Kona Brewing Company Goes Green, Organic
By MidWeek Staff
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Del.icio.usA Koko Marina Center restaurant and pub introduces its organic beer this year on the heels of earning two stars in the Green Restaurant Association’s certification program.
Kona Brewing Company’s sustainability coordinator Tracy Solomon said the Hawaii Organic Farmers Association certified their brewing process in November for making Oceanic Organic Saison.
“It is a Belgian-style beer made with special yeast strains that gives it its characteristic flavor,“said Solomon. “We’ve made this popular beer before with organic ingredients, but this is the first time we went all out with locating every organic ingredient possible - and we also went ahead and got certified so we can call it organic.”
The first batch of the Oceanic Organic Saison was kegged in late December, and as of press time the second batch was finishing off in the tanks. Plans are to serve it in the restaurant “in early 2010.”
“The Koko Marina location has a complete waste-reduction program and vermacomposting (worms),” added Solomon, who has been working for two-anda-half years to guide KBC pubs to greener pastures. “We recycle all paper, plastic, glass and mixed paper.”
In fact, KBC started with a green foundation, she said, with refurbished tables and chairs. The kitchen hood is an old beer fermentation tank.
Equipment also helps. “Seventy percent of the lights are energy-efficient CFL bulbs. Ice machines and refrigeration also are on the energy-saving side. The front of the house doesn’t have air conditioning, since we can become cool from ocean breezes. We have water conservation in our restrooms and kitchens.” KBC also cut chemicals in its cleansers by switching to more biodegradable cleaning products.
They’ve also revamped the bar area (now called Liquid Aloha Lounge) and rolled out 40 new drinks, a new wine list and extended the desserts on the bar menu to enhance its happy hour offerings.
Eron Read, general manager of the Kona Brewery location at Koko Marina, said the four beer-tinis they’ve added are a huge hit.
“We are fusing our award-winning beers with liqueurs,” said Read.
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