Hop Kotan Brewing

Microbrewery in Sorachi, Hokkaido, Japan 🇯🇵
Associated with 2 Venues

Established in 2017

Contact
上富良野町西8線北33号, Sorachi, Japan
Description
北海道の真ん中、美しい景色で知られる富良野・美瑛エリア。
その一部をなす上富良野(かみふらの)は、
道内で唯一、ホップが商用栽培されている町です。
そして私たちブルワーにとって、希少な地のホップを使って
ビールを醸すことは、この上ない幸せでもあります。

ホップづくりのプロと語らいながら、生きたホップとふれあい、
ビールづくりのプロとして、さらなるおいしさを追究したい。
ここでなら、それができる。だから私たちは、ここに集いました。

立ち上げたブルワリーの名は、忽布古丹(ホップコタン)醸造。
コタンとは、村や集落を意味するアイヌの言葉で、
まさに北海道のホップ集落=上富良野のことを指す名称です。
この国がもっとビールを楽しめる国になることを願い、
コタンから多種多様なおいしいビールを全国にお届けします。

ホップに囲まれ、幸せいっぱいの私たちは、FULL OF HOPPINESS!
このホピネスが、お飲みいただくみなさまにも伝わりますように。
数年先には、すべて地のホップを使うブルワリーをめざして。
そしていずれは地の大麦・小麦も…。
農作物のように成長する忽布古丹にご期待ください!

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Partial translation:

The name of the brewery that was launched is Hop Kotan Brewing. Kotan is an Ainu word meaning a village. It is a name that refers to the hop village of Kamifurano on Hokkaido.

I hope this country will become a country where you can enjoy more beer. We deliver a wide variety of delicious beers nationwide from Kotan.

Surrounded by hops, we are full of happiness, FULL OF HOPPINESS! I hope this happiness will be conveyed to everyone who drinks it. A few years from now, aiming for a brewery that uses all the hops of the earth. And eventually, the local barley and wheat.

     Show


6.9
Appearance - 7 | Aroma - 7 | Flavor - 6.5 | Texture - 7 | Overall - 7

On tap at Beer Rize
Pours slightly cloudy yellow with a small white head, good lacing. Grainy, dough, mild spicy.
Nice

Tried from Draft at Beer Rize on 31 Dec 2025 at 12:59


7.5
Appearance - 7 | Aroma - 7.5 | Flavor - 7.5 | Texture - 8 | Overall - 7.5

Hop Kotan Malty na Kimochi
5% 40 IBU

It is a lovely russet brown with thick foam and a malty peppery and caramel aroma. Medium bodied and it’s got a smooth mouthfeel. The taste is malty but the piney hops balance it out well.

Tried on 03 Sep 2025 at 06:37


7.4
Appearance - 6 | Aroma - 7 | Flavor - 8 | Texture - 8 | Overall - 7.5

Tap in Sapporo. They call it a "light dunkel." Bright copper color, clear, with a low head. Estery malt nose, stone fruit, some caramel, wheat bread and toast. Crisp and toasty, slightly nutty, with bread, caramel, peaches and apricots. Very tasty.

Tried on 20 Aug 2025 at 09:10


6.6
Appearance - 6 | Aroma - 7 | Flavor - 7 | Texture - 6 | Overall - 6.5

Tap in Sapporo. Lots of lemon and lime in the nose with spicy Belgian yeast notes. Malt is one the heavy side, but the citrus dominates. Notes of black pepper. Not bad, but a bit muddled.

Tried on 20 Aug 2025 at 09:06


7.1
Appearance - 8 | Aroma - 7 | Flavor - 6.5 | Texture - 8 | Overall - 7

Tap in Sapporo. Bright, clear, golden color with a low head. Big fruity hos in the nose, some white grape, orange, mango. Very fruity flavor, with some grape juicy-like notes, coming from the fermentation, kind of off-putting as in a brut IPA. Nice bitterness. Tasty but would prefer a regular lager fermentation.

Tried on 20 Aug 2025 at 09:02


7.1
Appearance - 6 | Aroma - 7 | Flavor - 7 | Texture - 8 | Overall - 7.5

Tap at the Sapporo Tap Room. Dark brown to almost black. Toasty, roasty nose with dark chocolate, some soy sauce. Rich malt flavor, light coffee and some cola with dark chocolate notes. Well done.

Tried on 20 Aug 2025 at 08:59


7.9
Appearance - 8 | Aroma - 8 | Flavor - 8 | Texture - 8 | Overall - 7.5

Bottle at Malt Heads. Deep amber to light brown, low head. Rich malty nose, wheat bread, light caramel, hints of chocolate. Rich and malty but not very sweet. Well attenuated, full body, spicy UK hops, slightly bitter finish. Excellently done.

Tried on 20 Aug 2025 at 08:19


6.4
Appearance - 7 | Aroma - 7 | Flavor - 6 | Texture - 6 | Overall - 6

Tap in Sapporo. Purple to pink color with lace. Nice nose or blackberry and lime. Flavor is very tart and also very dry, with almost no residual sugar. I like sour sours, but this needs just a little more sweetness to bring out the flavors.

Tried on 06 Aug 2025 at 00:13


7.5
Appearance - 8 | Aroma - 7 | Flavor - 7 | Texture - 8 | Overall - 8

Tap in Sapporo tap room. Clear, brilliant gold with a medium head. Bright noble hop nose. Clean bready malt. Crisp palate, bright hops, clean bitterness, rich but not heavy malt. Basically what I want in a daily pilsner.

Tried on 06 Aug 2025 at 00:06


8
Appearance - 8 | Aroma - 7.5 | Flavor - 8 | Texture - 8 | Overall - 8.5

Tap at their Sapporo tap room. Rich malt, light smoke, bread. Floral and fruity hop nose. Crisp and dry flavors with light smoke. The smoke and the hops will work really well in this, and the Sorachi Ace is really skillfully employed. Light lemon and oak notes. A great one.

Tried on 05 Aug 2025 at 12:25