# Japan Craft Breweries



## Swinging Beef (8/5/09)

There seems to be heaps in Tokyo and surrounds alone!
There was me worried I'd only be drinking Sapporo out of vending machine cans.

Has anyone been to Tokyo on a beer mission?
I'm headed there in September.
Any advice? 

I found this link already


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## Snow (8/5/09)

Take loooooots of money if you plan to drink in pubs in Tokyo. Bottles from supermarkets are pretty cheap.

Cheers - Snow


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## Adamt (8/5/09)

Search for AHB posts by "Steve Lacey" and "just-cj", they reside in Japan and are pretty cluey on the good places to visit, I've seen them recommend places a few times so the posts should be on here somewhere.


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## Mitchell (8/5/09)

I was over there for 6 days about a month ago. I picked up a flu unfortunately so didn't get as much beer in as I'd like. Top spot all the same. For what it's worth my beer experience amounted to:

Most restaurants I went to (even tiny mom and pop places) have beer on tap served from kegs with little cold boxes. This seemed to be fairly run of the mill stuff but was largely unoffensive. My Japanese is pretty non-existent but I think I number of pints of Sapporo Highland Premium... or something like that. Don't seem to be able to find the beer on the net.

I had a Tokyo Ale on tap at Super-Deluxe in Roppongi. Pretty good drop but didn't run into much of it elsewhere.

I checked out the TY Harbour Brewery as it was listed online as a good micro brew spot. I had a tasting board and wasn't that impressed. Something very odd going on with the APA hops when I was there. The fact that the bar was empty and the restaurant was full should have been my first clue. 

I meant to check out the Baird Beer tap house near the fish markets as I had heard good things, but never made it. Let me know if you check it out.

The good news is that the Japanese love to drink and there are apparently plenty of micro brews around if you know where to look. You're on the right track doing some research before you go. Hopefully other folks here will have more useful pointers.


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## Jez (8/5/09)

you'll find a lot of the American stuff over there too - most of the Stone Brewing range and Russian River's Pliny the Elder just to name a few.

I wish a few bottles would find their way from there down to Oz  

Jez


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## Curry (8/5/09)

I've not been to this one yet, but it did look interesting

www.40beersontap.com


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## Swinging Beef (11/5/09)

Hmm.. sounds pretttty nice, already.
American beers and cheap stuff in supermarkets.


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## Aaron (11/5/09)

Curry said:


> I've not been to this one yet, but it did look interesting
> 
> www.40beersontap.com


I was in Tokyo in late 2007. That bar is fantastic. Great beer and great people running it. I think they have 60 beers on tap now. When I was there they had tons of Japanese micros and some Rouge beers available too.

Don't miss this place, it truly is fantastic. Take some beer merchandise from Australia and you can probably trade for some of theirs. The locals are great too. I had many beers bought for me.

I can't speak for any other venues but you should not miss Popeye.


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## flattop (11/5/09)

I drank mostly Kirrin and Asahi from vending machines when i was there, the beers were good but... STAY AWAY FROM RED WINE FROM VENDING MACHINES


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## caleb (11/5/09)

I never saw any craft breweries in Japan, but I will say that beer is literally EVERYWHERE and nothing beats being able to buy a beer from a stand on the train station and drink it LEGALLY on the train on the way home.

Also, as mentioned, almost every restaurant or cafe has draft beer on tap.

However, most are basic lagers- well made mind you and the fresh beer on tap in Japan is MUCH better than the same brand available in bottles/cans over here.

Some to look out for are things like Yebusi Malts and Suntory Malts which are all-malt premium beers. Yebusi also had something out called "The Hop" which was pretty good.

A lot of breweries put out seasonal specials, like autumn and winter specials which are worth sampling. Keep an eye out for them.

One warning is that there are three "types" of beers in Japan, brought about by tax laws... Type 1 will be the standard beer, either all malt or small amount of ajuncts. Type 2 and 3 are progressively more adjuncts (I believe) which somehow avoids tax and results in much cheaper (but somewhat watery) beers. A typical 375 ml can for around 120-140 yen will be a type 3, around 160-180 is probably type 2, while around 200 yen is normal type 1 beer, which premium all malt beers being around 220 yen. (from memory)


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## Adamt (11/5/09)

Yep, those high-adjunct beers are called "Happoshu", made because beer is taxed more than other alcohols... and the taxing is higher based on malt content, I think common happoshu is around 10-20% malt.

This probably explains more: Wikipedia:Happoshu


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## cj in j (11/8/09)

Sorry for digging up an old thread, but I've been busy the past few months -- 1 April I started a new job as lead brewer for Baird Brewing Co here in Japan. I'm down in Numazu, Shizuoka (just had a major 6.5 earthquake today) at our brewery, but we have two pub restaurants in Tokyo that might be worth checking out. One is in Nakameguro (called Nakameguro Taproom) -- it's on the map linked above. There are ~30 taps there plus three handpumps, although there's usually only two handpump beers on at any time. Our other pub is in Harajuku and just opened last weekend (also on the link above). Those two only serve our beer, but we put out nine regular beers and countless seasonals, so you should be able to find something you like.

