The Karuizawa brewery is one of the top Japanese craft beer makers, so understandably I had quite the expectations for their alt. It didn’t let me down.
Shepherd Neame Gentleman James
Gentleman James is another one of Walmart’s order-made beers by Shepherd Neame. I was expecting a malty ale after reading the label, but it turned out a bit different.
Shepherd Neame Golden Ale
Apparently Walmart commissioned this beer from the makers of Spitfire (etc). I wish they’d instead bring back more of Spitfire…
Kohan no Mori Tenkuu
This pale lager comes from Akita, the northern tip of Honshu, the central island of the Japanese archipelago. The name of the beer means “sky, heavens”, and it’s definitely easy drinking.
Kyoto craft Heian Beer
It’s no secret that I love Kyoto. That’s why this bottle of beer caught my attention: it’s from Kyoto. A closer look would reveal that it’s “schwarz type” (sic) beer.
SanktGallen Yokohama XPA
I figured that XPA stands for Extra Pale Ale without even looking it up. I guessed it’d be a very strongly hopped IPA. I was right.
Coedo Kyara
I must admit that when it comes to Kyara, I’m as biased as biased one can get. It’s one of my favourite Japanese beers, and one of if not the first craft beer I’ve ever had.
Umenishiki Bock
I just couldn’t stay impartial with the Umenishiki Bock – I just love the label design. The choice of fonts, colors and shapes nails it.
Fujizakura Heights Rauch
This is the first time I tried a Rauch beer. I had no idea what I was getting myself into, as it didn’t occur to me to look up what Rauch meant in German (and I already forgot): smoke.
Baird Beer Shuzenji Heritage Helles
I encountered Baird Beer first at Banji Kaichou. Despite the name, it’s a Japanese brewery. I picked Shuzenji Heritage Helles because the name suggested it’s gonna be a light German beer, which most likely means lager, which most probably means I’m gonna like it.
