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

Deep amber color. Lots of smoked bacon a dna cheese. Medium full bodied with great depth but modest hop bitterness that I would have liked a bit stronger. This is very malt forward. Still very good .

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

Bottle from the supermarket. Surprised to find a new Otaru beer here in Kyoto! Bready malt nose, biscuit and honey, herbal hops. Toast, light nut, tiny caramel. Clear deep gold inching towards amber, with a full, thick head. Lovely. rich malt flavor, not sweet, bready, slightly yeasty. Very light hops. Soft carbonation (they say it is natural carbonation). Slightly doughy, with toast and a touch of caramel, probably Munich malt. Quite nice, supremely quaffable. Kind of reminds me of typical Bavarian Lager bier or Export. Definitely not a pils. Bitterness is light to medium, just enough to balance.

The smoke is strong! Little bit of sweetness too. The next night the smoke isn’t strong. Lovely rounded richness with the smoke balanced against the malty sweetness. Great stuff!

Appearance - 6 | Aroma - 6 | Flavor - 7 | Texture - 8 | Overall - 6.5

(Bottle) Pours clear golden with big white head. Subtle aroma of citrus, malt and grass. Medium body with plenty of soft carbonation. Good taste. Nice pilsener bitterness. Some subtle biscuit malt. Very nice.

Malty. Hint of sweetness. Alright. Easy drinking.

Nice stuff. Decent roast but not full on. Not so much of the soy sauce. Touch of creaminess and a bit of chocolate.

Full on weizen taste but not so much banana but it’s there. Something else fruity too. Feels full on in the mouth too.

Appearance - 10 | Aroma - 7 | Flavor - 7 | Texture - 8 | Overall - 6

Otaru Schwartz 5% Nice looking brew with deep cola black and a thick rocky beige head. Aniseed, black licorice, chocolate syrup in the aroma. Medium bodied with a thick bitter chocolate paste flavor with roasty elements. Solid but not the flavor profile for me.

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

Bottle, mail order from the brewery, since the re-emergence of the covid threat cancelled my plans to visit them this week. Shiny black with a big, bubbly, pretty tan head. Nose is roasted malt, dark chocolate and a bit of coffee, a touch of licorice, a hint of vanilla. Some fruitiness too. Great nose. Flavor is dry, roasty, 80% cacao chocolate cafe au lait. burnt woody notes, light fruitiness, like plums or figs. Finish is dry, roasty, some licorice and coffee. Excellent Schwarzbier, really. Dry and crisp and leaves you wanting another gulp.

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

I haven’t had an Otaru Pilsner since I was at their taproom in Hokkaido years ago: Otaru Pilsner 5% Rich golden orange in color with a honey bready aroma with a soft herbal hop bitterness. Quite full bodied and the taste is the same with sweet honeyed malt then a crisp semi-spicy herbal finish. I prefer the Helles but this is nice too.