beer

Kona Brewery has signed a lease with the Queen Lili’uokalani Trust to build a new brewery in Kailua-Kona, Hawaii, US.

The company will expand into a new 30,000ft² brewery and canning operation on a 2.6-acre site just down the street from its existing location on Pawai Place.

The new facility, which is expected to cost more than $20m, will produce 100,000 barrels of island-inspired brew every year up from 11,000 barrels currently.

Kona expects to break ground on the new brewery this spring. It is anticipated to be fully operational by early 2018.

Originally planned as a $15m project, the brewery will have another $5m in new renewable energy and water conservation technology into its design.

Kona Brewing is partnering with PurposeEnergy to design and construct an on-site Resource Recovery Centre.

PurposeEnergy’s technology will recycle the organic brewing byproducts and extract the energy to reuse it to generate electricity, heat and clean water for the brewery.

Kona Brewing Company co-founder Cameron Healy said: "When we first decided on Kailua-Kona for our original Kona Brewery 22 years ago, we did it as a result of our respect for the rich culture and spirit of the community.

"Kona and the Big Island of Hawaii are special, and we are grateful to the community for all of their support over these many years."

Kona Brewing head of brewing operations Sandi Shriver said: "We’re so excited to begin brewing with this new system, which will help us better utilise our hops and increase our yield by brewing more efficiently and sustainably.

"For our Hawaii customers, that means having more of the Kona beer they love on tap and more unique small-batch beers like our Makana Series."

The brewery’s canning operation will also help Kona expand its package offerings in the Islands.

Image: Hawaii’s craft brewery will expand annual brewing capacity to 100,000 barrels. Photo: courtesy of Kona Brewing Co.