Spring 2013

Ah, Spring. Warm weather… Cherry blossoms… Which produce strains of yeast that some Japanese brewers use in specialty beers… Can’t you taste them now?

We last left off just before Snow Monkey Beer Live was gearing up for its second year. Hosted by Shiga Kogen Beer near a mountain ski resort, it was, by all accounts, another great success. Craft beer, food vendors and live music across genres–what’s not to like? Nationally-acclaimed jam band Nabowa, which performed again this year, commented, “Lots of people showed up regardless of gender, nationality, age or culture, and once almost everyone got real drunk on craft beer, the place turned into one big party. Delicious beer really does have the ability to bring people together!” Holding a festival near resort facilities makes a lot of sense to us. For a kind of summer counterpart, definitely check out Ji-BeerFest Daisen, which is held near some beautiful campgrounds by Mt. Daisen in Tottori.

In March, Kyoto’s four breweries and several other guests from the region once again hosted their Spring beer festival in the Zest Goike underground shopping arcade. Although daylight is a wonderful thing and in short supply underground, the plaza draws thousands of commuters from the adjoining subway station, exposing them to the wonders of (gasp!) Craft Beer! We applaud any event that tries to draw new drinkers into the fold and happily set up our table beside Yamaoka Liquor store, one of the organizers and owners of one of Japan’s best bottle shops.

Later that month, JBT publisher Ry Beville and senior writer Kumagai Jinya both participated as judges in The Asia Beer Cup with dozens of other beer experts from around Asia. More than a few people think competitions are shrouded in mystery and the results, questionable. Indeed, there is a shroud of mystery–this was strictly blind tasting. The judging process is rigorous, too, and seemed modeled after what Beville experienced at the World Beer Cup. But not everyone cares about competitions, so let’s get to the point: this was a great opportunity for brewers from around Asia to gather and share information. The region is quickly becoming a hotbed of craft beer activity and the rest of the world should take notice soon!

Not long thereafter, in early April, Suzuki Shinya of Bay Brewing hosted the Japan Brewers Cup & Festival at Osanbashi Hall. It was an interesting hodge-podge of an event featuring live blues music, a beer competition limited to just two categories (wheat beer & pale ale), local food vendors and, of course, craft beer from some 20+ vendors. What will Suzuki think of next? Pro-wrestling fans, stay tuned maybe?

Finally, one of Japan’s more popular craft beer and food events, Grande Biere, was held once again at the classy Tokyo Midtown. Dean & Deluca catered and guests hopefully got a glimpse of what we think is going to be a bright future direction for craft beer: pairing.

There was also some overseas activity among a select group of craft breweries from Japan. The Coedo crew traveled east to San Diego where they did another collaboration brew with Ballast Point. JBT readers may remember our reporting in the last issue about Ballast Point coming to Coedo last year to brew the West Meets East collaboration brew. Guess what this beer is going to be called? Yep, East Meets West.

Coedo and Baird also participated in Hong Kong’s biggest craft beer festival in April, called Beertopia. Kagua (brewed in Belgium, imported to Japan) was served as well. 5000 people attended. Let’s hope that makes 5000 people who now want to travel to Japan to enjoy more Japanese craft! As we write, Baird is preparing to leave for the Copenhagen Beer Celebration, which features an elite list of breweries from around the world. May they be a gateway to Japan, too!

Craft Beer Boom = Publishing Boom?

If there were just one brewery in Japan, that wouldn’t be very interesting. Just one beer style? Yeah, that would get rather bland after a while. If there were just one bar, too, you might get tired of the same faces. So why should there be just one beer publication?

The Japan Beer Times is generally supportive of any publication that supports craft beer in Japan. A rising tide lifts all ships. We’re pleased to see other media organizations starting to support this industry. Transporter, a “beer web magazine” with a handful of blogs and other useful information (in Japanese), launched in April concurrently with a limited print edition (www.beertransporter.com). Meanwhile, Maek Post out of Osaka will launch “Beer Zen: a journal for craft beer” in early June. It will focus on craft beer, of course, as well as the local Kansai scene (http://beerzenjournal.com). Unknown to many, Gardner Robinson and his team at the bilingual magazine “Outdoor Japan” (www.outdoorjapan.com) have been running a regular craft beer column since 2006–thanks for carrying the torch so many years! Fujiwara Hiroyuki certainly deserves mention for running the Japan Beer Journalist Association (www.jbja.jp) website, which is rich in information (in Japanese), and we will also soon see the revival of “Beer & Pub Magazine, which he is editing again.” Finally, there are many websites and blogs out there supporting craft, but perhaps none more than Craft Beer Tokyo (http://craftbeer-tokyo.info). Operated by Kawano Ryo, it is admittedly Kanto-centric, but is a great guide to the area.

Speaking of publishing (cut the lights, raise the curtains)… In early June, we’ll see the publication of the first comprehensive guide in English to craft beer in Japan! To be titled, “Craft Beer in Japan: the essential guide”, it’s the culmination of several years of research by Mark Meli, a professor at Kansai University. It contains basic information on all craft breweries in Japan, detailed write-ups on most, as well as a collection of highly informed essays. The book will be published in both paperback and e-reader versions, with a Japanese translation possibly coming out later in the year. We will have more detailed information about ordering and book signings soon.

This article was published in Japan Beer Times # () and is among the limited content available online. Order your copy through our online shop or download the digital version from the iTunes store to access the full contents of this issue.