HONOLULU, HAWAI‘I—Waikiki Brewing Company, in a unique partnership with the Honolulu Museum of Art (HoMA), is launching a beer made especially for the exhibition Hoʻoulu Hawaiʻi: The King Kalākaua Era. Opening on September 13, the exhibition is the first to describe a seminal period in Hawai‘i’s history—1874 to 1891—when Hawaiian art and culture, philosophy and practice were promoted through innovative means, ultimately to present a national identity to a global audience.
Called Hoʻoulu HoMA IPA, the beer will launch in tandem with the exhibition and can be found at the exhibition’s opening reception, ARTafterDARK on September 26, and at Waikiki Brewing Company locations while the exhibition is open.
The inspiration for this collaboration came to Waikiki Brewing Company founder and museum member Joe Lorenzen when he learned the museum hosted a spring benefit called Palette, which involved several local celebrity chefs. "Wow, that's perfect for me," Lorenzen said. "I have this passion for beer and that's my creative outlet, and I also have this really awesome reverence for the museum and what it has to offer." So he reached out to the museum's events team to see what kind of collaboration could be brewed up.
The beer itself will be an English-style IPA, described by Lorenzen as a “hoppy, moderately-strong, very well attenuated pale British ale…”. It's the kind of beer that Kalākaua would have had the opportunity to sip during his travels to England, he adds. A brewer since 2011, Lorenzen’s extensive knowledge of beer led him to research how he could also incorporate Hawaiian tradition into the beer. "I wanted to do something to kind of tie it into Hawai‘i as well," he said. Waikiki Brewing Company will be baking ti root—used to make the ancient Hawaiian spirit okolehao—in an imu to devlop the sugars, and that will lend the beer "an earthy sweetness."
Lorenzen emphasized, "I’m really excited to do it because it’s different from a lot of the IPAs that we have…[this beer is] a little more subtle representation of an IPA, and also the fact that we are tying in some local ingredients and some history into it—that’s what excites me about it."
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About the Honolulu Museum of Art
One of the world’s premier art museums, the Honolulu Museum of Art presents international caliber special exhibitions and features a collection that includes Hokusai, van Gogh, Gauguin, Monet, Picasso and Warhol, as well as traditional Asian and Hawaiian art.
Located in two of Honolulu’s most beautiful buildings, visitors enjoy two cafés, a shop, gardens, and films and concerts at the theater. The museum is dedicated to bringing together great art and people to create a more harmonious, adaptable, and enjoyable society in Hawai’i.
Locations:
Honolulu Museum of Art: 900 S. Beretania Street
Honolulu Museum of Art Spalding House: 2411 Makiki Heights Drive
Honolulu Museum of Art School: 1111 Victoria Street
Honolulu Museum of Art at First Hawaiian Center: 999 Bishop Street
Honolulu Museum of Art Doris Duke Theatre: 901 Kinau Street (at rear of museum)
Hours:
Honolulu Museum of Art: Tues–Sun 10 am–4:30pm; closed Monday.
Honolulu Museum of Art Spalding House: Tues–Sun 10am–4pm; closed Monday.
Admission (permits entry to both museums on the same day):
$20 general admission; $10 Hawai‘i residents and active duty military living in Hawai‘i; children 18 and under are free.
