Autumn 2011
As the summer shifted to early fall, craft beer activity continued full steam. The Ichinoseki beer festival in late August hit a slight ‘bump’ as a strong aftershock on the first day shut down train lines, delaying the arrival of many a thirsty drinker. The lovely Tohoku town had even debated not having the festival in the wake of 3-11, but decided to proceed. Thank goodness they did. Turnout was great and beer lovers from all over Japan came to show support.
Hiroshima hosted its own festival again in early September as the scene in that city steadily grows. The next week, the Belgian Beer Weekend kicked off in classy form in the Roppongi Hills Arena, attracting an impressive 21,000 guests over four days. But the big Japanese craft beer event of September was the Yokohama Beer Festival hosted by JCBA. It saw nearly 10,000 attendees over the three-day weekend. Later in the season, the same organization held a craft brewers’ conference that brought overseas brewers to Tokyo to share their wisdom and knowledge.
In early October, the Japan Society in New York held a special lecture and beer tasting night. Bryan Baird commented, “It was a real pleasure to lead the first seminar and tasting focused on Japanese craft beer at the Japan Society. Two-hundred guests attended to listen to a talk on the 17-year history of the Japan craft beer market and then taste craft beers from a host of Japanese breweries, including Baird, Echigo, Isekadoya, Hitachino Nest and Coedo.” Asagiri Shigeharu, president of Coedo, remarked, “We had a fruitful time in NYC. The people were positive and friendly, and listened intently to our history before enjoying the craft beer. What pleased me most was the reputation of our Beniaka beer. Many welcome the concept of using locally grown sweet potatoes, not to mention the taste. Quite a few people told me it was their favorite beer of the night!” Nakamura Kazumasa of Echigo noted, “Just like with 3-11, Americans really showed us some love. I also finally got to meet fans of Echigo at the event. But the biggest highlight was how much fun we had with all the New Yorkers.”
Read the next issue for our rundown of the Nippon Craft Beer Festival.
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.
