I had it actually twice, once at Utsunomiya Gyoza Festival and now also from a bottle that I got at a supermarket in Utsunomiya. This is a special brew for local prefectural government and they advertise it as a beer that is using only locally Tochigi-produced malts - actually quite rare for Japan, most brewers are importing their malts. Pours golden amber, quite clear and with a small white top that is gone soon. Aroma is sweet and malty. Taste is nicely full and round. Some fruits, some candy, sweet - and you can also feel that 7% of alcohol warming your palate. Aftertaste lightly bitter, long and pleasant. I quite like this beer actually, more than I expected to. There is malt softness in the mouthfeel, with some alcohol and hop spikes coming through and biting your tongue. Would like to have it again.

Draft - Vintage 2006 - Vinous and strawberry. Clear dark caramel with no head. Strawberry and fruity port notes. Fig is my big impression. No alcohol at all and a bit jammy for me.

Draft @ Utsunomiya Gyoza Matsuri. Seems to be made specially for this festival to complement Japanese dumplings that other vendors are offering. Looks nice dark brown, no head. Aroma has coffee, honey, Latvian beer, something artificial. Tastes like a low quality coffee or a coffee which was brewed with old and stale coffee beans. First taste feels somehow familiar but I this familiarity is not coming from beer. More like this bitterness you get from some parts of grilled sazae (sea snail). Maybe this is too light in alcohol to make a good coffee beer? Aftertaste is the best part of this experience, slightly bitter with nice coffee flavours. I guess this was experimental brew, so at the end no reason to be fussy about it.

330 ml bottle from a supermarket in Utsunomiya. Pours goldern clear with a white, quickly dissipating head. Aroma has some fresh herbal hop character but as I sniff longer, alcohol comes through. Right, the percentage should be 7,5%. Some bread and muesli. Taste comes in smooth and starts to build up. Somehow there is not malt character and hop bitterness feels somewhat robust, lacking elegance. Some fruity sweetness, peaches, is shining through that bitter wall for a second. Aftertaste is just some dry bitterness. Overall OK but could be further polished to be better,

Draft @Utsunomiya Gyoza Matsuri. Looks nice clean copper, maybe some red notes. Aroma not so strong but maybe because its still pretty cold (straight from tap). It’s possible to find some cookie sweetness, some mango from the aroma also. Taste is bitter, which is not surprising for an IPA. However, this one leaves a bit rough and unbalanced impression. It’s hoppy for sure but lacks complexity. It seems to be overhopped, so that the bitterness becomes a bit too overwhelming, shadowing all the taste that could have been there before. When beer gets warmer, aroma gets nicer as well, nicely fruity, although still simple. overall, not bad, I like it but not too much.

0,33 l bottle brought to me as a souvenir from Kinugawa Onsen. According to online search, this is a pretty new beer (from 2013) where they are using some mineral rich water from Kinugawa and also 20% of malt and some hops are self-grown. Pours very light copper, almost with no head. Smells alcohol (it does have 7% ABV), also something sweet, fruit cookie. Taste is quite malty, some alcohol and minerals. Aftertaste short, not many hops here. Overall, it feels like a strong lager that still has some potential for improvement. Still a surprise as it is definitely more interesting as your average Japanese souvenir beer.

Tap at Craft Beer Market Jimbocho, Tokyo. Red colour with no head. Sweet honey, fruit, plum, berry aroma. Sweet berry, strawberry, lingonberry flavour.

dark brown color. Malty banana and chocolate character with a touch of molasses. Full bodied malty, with lots of chocolate malt only slightly estery . Dry chocolates finish. Nice

Full bodied, decent chocolatey character, malty. A touch sweet, but never cloying. Not my favorite style, but decently executed.

Draught at Tokyo Dome “Furusato Matsuri.” Roasty, creamy chocolate nose. Sweet and creamy yet nicely balanced by roasted malt. Dark chocolate, café au lait notes. A bit simple but good. I’ll label it a Foreign stout even though they described it as “Imperial.” Generally the Japanese “Imperial Stout” is a foreign export…