Last Updated on August 18, 2024 by Leah Hall
Go on a tasting and tour of Waikulu Distillery with us in Maui, Hawaii! Some great agave spirits only sold in Hawaii.
When we were in Hawaii this spring we had the good fortune to visit Waikulu distillery in Maui. With the combination of elevation, climate and soil the agave spirit is sweet and smooth. Their agave spirit is complex and delightfully tasty.
This post contains affiliate links for products that we think you as readers might find useful, and we make commission off of these! For more details about our affiliates, click our Disclosure and Contacts Page.
They only sell on Maui so you will need to make a trip to buy some and pack in your suitcase. We brought home 2 bottles!
Waikulu Distillery is a Farm to Bottle maker of blue agave spirits. The tours are great, and their tasting room gives you the wide range of all their expressions of agave spirit.
Waikulu Distillery
Just like Champagne can only be made in France, whisky can only be produced in Scotland, or true tequila in Mexico. But, agave spirits can be produced anywhere.
Founder Paul Turner began the project as a novel experiment. The distillery’s windy terrain at 1,400 foot elevation has a similarity to Los Altos, in Jalisco where the majority of tequila is produced.
The volcanic soils and Maui water makes for a sweet flavor that showcases the agave, and there are even notes of citrus and jalapeño.
Waikulu is the only distillery in Hawaii producing Blue Agave Spirits. Started in 2011 with a few plants which sparked the dream of producing a unique spirit made from 100% Hawaiian grown agave.
Waikulu is a Hawaiian word that translates to dripping water. It was used in the past to describe alcohol spirits, which drip slowly from the still.
We did the tasting during which we talked about the process with them. Then, we had a quick tour of their operation, including into the fields of Blue Weber agave. We think it was worth visiting just to see the impressively large agave plants at an average weight of 350 pounds. Few places in the world can grow agave, and the ideal conditions on the windward side of the Hawaiian island of Maui is ideal. Sunshine all year, no threat of freezing, and consistent rainfall in a moist tropical climate.
After harvest, they use an electric-powered agave crusher similar to traditional tahonas. The spirit finishes in a still that combines Irish and Mexican techniques. The lid, column and lyne arm are made from copper to remove sulfides, and the kettle is made from stainless steel.
Since Waikulu Distillery produces hand-crafted spirits in small batches, every portion of the process is done on site. This includes growing, harvesting and processing, distilling, bottling, and labeling.
After nearly a decade, Waikulu’s spirits are now on liquor store and bar shelves across the island.
Waikulu Distillery Tasting
Waikulu Distillery has 5 spirit offerings. Their unaged version (Batch 1, silver) of a tequila blanco is is smooth and floral, almost sweet. Not like a flavor sweet, but a nectar sweetness, like the agave itself is such a lovely star of this spirit.
Viviana served us the spirits in order from unaged to most aged, then their mezcal-like spirit, the Smoke Pepa. Next was the Ohana Reserve Silver that was a lovely and bright floral spirit. This one was our favorite of the 2 unaged spirits and we brought a bottle home!
Then we tried their Batch 2, which is aged 6 months, a Reposado-adjacent spirit which was a lovely aged spirit with the flavor of the barrel aging standing out.
The next one is a 12-month Ohana Reserve (the same age statement as a typical tequila añejo). This spirit was aged in premium barrels, and this was another standout and favorite for us. Smooth and yet light for being aged, this is a lovely sipping spirit and we have been enjoying it neat or on the rocks quite often since our trip.
Their final expression is a pepper-infused (chipotle and pasilla peppers) spirit named “Smoke Pepa.” This was smoky like a mezcal and would be lovely in mezcal based cocktails.
Their blue custom bottles are striking and lovely. Not traditional tequila packaging at all. For the logo, it is an agave plant over the ocean. For the Ohana Reserve, the logo was stamped in metallic blue foil, matching the teal of the bottle. The black label makes it even more striking.
So, we hope you will add Waikulu Distillery to your list of places to visit on Maui. Walk-ins are welcome, but you will get a better experience if you schedule a time with them.
Cheers!
Waikulu Distillery
3275 Baldwin Ave
Makawao, HI 96768
Deluxe Farm & Distillery Tour Monday/Wednesday 11:00 am starting at $43
Spirit Tastings (30 minutes) starting at $15, and the tasting room is open Monday-Saturday 12-5
Other Distilleries to Check Out
- Trail Distilling – Oregon
- Dampfwerk Distilling – Minneapolis
- Lindores Abbey – Scotland
- Holladay Distilling – Weston, Missouri
- Holyrood Distillery – Edinburgh, Scotland
- Glenfiddich Distillery – Scotland
- Humboldt Distillery – California
Also, don’t forget to follow us on Instagram and tag #gastronomcocktails so we can see all the wonderful recipes YOU recreate from this site!
You can also subscribe to our newsletter so you never miss a delicious recipe again!
Like this post? Check these out below, too!
Interested in stocking your own home bar? Make sure to see our favorites at our Amazon Store!
If you liked this post, don’t forget to subscribe for new (and of course free) recipes by entering your email address on the side bar (and get all the recipes delivered to your inbox when we post), so you don’t miss out on a thing. You can find us on Facebook, Instagram, and Pinterest!
Gastronomblog is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to amazon.com