Kyotolefty (15912) reviewed Barley Fake Oak from IN International / Rokko 7 years ago
Appearance - 4 | Aroma - 5 | Flavor - 5 | Texture - 4 | Overall - 5
Tap at Kyoto Ji-Biiru Matsuri 2018. Told them they should re-consider the name. Very sweet and malty and seems only half-fermented. Check out the attenuation. Some burnt rubber phenols in the nose, light oak aroma, chocolate, caramel, esters. Very think body. This is not ready yet.
Appearance - 6 | Aroma - 7 | Flavor - 7 | Texture - 8 | Overall - 8
Tap at Kyoto Ji-Biiru Matsuri 2018. Zesty, citrus nose, grapefruit mostly, very juicy and lightly tropical. Nice hops, the malt plays backing fiddle and stays out of the way. Just a bit too bitter for the style but enjoyable.
Appearance - 6 | Aroma - 7 | Flavor - 7 | Texture - 8 | Overall - 5.5
An orange gold hazy but not particularly hazier than many regular Japanese craft beers. It has a juicy apricot stone fruit aroma. The taste is a bit earthy and rough but has tangy fruit elements and bitter putter orange peel. I wouldn’t guess it is 7.5% and as an IPA I’d say it is a success, as a NEIPA it is a poor showing. It needs to be sweeter, brighter and fruitier. It should give an overall much smoother impression.
Kyotolefty (15912) reviewed Juku from IN International / Rokko 7 years ago
Appearance - 8 | Aroma - 7 | Flavor - 6 | Texture - 8 | Overall - 7
Bottle from the brewery. Seems they are aiming for something champagne-like with this. Nose is rich and malty, biscuits, bread, light caramel, bit of spiciness from the hops and a definite aged character. Somewhat bock-like. Deep amber-orange with a lacy head and some haze. Sweet and malty, simple but rich, biscuits, touch of butter, not too much, caramel, slightly bitter finish. Not sure the category for this, but it most reminds me of a dunkler bock, although I suspect it is an ale. A bit too much roughness in the finish. Interesting, great malt show, needs a little something to distinguish it, though.
Appearance - 6 | Aroma - 7 | Flavor - 6 | Texture - 8 | Overall - 7
Bottle from the brewery. Black is the label, not the beer. Nose is sansho pepper, lemon, bready malt with light caramel notes. Pours a hazy amber-orange with a low, lacy head. Flavor is fruity and malty, caramel, bread, biscuits, lemon, and, of course, sansho. It is strong, almost dominant, but not as over-done as in many other beers it has been used in. Leaves a bit of the typical mouth-numbing prickly spiciness in the finish. Refreshing and fruity, though I cannot decide if I like the rich malt or if it gets in the way. Not enough malt and it would just be sansho, which I do not like. The caramel may be a bit much, but the maltiness seems to work. Now my mouth is numb, though, which may be a bit too much. Overall one of the better sansho showcases I have tried, not as good as Zakkoku's porter, but better than many beers where it seems to just have been thrown in.
Appearance - 8 | Aroma - 6 | Flavor - 7 | Texture - 8 | Overall - 7
Tap at Takumiya. Deep red-orange, lear. big caramel and toffee nose, some butter, pine. Prickly, peppery, caramel flavor. Fun enough, really old school. Full body, some berries and fruit and pine.
Appearance - 8 | Aroma - 6 | Flavor - 7 | Texture - 8 | Overall - 5.5
Tap at Ibaraki Bakuon. A cloudy light gold with an eggshell white head and a tart yuzu and cardboard light malt aroma. Light bodied, dry, salty, tangy citrus with distinct yuzu mostly in the finish. Alright but not sour enough for the style I'd say.
Appearance - 6 | Aroma - 7 | Flavor - 7 | Texture - 8 | Overall - 5.5
Tap at Bakuon and my 2nd beer of the day. Cloudy copper orange with a thick head and a caramel you fruity hop aroma. A bit juicy but pithy and piney as well. An alright IPA but it doesn't do it for me as a NE IPA, possibly as I had this after a coffee stout. A friend who had it as his first beer of the day thought it was ok but for me it was the most disappointing beer of the day along with Rokko's Yuzu Gose.
Kyotolefty (15912) reviewed Bay Anchor IPA from IN International / Rokko 8 years ago
Appearance - 8 | Aroma - 7 | Flavor - 5 | Texture - 6 | Overall - 7
Tap at Takumi. Nice citrus nose, lightly tropical, resinous. Bit heavy flavor and body, malty, pine, grapefruit, peaches. Very weird, dirty-ass, astringent finish ruins it.
TimE (11146) reviewed Natsu No Grafresh from IN International / Rokko 8 years ago
Appearance - 6 | Aroma - 7 | Flavor - 7 | Texture - 8 | Overall - 7.5
very very pale golden color. Very light juicy good grapefruit character, refreshing with modest tartness. Good stuff