Mount Mukabaki in Miyazaki prefecture is home to the Mukabaki Waterfall, one of Japan’s “best 100,” and halfway up that same mountain is a brewery whose name is gaining attention nationwide: Hideji Beer.

The Hideji Beer brand launched in 1996 under parent company Nishida, a wholesaler of petroleum products (of all things) and includes the brewery, an attached restaurant and another directly operated restaurant in the center of Nobeoka City. The president at the time of its founding was Nishida Hideji—hence the name. The beers were originally formulated by a Czech brewer invited to kickstart operations, but after he went home—as so many overseas brewers did in those early years—one of the Japanese staff who worked with him at the time became brewmaster.

The current brewmaster, Katakabe Tomoyuki, joined Nishida in 2001, but was in charge of business operations until 2005. His original motivation for joining was not beer, actually, but Nagano Tokihiko, who had been his supervisor at a previous part-time job and who had assumed responsibility of business operations at Hideji—Nagano is now the president. When Katakabe accepted Nagano’s invitation to join, he had never heard of Hideji Beer, much less drunk it.

As the business point-person, Katakabe sold beer to retailers and department stores—and at events as well—but always wondered if they couldn’t make it better. When the brewmaster retired in 2005, he took over the post with that aim.

Around the same time Katakabe was thinking the beers needed improvement, other staff on the business side began to realize the same weakness. When they asked customers of their opinions at the beer pub, some informed them of prominent off-flavors in the beer. In June of 2006, Katakabe began consulting with Fujiki Tatsuo, who had previously brewed the Waoh brand beer in Nara prefecture, about improving their quality.

For roughly three months, Fujiki visited the brewery on weekends, troubleshooting their process. One thing he identified was a piping issue affecting their mashing, ultimately concluding, “You have a clear choice right now: leave it and go under or fix it and survive.” The estimate to repair it came in at ¥15 million (about US$150,000). Nagano convinced his boss at the time and they thankfully made the decision to survive.

The repair work started with taking everything apart. After cleaning every piece, they then reassembled the brewery. From this experience, Katakabe finally got a mental picture of how, exactly, a brewery was all connected. At the same time, they introduced a lab to their facility for cultivating yeast. Thereafter, they propagated fresh yeast for each batch and the quality ultimately improved.

Recalling a moment of surprise during that period, Katakabe comments, “Before then, fermentation wouldn’t begin until two or three days after pitching the yeast, but once we started using fresh yeast, we’d achieve rather vigorous fermentation the very next day, even without having changed the recipe.” Experiencing first-hand how much of a difference sanitation makes in providing an atmosphere for fresh, healthy yeast, Katakabe began thoroughly cleaning the tanks, even disassembling parts of them for that purpose, after each use.

The first beers produced after that thorough scrubbing and their use of fresh yeast came in 2007. Shortly thereafter, the International Quality and Taste Institute in Brussels awarded them with a “Superior Taste Award.” Two years later, at the Asian Beer Cup and International Beer Cup (CBA-sponsored), they won gold in the competitive German Pilsner category for their Taiyô Lager. Mogura, in the American Pale Ale category, was also recognized with a bronze.
During the turnaround in Hideji Beer’s brand, their pilsner in particular became a popular brew, and with local media giving them some additional props, other beers began to garner attention as well. While the brewery had been naming its beers after animals, they decided to retire that custom. They folded their Bohemenian pilsner, called Kitsune (fox), into their Taiyô Lager; Mogura (mole) changed to Shinkan (silent) Pale Ale; Inoshishi (wild boar) to Hana (flower) White Weiss; Musasabi (flying squirrel) to Tsuki (moon) Dark Lager—moves they enacted so that people could understand the beer styles by the brand name.

In 2009, Hideji Beer acquired a “happoshu” license, enabling them to make “beer with additives.” Their aim was to begin brewing beer using some of the delicious fruit grown in Miyazaki prefecture. One of the more interesting brews that emerged from this is their Mango Lager. Using rind from locally grown mango during fermentation, they then added lager yeast for the secondary fermentation. That fruity aroma so characteristic of a pilsner combined with the natural aroma of the mango resulted in an intriguing harmony. Additionally, they brewed lagers with sweet potato, cherry tomato, kumquat and hyuganatsu (a kind of citrus similar to pomelo or yuzu). If anything, Hideji Beer’s claim to originality is not in its ales with their well-balanced fruitiness, but in its fruit lagers.

Hideji Beer’s standard brews are quite compelling, too. In more recent competitions, the Taiyô Lager has won in the Kellerbier category, owing in part to the unfiltered, fresh yeast aroma. Assertions that this beer’s aroma is too yeasty and out-of-category just don’t hold water. Hana no White Weiss is actually a Belgian white that uses weizen yeast. As the name implies, the beer presents a fruitiness that blooms like a sweet-smelling flower. The aroma is prominent though the body is not nearly as flavorful as a weizen and thus goes down quickly. Their limited-edition Ginger Honey Ale is certainly “ginger-forward” in taste, but bitterness from the ginger and hop balance well with the sweetness for a decent beer. Drink it with meat or fish dishes and it helps counter fattiness and sharp aroma.

In addition to brewmaster Katakabe, the current team includes Kajikawa Satoshi, who traveled the distance with Katakabe after joining in 2006, and two new members that joined in February, 2014, Wanikawa Takashi and Mori Shota. Having a four-man unit has enabled Hideji Beer to devote even more time to quality management, not to mention brewing research. We look forward to their developing even more original brews like the Mango Lager and Hana no White Weiss.

The best place to drink Hideji Beer is its attached restaurant. Biagura Hideji opened in 2009 and, the following year, the brewery enlarged its footprint with Bar Himuka in Nobeoka City. Then in 2011, they inaugurated the Autumn Mukabaki Festival with an array of other breweries in front of their own brewery. For quite a while, this otherwise quiet place looked like a brewpub of the busy kind you’d see in a major city.
If you are traveling to Nobeoka from outside Kyushu, the bus loop around Kyushu is convenient. At present, Nobeoka connects with Hakata and Kumamoto via expressway bus and is much easier than trains, which require a transfer. If you are visiting from Miyazaki airport, then you may also want to consider stopping off at Beer Market Base at Miyazaki Station. This bar also carries Hideji Beer with regular frequency.

Kumagai Jinya

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.