A culinary destination on the Palouse is growing in a project that is backed by the Port of Whitman County.

Hunga Dunga Brewing in Moscow anticipates it will quadruple its production at a second location recently announced for Pullman.

The new $2 million, 12,000-square-foot building will have a production center, restaurant, taproom and event venue at the Port of Whitman County’s Pullman Industrial Park on the northern edge of town.

The expansion of Hunga Dunga Brewing on the 1.5-acre lot is expected to create 20 jobs and be complete by the summer of 2025, said Graham Lilly, owner and manager of the business.

“There’s lots to celebrate,” Lilly said.

The Pullman operation of Hunga Dunga will have space for Paddock Spirits Company, a venture of Cory and Blake Preston, who are the owners of Etsi Bravo in Pullman, he said.

Paddock Spirits Company is still in its early stages building on what the Prestons learned about to-go cocktails during the COVID-19 pandemic, Lilly said.

The Port of Whitman County is supporting the expansion with a $2 million, low-interest loan it received from the Washington State Community Economic Revitalization Board.

“Hunga Dunga Brewing will sign a lease with the port to operate the production facility and will be responsible for financing tenant improvements,” according to a port news release issued this week.

Hunga Dunga presently is located at 333 N. Jackson St. where it has 15 employees. They work in a 4,000-square-foot converted metal warehouse with a curved roof where it brews beer and hard seltzer.

The drinks are distributed in kegs and cans, then sold at more than a dozen Palouse bars, restaurants and stores, including the Moscow Food Co-op and Rosauers.

They can also be purchased by the glass at Hunga Dunga Brewing, which has a full dinner menu and frequently hosts live concerts. Those operations will remain in Moscow after the Pullman location is finished, Lilly said.

Hunga Dunga and Paddock Spirits will benefit from the Pullman project in a variety of ways, Lilly said.

Demand for Hunga Dunga’s beverages is so strong that it has outgrown the production capacity it has in Moscow, he said.

“This was born out of a need,” Lilly said.

Customer favorites include Lavender Bees Knees, a hard seltzer flavored with the herb in its name, Moscow Woodland honey and lemon as well as Vandal Victory Lager, a beer that’s done in partnership with the University of Idaho.

In Moscow, Hunga Dunga will still brew beer to be distributed in kegs after the Pullman facility is done. All of Hunga Dunga’s canning equipment is expected to be moved to Pullman, where it will make beer and hard seltzers.

Unlike in Idaho, Hunga Dunga in Washington will have the option to pursue making canned cocktails with spirits, Lilly said.

“We’ll maintain distribution rights in both states,” he said.

Hunga Dunga’s new facility will also give Paddock Spirits a place to expand, Lilly said.

That connection builds on an existing tie between the business owners. Etsi Bravo and Hunga Dunga have collaborated on hard seltzer flavors previously, Lilly said.

“They drink like cocktails,” he said. “They taste like cocktails, but there’s no hard liquor in them.”

At the same time, Hunga Dunga is working through details to open a distribution company for small-scale beer producers that don’t have enough volume to be taken on by larger ones, Lilly said.

Like Moscow, where Hunga Dunga serves upscale hamburgers, tacos, sandwiches, sausages and French fries, Pullman will have a robust menu for customers who may or may not have a drink with what they order.

In Moscow, Hunga Dunga is open in the evenings. Pullman will be open for lunch and dinner, Lilly said.

“Food has always been one of our focuses,” he said.

Williams may be contacted at ewilliam@lmtribune.com or (208) 848-2261.