Real Ale at BEERS

Last night's monthly BEERS meeting presented members with a "real" treat in the form of two familiar craft beers served as real ale by gravity pour. The beers were accompanied by the brewer, Toshi Ishii from Ya-ho brewing in Karuizawa, Nagano Prefecture. Toshi used to work at Stone Brewing in California. He gave us a talk about real ale and talked a little about the two beers. As an added "treat", the casks in which the beers were presented were oak pins (4.5 UK gallons) without any inner liner (more on this later).

Beer number one was Yona Yona, familiar to most if not all beer fans in Japan. An American pale ale style, it was dry hopped in the cask. With the absence of carbonation, the beer was beautifully smooth and the floral Cascade hop character was a delight as it danced upon a slightly sweet, malt stage.

Beer number two was Ya-ho's Tokyo Black Ale, a classic example of the porter style that was popular among London's working classes in the 19th century and from which stout evolved. The Tokyo Black had a slightly higher amount of carbonation than the Yona Yona, providing a slight carbonic tickle on the tongue, but it was still very much a real ale. Tokyo Black is a superb beer to drink as real ale. It is rich and smooth and roasty, but with very rounded corners and none of the burnt, dry flavor typical of stout. (A tip when buying Tokyo Black Ale in the can is to pour it a few minutes before drinking. Carefully stir with a spoon or swirl the glass to release excess CO2 and allow it to warm to around 12 degrees C. The resulting taste experience will be vastly superior to an over-chilled, fully-carbonated version). Bryan Harrel in Brews News #75 described it as: "Near black, opaque, dark tan short-lived head. Faint subdued aromas of dried fruit, sweet coffee and chocolate cake. Smooth mouthfeel with rich, dark malt flavors, but very little deep roast bitterness. A session ale for dark-beer lovers." He gave it four stars out of five. As real ale it gets an easy five, if not six!

Some questions during the presentation led to a lot of discussion about packaging craft beer in bottles versus cans, and whether there is any difference. The discussion seemed to lurch away from real ale and led me to ask Toshi what the benefit is of conditioning real ales in wood compared to the more common stainless steel casks that are common in the UK. And would any differences become more evident over time? The answer seemed to be that it was, er, too difficult to answer. So perhaps the benefit is mainly aesthetic and spiritual rather than for any tangible taste difference. Certainly oak casks are much more expensive and the beer in them is more difficult to maintain in good condition in the cellar, so if tangible taste benefits are so difficult to identify, then it is no wonder that Yona Yona is the only brewery in Japan with wooden casks, and that even in the UK there are only eight breweries with wooden casks. In short, it is for the purists, and even then, as Toshi intimated, reserved for special occasions like beer shows (and BEERS meetings!)

Rob Barrow, a craft beer expert from the UK, was also in attendance and shared some insights into the real ale scene (did somebody mention CAMRA) in the old dart. We heard about how CAMRA are very particular about what is and isn't considered kosher in the world of real ale. They frown upon cask breathers, a device that allows CO2 or a cellar mix (CO2 + N2) to replace drawn off beer in the cask and thus protect the remaining beer from oxidation. They are also agin sparklers, a little plastic device that is inserted into the pouring spout to inrease head formation by knocking CO2 out of solution (and flavour with it). The session was rounded out by some informal social mingling until the casks were all-too-soon emptied.

After the meeting, Tod, Jim and I popped into Towers near Tokyo station, a "hole-in-the-wall" bar that, in its own small way, champions craft beer. An ambition we should all hold. We tried a regular hand pumped "real ale" Yona Yona and found it quite insipid compared to its dry-hopped sibling we had just been drinking. After some lively banter with the other patrons (well, one in particular), we sauntered off into the night, satisfied with our evening of drinking good beer.

Red Miso Lager Beer

Miso paste in a beer? Red miso paste? Apparently the Morita Kinshachi Beer Co. Ltd of Nagoya thinks it is a fair and proper thing to foist upon the public. I saw it in the Foodshow (basement level) liquor section of the Tokyu Department Store at Shibuya Station yesterday, first thought phht, and finally decided, oh what the hell, I've just run a marathon, I might as well give this a try. I was not expecting much though, as other attempts by Japanese craft brewers to incorporate indiginous ingredients with their brews have left me a little less than whelmed.

Tasting notes
Appearance was a very dark brown transluscent colour with ruby hints. Off-white head and subdued carbonation.
Aroma was a rich prune-like vinous aroma. Nothing really punched me in the nose and shouted "aka miso" at me. No hop aroma.
Fairly clean lightish body at first, very malty and assertively rich and meaty in the back palate. But still no standout flavour that would make you say, "hey, red miso!" At 6% abv, I basically would put this down as a pretty standard, actually quite good, Bock beer. I wasn't knocked out at the first sip, but by the last I could have easily opened another bottle.
Overall score 7.5/10. (maybe another 0.5 for the label).

Ya-ho Brewing Bier de Garde

I think this must almost be a first among Japanese breweries, a Bier de Garde! The Karuizuwa-based Ya-Ho Brewing Company, makers of the deliciously American hopped Yona Yona, have released several seasonals at different times. I am especially fond of their India pale ale, but a Scotch ale they produce is also a beautiful beer. So when I was browsing the craft beer section of the basement-level Foodshow beneath Shibuya station yesterday, this new color scheme can caught my eye. "Ho ho, what have Ya-Ho produced now?" I asked myself. Upon closer scrutiny of the lable I was surprised to see the words Biere de Garde pop out at me. "Wow, that's brave!" I thought to myself. "Fancy going to market with something as obscure as that!"

