Aoki Tatsuo is an icon of Japan’s young craft beer industry, a tough guy serving up tough love (and seventy drafts of beer at his famous pub Popeye in Tokyo). If you want his opinion, oh yeah, he’ll definitely give it to you. He likes to throw his weight around but at least it’s for a good cause: quality craft beer. That’s been his real mission, he says. He’s not focused on holding the title for the most taps, per se. He’s not necessarily interested in running the biggest festival at the end of the day, either. He just wants craft brewers to make the best beer they can and bars to serve the best brews.

Popeye didn’t start out with seventy taps, of course. Until 1995, when Aoki first served Echigo, it was just a typical pub looking for a way to distinguish itself from others. He decided to study beer more wholeheartedly after meeting Charlie Papazian, the great American homebrewer and president of the Brewers Association. Says Aoki, “I was amazed at how well he understood beer. And he was quick to call something out that tasted off.” Aoki then honed his tasting skills with JCBA before eventually launching his own small tasting seminars at Popeye.

Aoki was also instrumental in launching the Tokyo Real Ale festival, which grew steadily in popularity until he announced late last year that it would be folded into the big new festival being held in April in Akihabara. The Nippon Craft Beer Festival, hosted by the NPO he heads (Japan Craft Beer Support), features a well-curated list of beers consistent with Aoki’s philosophy of selection based on discriminating taste. Seem exclusive? It is. And he’s unapologetic about it.

While Aoki may be stern at times, he’s also very accommodating to anyone with questions, whether they are brewers, new bar owners or drinkers. He’s helped many bars install systems, claiming, “I simply want them to serve beer in good quality.” He adds, “Choose your tap list based on quality.” When asked about 2012, he says without hesitation, “This year is actually the advent of craft beer in Japan.” We sure hope so!

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.