Archives: Brew Moon 2/25/99

Brew Moon
Honolulu, HI
Thurs. 2/25/99, 12:15pm HST
[closed]

House Brews:
Diamond Head Cream Ale
Mayberry Wheat RFD
Munich Gold
Great Pacific Pale Ale
Hawaii "5" Ale
Schwarzmondster
Mocha Java Porter

Got a sampler of all 7. Brewpub is set up in upscale shopping center between city of Honolulu and Waikiki - specifically in Kaka`ako. There is no real view from the restaurant. Art deco interior, vaguely like Tun Tavern in Atlantic City.

Diamond Head Cream Ale: Golden color. Sweet aroma. Tastes like Molson, which isn't to say it isn't completely tasteless but there is definitely room for improvement. The taste does linger on the palate long after swallowing. We understand the need for this style of beer - and for the style it is reasonably well executed. It's just not our cup of beer. 7.8

Mayberry Wheat: Refreshing fruity aroma. Unfiltered. Served with lemon slice a la hefeweisen. The taste is full but sour. Seems like the berries were overripe and bitter. John's notes: I just don't like the flavoring in this - the wheat beer underneath seems ok. 7.4

Munich Gold: Becky's notes: 1996 Gold Medal winner at GABF. Medium gold color. Good carbonation and decent body. Very little aroma. Beer does not leave much of an impression. John's notes: To me, it has a pretty good finish. Well... it varies from swallow to swallow. 7.8

Hawaii 5 Ale: Becky's notes: Deeper coppery golden color. Crisp malty hoppy aroma. Floral hoppiness fills mouth then malts appear with the swallow - backwards from most beers but good! John doesn't see this but does point out that the malts are muted compared to the hops. 8.0 John's notes: I didn't notice much of a malt taste. The hops appear strongly in the finish. There is a bit of a sour taste in the finish with is vaguely unpleasant. 7.6

Great Pacific Pale Ale: Becky's notes: Well it's a fairly dark "pale" ale! Somewhat russet colored. Malts and hops do a good blending job in both aroma, taste and swallow (finish). John's notes: This beer has nice balance and consistency. 8.3

Mocha Java Porter: Becky's notes: Very dark beer - almost as black as the name implies. Tastes a lot like a dry porter. At this point we thought the beers might have been switched so we sampled the Mocha Java Porter and we cannot tell it apart from the Schwarzmondster. We are ranking the first one as the porter. Aroma - coffee type malts prevail. Quite tasty, not too bitter, just a hint of hoppiness. John's notes: Coffee malts are a little bit on the shy side, but it's a well-balanced, tasty beer. 8.5

Schwarzmondster: (we think): Extremely hard to tell from the porter. Is drier and hoppier. Much more coffee aroma than flavor, but less coffee taste. 8.4