The other day I went to the convenience store and I noticed something new among the beers. Kirin apparently released a limited edition beer called Galaxy Hop, I guess as the first stage of their attempt to go craft.
Suntory Craft Select Pale Ale
I’m happy that the major Japanese breweries are taking a hint from the ever-growing craft beer scene, and try to add styles other than the usual lager to their lineups. Asahi rolled out a pale ale that’s definitely not terrible, and Kirin announced that they’d buy Yo-Ho, the craft brewery behind the Yona Yona ale among others.
Understandably, when I saw a Suntory labeled pale ale at the nearby convenience store, I couldn’t resist picking up a can. Last words first: I shouldn’t have.
Kumano Kodo Beer
Imagine that this post is written in ojou-sama Japanese. I’m adding “desu wa” to the end of every sentence in my head anyway. If you don’t get it why, the previous sentences were not meant for you.
The 古道 (kodou) stands for “old style”, which made me cautious after my not so pleasant experiences with the Beer Hearn “old-style IPA”, but unlike that, Kumano Kodo is a brown ale, and I guess that made all the difference.
Baird Beer Wabi-Sabi Japan
The label of this beer looks just simply black at first glance, and that caught my attention. Honestly I was expecting a stout at first, but then looking closer, it did say pale ale. A pale ale with green tea and wasabi in it? Sounds like a challenge…
Oh!La!Ho Captain Crow Extra Pale Ale
You know, I’ve always felt that the name “pale ale” is misleading. Even now the first impression of the word “pale” is that it would be light, just how the mass-produced commercial lagers are watered-down versions of the real thing.
Obviously, that’s not why pale ales are called pale, and once I realized that I was quite excited to try out Oh!La!Ho’s extra pale ale.
Brewdog 5am Saint
While it’s not yet 5am (just 2), I decided to check out what Brewdog’s “hoppy red ale” is like.
Shimane Beer Hearn IPA
Shimane Beer’s got a bunch of brews worth attention out there, so I was looking forward to their classic-looking IPA.
Just another beer night
Well, not really a beer night, but still. I just happened to have two 50% coupons for Popeye in Ryogoku from the last time I went there with Quattro, and they were valid until yesterday. You can’t let such an opportunity go to waste, so after waking up past 3pm (long live sleep deprivation) and working out for a few hours at the local gym, I decided to go and use the coupons.
Minoh Beer Osaru IPA
I picked this beer for the simple reasons that it looked funky with the beer-drinking monkey on the label, and that I like to have an IPA on stock at all times (just in case).
Ginga Kogen Alt
Last week on the way home from Tsukuba I went to pick up new beer, and the shop had a ranking based on IBU. The other beer I checked recently were on that list too, so I was expecting something with a bitter punch. And since the label says “unfiltered alt”, also some thick, cloudy goodness.
