With the busy summer season having ended, perhaps you thought you’d be able to take a break from beer activity. Maybe not. In addition to the fresh hop beers we mentioned in our earlier feature, there are quite a lot of other autumn seasonal beers. Be sure to visit your local brewery if you’ve yet…

Welcome back from hibernation. How was your winter? Did you dream of warmer weather, hanami and beer gardens? Shake off your grogginess and get ready for the great outdoors. Spring is a beautiful season in Japan and, as a beer lover, you’re usually doubly treated. Over the slower winter season, many brewers have more time…

We hope you spent the autumn season in good health and good spirits. After all the autumn beer festivals, your liver isn’t hanging on like the last leaf on a tree in winter is it? Please, drink responsibly. This could mean everyday, just not Oktoberfest amounts of it. That is our public service announcement. Now,…

A Death in the Family Oda Ryoji, a pioneering figure of Japan’s craft beer movement, passed away on August 15th after a long battle with illness. He was most widely known as the founder and chairman of the Japan Craft Beer Association (JCBA; later renamed the Craft Beer Association), which oversees beer taster and beer…

Summer is the season of travel–at least that seems to be the tradition in Japan (and many other countries). Oh yeah, and also the season of copious alcohol consumption. We think all seasons are good for imbibing, but we can’t argue with consumer data. So what happens when you cross travel and beer? No, we…