But head brewer Ishii Toshi is not exactly known for a lack of willingness to challenge the Japanese craft beer market with new beer. He has been championing real ale for several years now, after all.

Biere de Garde is a beer style from northern France. The name translates as "beer to keep". It is usually robustly malty, not lacking in hop flavour, and is said to have a musty, earthy character that can be difficult to replicate when brewed with conventional modern brewing practises. This one was pretty much true to this description. A rich golden color, certainly a very full caramelly malt profile with some subdued but noticeable noble hops rounding out the flavour. But wait, there is a little more. A faintly earthy breadiness. Wow, Ishii-san has pretty much nailed this style. It'd be interesting to track down a bottle of Jenlain and drink them side by side. A robust lager-ish beer at 6% abv, this would stand up to some good hearty food. Highly recommended!

Brown Lion, Brown Beer

A pub in my neighbourhood called the Black Lion has been running a three-part series of mini beer festivals. The first one was titled "Black, Lion Black Beer", the second "White Lion, White Beer," and the third one, scheduled for April 14 & 15 '07, will be called "Brown Lion, Brown Beer".

I reviewed the White Beer fest in the March issue of Brews News (coming to this link soon). My bottom line conclusion was that I strongly support the idea of these small-scale, themed beer festivals. Tomo at the Black Lion has put together good selections of Japanese craft brews and imported beers allowing us to sample Japanese craft beers alongside examples of the style originating from their "home" province. For example, at the "white" day, classic German hefewizens from Germany beside locally-produced examples (but he missed an opportunity to compare Hitachino Nest White Ale with the Celis White and St. Bernado's White that the had on tap -- never mind, there is always room for improvement).

I hope the Black Lion or similar venues take up Tomo's very innovative and creative foray into the promotion of good beer in Japan. Every little bit helps push back the dark shroud of Sapasakirisun that hangs over the land. A key bit of information is that Tomo is offering a price saving for advance ticket purchases up until the 13th April: 3 x half pints for 1300 yen (1500 yen on the day) or 3 x pints for 2500 yen (2700 yen on the day).

Brews News

Brews News is a monthly Internet newsletter about beer in Japan that appears on the popular Tokyo Food Page. Brews News is the labor of love of long-term Tokyo resident, writer, translator, beer & sake expert, and Tokyo correspondent for the Celebrator beer magazine, Bryan Harrell. Six years and 74 issues strong, the newsletter has long been about the only source of English information about craft beer in Japan. It has been responsible for promoting and educating foreigners in Japan about Japanese craft beer and keeping us informed of upcoming events through Bryan's many contacts with the craft brewing and retailing industries.

The existence of BEERS, and now perhaps this blog, has added to the sources of information about craft beer in Japan. But in no way do these alternative sources compete; I intend that this blog will be complemetary to Brews News, and in fact hope that Bryan and others will join as guest or regular co-bloggers from time to time. This blog is more a personal view of the Japanese craft beer world and my/our interactions with it. Do check out Brews News and find the link to subscribe to the email list so that you may receive new issues directly to your inbox prior to them hitting the web page.

BEERS

BEERS stands for "Beer Enjoyment, Education and Research Society". A rather clever acronym for a Tokyo-based English-speaking group whose mission is to promote the appreciation, knowledge and enjoyment of good beer. The group normally meets the third Tuesday of each month in good-beer bars or other convenient locations in and close to central Tokyo. Founder and dynamo behind the group is Canadian Tim Eustace. Tim maintains an email list for communicating with members. For more information or to join the list, email Tim at tokyobeers at yahoo dot co dot jp.

Upcoming events include a talk about (and sampling of) real ale by Yona Yona's creator, Toshii Ishi and a hanami party in Yoyogi park featuring home-brewed craft beer created by various BEERS members.

Kickoff post

Another day, another blogger.

Actually, I am not a new blogger as I already have a running blog and an unused marketing blog. But besides running, my other preoccupation in life is beer. I have recently started reading some other beer blogs, and I suddenly thought, hey why not a beer blog from my part of the world, Japan?

I love drinking beer, though try not to do it to excess, and I also love brewing it. But we are not talking about insipid mass-produced lagers here. We are talking flavorsome beer, craft beer, traditional beer, artisanal beer, rich hoppy ales and tangy lagers. Belgian beauties, English ales, and American experimentals. Beer with a bite. Beverages to be savoured by the fire or enjoyed with a fine meal.

Since I live in Japan, this blog is going to be mainly about the world of craft beer as viewed from the perspective of a foreigner living in Japan. I'll write about Japanese craft breweries, their brewers, and their beers. I will write about my own brewing exploits (currently on a home scale, but who knows what the future holds). I'll talk about beer events that I attend and will try to post news of other beer events that I happen to hear about. I'll also talk about the Japan craft beer industry-- trends, perspectives, comparisons with craft beer industries in other climes. And, well, just about anything else that might come along. This is a blog after all, and it is sure to evolve. It may blossom and prosper, or whither like old hops neglected on the bine. Let us see shall we? So with no further ado, on with the show...