Besides that, some of my favorite places in Tokyo are Popeye, The Aldgate, Ushitora -- all worth checking out, especially Popeye if you have limited time. There are also a bunch of places in Yokohama that I haven't personally been to, but everybody raves about them -- especially Thrash Zone and Craft Beer Bar. There are more, but those are the places I'm familiar with.

One correction of some information above -- Baird's Fishmarket Taproom isn't in Tokyo, it's in front of the Fishmarket in our home base of Numazu, Shizuoka, about 1.5 hours from Tokyo to the southwest. If any of you do make the trip down here, please let me know -- I'll meet up with you at Fishmarket Taproom, give you a brewery tour if you're into that kind of thing, and maybe even buy you a pint.

Chris, Lead Brewer, Baird Brewing


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## sinkas (11/8/09)

good to hear of you CJ, I have always enjoyed your input here and the green board.

did the earthquake give you a stuck sparge?


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## JonnyAnchovy (11/8/09)

sinkas said:


> green board.



? am I missing out on another brewing forum?


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## cj in j (11/8/09)

sinkas said:


> good to hear of you CJ, I have always enjoyed your input here and the green board.
> 
> did the earthquake give you a stuck sparge?


No stuck sparge today -- no damage at the brewery either, although our restaurant did suffer from four broken bottles of beer (out of several hundred that are stored there). I'll try to stop by more often now that I'm used to my new job and have a little time to relax most nights.


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## Doc (11/8/09)

Great to see you online again CJ.
Saw your posts on the green board when you started there.
Sounded like a pretty full on start (long days etc).
I hope it is more rewarding than teaching 

Any new hop monsters to share ?

Beers,
Doc


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## Doc (11/8/09)

JonnyAnchovy said:


> ? am I missing out on another brewing forum?



Hey Jonny. Brewboard also know as the Green board.

Doc


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## JonnyAnchovy (11/8/09)

Doc said:


> Hey Jonny. Brewboard also know as the Green board.
> 
> Doc



thanks Doc - there goes a few more weeks each year to lost productivity.


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## Steve Lacey (12/8/09)

Nothing much to add that hasn't been covered, but just chipping in to say that I too have been a bit busy and distracted and only just discovered this thread.

If you let us know with some advance notice of your travel plans/schedule we may be able to organize something. But the pubs CJ mentioned are definitely the best: Popeye, Harajuku Taproom (my new local :wub: ), Aldgate, Ushitora and the Yokohama ones. There are also a bunch of Belgian bars if you are into them (and have a big expense account, though make no mistake, all beer in bars here is expensive).

If you really want to chase the American imports, check out Bulldog in Ginza/Yurakucho (Green Flash IPA, Speakeasy Double Daddy :wub: ) or Thrash Zone in Yokohama. -- all these places are on Chuwy's map linked in the post above, and do not forget to check out Chuwy's blog either, and if you ever encounter him, do indeed buy him a beer for all the work he puts into maintaining that blog and web site. His other blog is more entertaining, but also has useful information (e.g. his review of the Harajuku Taproom opening).

And yes, we all hate CJ now for getting his one-in-a-zillion job. But it has also been quite a windfall for the local home brewing community because he has down-sized his brewing equipment and furnished about 15 new brewers with fantastic brew bling in the process :lol:


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## Swinging Beef (12/8/09)

Awesome recent responses, guys.
I will be flying out in three weeks, and now Im as keen as mustard to hit the places you mentioned.
Will even try to take you up on the brewery tour if we can fit it in to our very short stay.

Chris, is Numazu, Shizuoka, accessible by public transport from Tokyo?
Darren


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## Steve Lacey (12/8/09)

Darren, Chris has probably got his head stuck in a mash tun, so I'll answer. Yes, you can easily get there by train. Either Shinkansen (bullet train) from Tokyo (or Shinagawa or Yokohama) to Mishima then switch to a local Tokaido line for a couple of stops to Numazu (1 hr/~$50), or Tokaido line all the way (same route, but stops at more stations, 2.5 hrs/$30). Then from the station (see the Baird web site) you have a choice of shank's pony (20 min), bus (once or twice an hour) or taxi (maybe $10).

A very important resource for travel planning by train in Japan is this one: http://www.hyperdia.com/cgi-english/hyperWeb.cgi ... just type in Shinagawa and Numazu as an example to see how it works.

Do you plan on being on JR train passes? That would certainly make it easier.


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## Swinging Beef (12/8/09)

Steve Lacey said:


> Darren, Chris has probably got his head stuck in a mash tun, so I'll answer. Yes, you can easily get there by train. Either Shinkansen (bullet train) from Tokyo (or Shinagawa or Yokohama) to Mishima then switch to a local Tokaido line for a couple of stops to Numazu (1 hr/~$50), or Tokaido line all the way (same route, but stops at more stations, 2.5 hrs/$30). Then from the station (see the Baird web site) you have a choice of shank's pony (20 min), bus (once or twice an hour) or taxi (maybe $10).
> 
> A very important resource for travel planning by train in Japan is this one: http://www.hyperdia.com/cgi-english/hyperWeb.cgi ... just type in Shinagawa and Numazu as an example to see how it works.
> 
> Do you plan on being on JR train passes? That would certainly make it easier.


