie. Bought extra beer to pack up and bring back to the Mainland.
I’m in Oahu next week and hope they still have their limited release POG beer! Two of my favorite things in life mixed together… POG & beer!

Great spot! Stopped by on a Friday. They are open 5−9pm. Had all three beers and they were delicious. Bought some cool stuff to take home and the double IPA for my time remaining on Oahu. Trey was a great ambassador with stories on the beer, places to go, and more tips. Keep up the great work!

Pretty cool spot off the beaten path. Great customer service and let us try the two beers on tap. They even refill Hydro Flask bottles with their beer for dirt cheep prices!

Stopped in here on Sunday 7÷23÷15 to check it out. We were freindly greeted as we arrived and offered samples of their two beers, Pillbox Porter & 808 Imperial IPA. Both very well crafted. I am a fan of IPA’s and this is a good one!
Had a nice conversation with the gentleman running the place and a local couple that also came in at the same time as us. Before leaving we had to get t-​shirts and a bottle of each beer. Great visit!

My boyfriend and I stopped by here on Saturday. We were acknowledged almost immediately even though there was a couple groups in the small tasting room. My boyfriend got a sample of the IPA and of their porter. He’s a porter man. he thought it was good, and bought one of their 22 oz bottles. The prices seem kind of high about 10 dollars for a 22 oz bottle, I think like 54 for a six pack of those, though I guess as the guy there told us the best deal is getting a growler and doing refills.
One thing I would recommend is they maybe air condition the tasting room, was so hot in there, I went outside to get some air. Also is a little tricky to find. We didn’t see their sign and ended up parking across the street and just walking over to find it. You have to walk down the side of the building past the open part of the brewery warehouse door to find the tasting room door after it.

Stopped by on recommendation from friends. Great to see a small local brewery coming up, and the beer ain’t bad. Trouble over the weekend seemed to be 1) the IPA keg was empty, so no sample of that available on a Sunday afternoon and 2) the girl working the tasting room was… fashionably disinterested? Hopefully she’s a friend of the owners or just a volunteer, because she wasn’t very helpful. Multiple awkward interactions in the few minutes we visited. And then she interrupted me mid-​sentence during a conversation to greet a visitor just coming in the door.
I’d come back if I knew more than one beer was available, and if they actually got someone working in the tasting room who was friendly and welcoming. Not too much to ask :/

2 bottles of beer on the wall, 2 bottles of beer, take it down, pass it around…
Well, you get my drift. This brewery, still in its infancy, makes 2 beers, a porter and an IPA. Tasting room manager, Jamie kindly gave pours of both and a revisit when undecided on what to purchase. The small tasting room is only open on Saturday and Sunday from noon to 5pm. Should you miss that, you can purchase their beer at The Food Pantry in Waikiki and Whole Foods on Oahu.

Just came in to the brewery and tried both of the brews; the imperial IPA and the Pillbox Porter. The pillbox had some nice vanilla undertones and the double IPA was out of this world. I don’t mean to compare brews, but the IPA had the same flavorful taste as a dogfish head 90 minute and the 90 minute is one of the best IPA’s in the game, IMO.
Anyways, Dan O was one of the founders and poured my fiancée and I 6 – 8 ounce samples of both the IPA and the Porter. He was the man and very knowledgeable and passionate about his craft. I respect that. Our favorite was the Imperial IPA, which is a double IPA. We bought a hat and a bottle of the imperial and we’re feeling nice after those samples. Highly recommend checking this place out. It’s a little hard to find but its in the back of the shopping center right across the street from Midas and definitely worth hitting up.

I know these guys personally and was around 10 years ago when they first started brewing beer in the kitchen. So you can imagine how excited I was when they announced they were opening a brewery, in Kailua! I’ve had a tour and it’s a really state of the art set up, in a hidden spot against the Hamakua Marsh. I tried both of their first brews including the Pillbox Porter that has an amazing vanilla undertone and the 808 Imperial IPA which had a twist of citrus. They are really not settling for just rehashing tired recipes but rather taking some interesting risks that are really paying off for the taste buds. I’ve bought a few from the brewery but also found them at Lanikai General Store and Bruseum. Enjoy!