Tap at Bakuon 2018. Juicy grapefruit and orange juice, very much a NE IPA style of hopping, with the cloves and bananas of a weizenbock coming in as well. Peppery, fruity flavor, estery banana and cloves. Hides the alcohol. Tasty. Looks a bit nasty, though, and finish is just a bit rough, otherwise great.

Tap at Kyoto Ji-Biiru Matsuri 2018. Nice tropical fruit nose, orange juice, wheat. Typical NE big nose. Juicy, well done, a bit anonymous but I liked it.

Tap at Kyoto Ji-Biiru Matsuri 2018. Luscious fresh mango nose, with orange and citrus. Not sweet or sugary despite using lactose. Great balance and lovely fruit. Generally don't go for this style but enjoyed this a lot.

Tap at MARCA during their 3rd Anniversary weekend.It's a nice glowing gold color with a great fruity hop bouquet. The taste gives me a somewhat abrasively astringeant feel (the crush was too fine perhaps?) with wheat and hops but overall a decent enough tipple. Apparently, made with NZ hops.

As I was at Marca when it was their 3rd Anniversary I figured I'd go for their Tripel IPA. A Belgian tripel hopped with Nelson Sauvin. Glowing orange gold with a fruity stone fruit aroma. The taste on the viscous full body is full on peaches and stone fruit. A bit boozy but fairly smooth for a 10% beer (looks like the ABV has been bumped up), more tripel than ipa but good.

Tap at Takumiya. Cloudy bright gold with a low, lacy head. Lemony, grainy, buckwheat is subtle but clean. Rich, grainy, buckwheat flavor, biscuits like butter, spicy interesting. The buckwheat flavor really comes out very nicely. Well done beer.

On tap at the brewery as Marca Rye IPA 5.5% 45 IBU

A semi-opaque gold with a fruity hop bouquet. The taste is earthy spicy rye with some coconut/vanilla notes. Interesting medium bodied brew.

Tap at iBREW Shinbashi. Nice orange pour, lightly cloudy with some white foam on top. Aroma is sweet, fruity - ripe yellow plum, some pears and persimmons. Pineapple and papaya. Taste has good grassy bitterness but also quite a lot of fresh tropical fruits, sweet but only this fruity sweetness that gives way to dry aftertaste, little bit rough maybe but fitting to overall image of this beer. Very likeable brew and I think I am drinking this really fresh. Tasty.

Tap at Marca. Nose is lemon, herbs, light lactose possibly. Hazy gold with thick lace. Lemon grass mostly in the flavor, lemon, plain and simple, probably not a kettle sour but a fruit and herb beer.