Mate, this is our first trip to Japan, so any local advice on getting around would be awesome.
\Sounds very do-able.


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## HarryB (12/8/09)

Hey! Great to know an AHBer is at Bairds. I've called in there a couple of times in my travels to Japan - great spot on the water and I've always enjoyed their brews.

I'm going over again in a couple of weeks - not sure if I'll be able to make it to Numazu this time but if I do I'll be sure to call in and say g'day.


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## Steve Lacey (12/8/09)

Swinging Beef said:


> Mate, this is our first trip to Japan, so any local advice on getting around would be awesome.
> \Sounds very do-able.



OK, well, it depends what you are actually planning to do or have already arranged regarding places to go and how to go there. If you want to shoot me a PM about what you have already got planned and things that are still open or you have questions about, I'll do my best to give you some advice. The first of which would be that if you are just planning to see as much as you can in 6 days, then you really have to get a rail pass (and you have to get it before you leave Australia, ask your travel agent), but if you are just planning to stay put in Tokyo for a week, then there may be better strategies.


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## cj in j (12/8/09)

Steve Lacey said:


> Darren, Chris has probably got his head stuck in a mash tun,


I only _*wish*_ I had gotten my head stuck in a mash tun -- that might have actually been fun. Instead I was the lone brewer working today -- packaged our yearly wheat wine. 35 kegs (all filled one-by-one-by-hand) and 650+ bottles (633 ml) on our two-head filler, which is only one step up from a homebrew counter-pressure filler. We also krausened the wheat wine, which means I had to take some fermenting beer from yesterday's brew and inject it inline while the wheat wine was being transferred to the packaging tank. Sigh -- these 11-hour days are going to kill me!

But, when people come and visit and we drink some beers together, it makes it all worth while. :beerbang:


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## jonno79 (18/8/09)

You might want to check out this page by my good friend Homebrew Japan in addition to steve's recommendations

http://beerinjapan.com/bij/

It's still in it's infancy, but he and Chuwy are doing good things to promote Ji Biiru. Tell 'em I sent ya :beerbang:


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## Swinging Beef (11/9/09)

Got back in one sweaty, tired but happy piece.
Thanks heaps and heaps and heaps and heaps and heaps and heaps and heaps and heaps and heaps and heaps and heaps and heaps and HEAPS to Chris and Steve for all their help and care.

Bairds makes some wild arsed hoppy beers for sure, and once I catch my breath, I will post a full review.


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## Kieren (1/2/10)

Swinging Beef said:


> Got back in one sweaty, tired but happy piece.
> Thanks heaps and heaps and heaps and heaps and heaps and heaps and heaps and heaps and heaps and heaps and heaps and heaps and HEAPS to Chris and Steve for all their help and care.
> 
> Bairds makes some wild arsed hoppy beers for sure, and once I catch my breath, I will post a full review.



Resurrecting old thread here.

So I take it the trip down to Numazu was worth it? How were the beers Swinging Beef?

I will be in Japan in May this year and was looking for a couple micros/brew pubs to check out.

Cheers

Kieren


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## Curry (28/6/10)

Managed to finally get down to Popeye  in Tokyo and I can definately recommend it. The beers were great and staff were very helpful not to mention the other punters were great as well. 

I took the beer menu of the day to give you indication of what is available on tap.

Front Page

Back Page


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## Bribie G (28/6/10)

Man, gotta get a skinfull of that HitachinoNEST NIPPONIA :drinks: 

Interesting to see that they appear to have real ales on the handpump 
Hey is that a new emoticon above? Can't remember seeing it before, but I've only been on here for a couple of years so early days yet.


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## Quintrex (28/6/10)

I've just returned from a work visit to Japan and managed to sneak in a couple of beer related trips in. Visited Hitachino Nest brewery, really nice people there. Managed to score a tour of the brewery and some samples from the conditioning tanks, the fresh White beer was really good. Popeye's is amazing but quite pricey, still very much worth the trip though. 70 beers on tap now + 3 casks.

I also found a little craft beer bar near where I was staying in Shinjuku, Bamboo. Awesome little basement bar which lives up to the line down the bottom of the billboard 'no charge, more hops'. And the owner is a Homebrewer as well 
Visited 2 amazing bottle shops too, Tanakaya and Osakaya. Tanakaya has a phenomenal selection of american beer stored in the fridge, while Osakaya has a fantastic selection of belgian beers.

Awesome trip, would have liked to have continued the beer exploration .

If you get the chance check out Ozeno Yukidoke's offerings. Awesome IPA and barley wine (called Heavy Heavy)

Q


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