Stuck on what to get Dad for Father’s Day? I’ve got two words for you: craft beer. These are not anything like his everyday 12-pack of domestic lager. Unlike mass-produced beers, craft breweries use an array of ingredients to produce distinctive styles of beer, with flavors ranging from light and crisp to dark and full-bodied.
Hawaii has a growing number of craft beer options, and there’s a style and flavor suited for every father. What better way to spend a day with Dad than to sit and share a beer?
Here are five suggestions.
» For the coffee lover: The folks at Big Island Brewhaus, located in Waimea, make their White Mountain Porter with hand-toasted coconut and Hamakua coffee. This dark and rich beer has deep notes of espresso, chocolate and subtle hints of vanilla. If your dad is a coffee lover, this is a must-try. White Mountain Porter is a fantastic beer to enjoy with dessert, or you can even have this beer with breakfast in place of your morning coffee.
Find Big Island Brewhaus White Mountain Porter in 22-ounce bottles at Liquor Collection in Ward Warehouse. Call 524-8808 or visit www.liquorcollection.com.
COMING UP IN JULY
Tim Golden, creator of the blog “Beer in Hawaii” (beerinhawaii.com), shares his obsession with all things craft beer in a monthly column for the Star-Advertiser.
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» The gift that keeps on giving: A growler of takeout craft beer from one of Hawaii’s amazing local breweries is a great gift idea.
A growler is a glass container, usually 64 ounces, that is filled at the tap. It can be refilled at the brewery again and again for a reasonable price. On Oahu, find growlers at Aloha Beer Co. and Hawaiian Islands Brewing Co.
At Aloha Beer, try the crisp, light and refreshing Organic Agave Lager. This light golden beer is brewed with agave syrup, which adds a subtle sweetness and provides a clean and dry finish.
Fill a Hawaiian Islands Brewing growler with the Macadamia Nut Brown Ale. Nutty, bready and crisp, this beer literally tastes like a liquid macadamia nut bread.
Unopened, beer in the growler will stay carbonated and fresh for up to a week; once opened, it stays at peak freshness for 12 hours.
Aloha Beer Co.: 580 N. Nimitz Highway; call 545-5959 or visit alohabeer.com. Hawaiian Islands Brewing Co.: Ward Centre; visit www.hibrewco.com.
» Father’s Day special: Oregon-based Rogue Brewing was one of the pioneers of the U.S. craft beer movement. Along with other breweries in the Pacific Northwest, it has introduced Americans to new and exciting beer styles.
Rogue beers are widely available in Hawaii, and every Father’s Day, the brewery offers a special release: Dad’s Little Helper Black IPA.
Dad’s Little Helper pours black with a thick, creamy head and has an incredible aroma of espresso and grapefruit. It is assertively bitter because it is full of hops, but it also has big flavors of coffee, chocolate and licorice, thanks to deep-flavored malts.
Pick up a 22-ounce bottle of this annual treat at Whole Foods Markets. Call the Kailua store at 263-6800, Kahala at 738-0820, or visit www.wholefoodsmarket.com.
» Extreme flavor experience: Sierra Nevada Brewing Co. releases the huge Imperial IPA, Hoptimum, once a year. This is a beer best enjoyed fresh, and lucky for hop-loving dads, Hoptimum just hit the shelves in Hawaii.
Hoptimum is a big beer in more ways than one. It’s strong, with 10.4 percent alcohol by volume, or ABV; bitter, with 100 IBUs, or international bittering units; and "hoppy," with extraordinary amounts of hops used in the brewing process.
Hops, the flower cones taken from the hop vine, are crucial to this beer. Hops not only add bitterness, they also impart flavors and aromas ranging from herbal and earthy (grassy, piney, spicy) to fruity and floral (citrus, melon, fresh-cut flowers). Hops have been used in beer for hundreds of years.
This beer pours a deep copper color and has intense hop aromas of fresh grapefruit, pineapple and pine trees. Although this is a highly bitter beer, sweetness and citrus notes from hops help balance out the flavor.
For dads who like hoppy flavor, this is a special treat that comes in four packs of 12-ounce bottles, so you can each have your own.
Find Sierra Nevada Hoptimum at Foodland stores. Visit www.foodland.com.
» The splurge: KleinBrouwerij De Glazen Toren Jan De Lichte Imperial White Ale is a complete splurge but worth every penny, especially on a special occasion such as Father’s Day. KleinBrouwerij is a small brewery just outside of Brussels where small batches of beer are produced.
Jan De Lichte is brewed with spices and orange peel, producing an intensely flavored beer full of bright citrus flavors such as lemon sorbet, tangelo and grapefruit zest, and balanced with soft, spicy notes of coriander and pepper.
Like many Belgian beers, Jan De Lichte is highly carbonated, giving it a Champagne-like fizz and making it even more refreshing.
Find Jan De Lichte Imperial White Ale at Tamura’s Fine Wine and Liquors in Kaimuki, at 1216 10th Ave. Call 735-7100 or visit www.tamurasfinewine.com.