Draught at Castle West. Roasty smoke aroma with caramel, earthy malts. Almost no hop aroma or flavor. Flavor is dry and earthy, with warm, slightly sweet caramel notes and smoke. Roasty, very hoppy bitter finish. Smoking is light but comes out well without hop flavors to compete with. Nicely dry. Very drinkable.

Cask version at Castle West. Said to be "aged", if that be the right word, in cedar sake barrels for just 1 night! Pretty red color. Aroma of caramel, cherry, cedar, earthy hops, gumballs. Flavor is all of those plus a distinct tobacco note that was quite earthy and pleasant. Real ale version works well with smooth body. Nice stuff, definitely more interesting for the cedar.

Draught at Q-Brick. Light to medium smoked aroma with caramel, earth. Copper with a few bubbles. Roasty, butter, nice malt flavor with light fruit, good hops, and a nice, lasting bitterness. Really nice degree of smoking—subtle compared to German, for sure, but it works. Crisp and clean. Good hops.

light amber, lightly hopped, little body, simple, but certainly not bad. Moderately dry finish.

Draught at Eni-Bru. The first big bruiser to come out since Niwa left Hakusekikan and joined Iwate Kura. Almost black, completely flat with no head at all. Aroma of oak, vanilla, caramel, dried fruit, and big retronasal booze. Huge oak flavor, vanilla, big alcohol that went away through the glass. Bourbon-like, with lots of fruit, cola, coconuts, chocolate-liquor. Terribly green, though, and un-integrated. Way too alcoholic and too sweet. We shouldn’t be seeing this yet—needs a couple more years! Has potential, though.

lemon, earth, hay, smoke, floral nose. Very interesting. Body is moderately sour, body is not so balanced. Finish is dry and not so distinguished, but it’s ok. Better than I thought it would be.

Draught at Q-Brick. Reddish-brown with no head or bubbles. Aroma of fruit, gum balls, caramel, earth, and wood. Flavors included licorice, menthol, wood, bitter chocolate, and cherry. Smooth, almost flavor, lovely. No huge whiskey flavors, really, but nice light barrel qualities.

Draught at Q-Brick. This is Niwa Satoshi’s first beer at Iwate Kura after moving there from Hakusekikan. Made with some of his wild yeast. Spicy, peppery, lemon nose. Very dry flavor with lemon, wheat, spices and some funk. Very dry finish, from the yeast I suppose. Nicely smooth and interesting. Refreshing.

Draught at Q-Brick. Light blonde color with a tall, foamy head. Sweet, malty aroma, fruity. with Belgian yeast, spices, and a touch of pumpkin. Spicy, yeasty flavor, with citrus, tangy hops and a light kabocha (Japanese pumpkin) flavor. The kabocha adds to the body and flavor without taking over, making it a very nice, well-balanced, Belgian blonde.

Bottle. Honey golden color, closing in on amber, with just a touch of lace. Sweet, fruity aroma with honey and some citrus. Slightly spicy as well, with a bit of caramel. Somewhat sweet, malty flavor. Earthy malts, a touch of honey and fruit, wheat, cereal grains. Unexpected flavor for a blonde. Interesting and nice. Good bitter hop finish, though not so much hop aroma. Decently made stuff, though not really exciting. Too expensive in the bottle.