We’re well into 2017 now. It's time to take
stock of new beers brought out in 2016 by the four major breweries in Japan:
Asahi, Kirin, Sapporo, and Suntory. I'll discuss them each in a separate post.
I'll also give my rating score and the current RateBeer weighted average score
(both scores out of a possible total of 5), keeping in mind that most of the
newer brews have fewer than ten ratings.
In the two previous posts, we
looked at Asahi Breweries’ (see HERE) and Kirin Brewing Company’s (see HERE) latest
offerings. Now let's see what Sapporo Breweries came up with.
Sapporo Breweries – 25 beers
Sapporo offered seven new
beers in their premium Yebisu line:
Sapporo Yebisu #126
Premium
Lager 6.0% Rating: 3.0 RB Avg. Rating: 3.01
Can.
Small grassy hop nose, also quite malty, ripe apples, and yeast. Slightly
sourish initial, and then moves to rather high sugary sweetness, sugar
crackers, bit of citrus, and a mild sweet finish. Medium body (a bit heavy for
style). Drinkable, to be sure. But certainly too sweet. Has a kind of cheap
feeling to it.
Sapporo Yebisu Fuyu no Koku
Premium
Lager 5.5% Rating: 3.4
RB Avg. Rating: 3.09
Sweet
unusual floral nose of cherries, peach skin, grass, and what seems like a
little touch of smoke. Brilliant orange/amber color. Sweet malty initial
favors, caramel, grass, and moderate bittering in mid and final. Thin-medium
body, and quite clean. The nose is intriguing. Wondering if this is really an amber
lager.
Sapporo Yebisu Meister
Dortmunder/Helles 5.5% Rating: 3.3
RB Avg. Rating: 3.03
Somewhat
stinky nose - a bit vegetal, actually, with a bit of spice -- but kind of
happoshu-like. Medium copper/ gold color, thin head. Thick malty initial
flavor, hits of spicy hopping, then the malt reasserts itself, and it finishes
with solid bitter tracks. Medium body. I don’t really care for the nose on this
one. But it has an intriguing malt/hop interaction in the flavor.
Sapporo Yebisu The Hop 2016
Premium
Lager 5.5% Rating: 3.2
RB Avg. Rating: 3.0
Mild
sewery nose, a bit of prickly hoppiness, and a light grassy note. Pretty deep
gold straw color, thin head, some good lacing. Sweetish malty initial, fruity
with hopping, grassy in mid palate, and a rich malty finish. Thin-medium body,
well balanced. The label touts the fresh Saaz hops, but they are not very
evident in the nose.
Sapporo Yebisu Wa no Houjun
Premium
Lager 5.0% Rating: 3.1 RB Avg. Rating: 3.0
Fruity nose, with a rather rough grainy
and hoppy edge. Bright pale straw color. Solid malt/hop balance right off,
biscuity, a bit earthy, sweet, and then mildly bitter. Balanced again in
finish. Thin-medium body. Nose doesn’t offer up much; flavors are better. Not
my favorite among these new Yebisu variations.
Sapporo Yebisu Joël Robuchon
Hanayagi no Jikan (2016)
Pilsener 5.0% Rating: 3.2 RB Avg. Rating: 2.87
Gentle
fresh citrusy nose, with some light cat piss, and grass. Gold straw color, thin
white head. Generous fruity initial, which slips into slightly rude and dark
hopping, and a thin bitter finish. Thin-medium. The Nelson Sauvin hops don’t
stand out, as they definitely did in last year’s version. Pleasant enough.
Sapporo Yebisu Joël Robuchon
Yoin no Jikan (2016)
Pilsener 5.5% Rating: 3.4
RB Avg. Rating: 3.24
Grainy,
grassy, and a mild tropical note in the aroma -- quite full and deep. Bright
gold straw color. Grain and apples in the initial flavor. Rounded mild fruity
hopping in mid palate. Thins out in finish. Thin-medium body, a touch heavy for
style. Very unusual hopping for a pilsener (it did not really seem to be Mosaic
hops). Fat flavors. Nice.
Sapporo added four new beers
to their “Mugi to Hoppu” line:
Sapporo Mugi to Hoppu Aka
Fest Style
Oktoberfest/Märzen 6.0% Rating:
2.5 RB Avg. Rating: 2.81
A
sugary aroma, with toasted malt, and some chicken vegetable soup notes.
Copper/amber color. Mild roast malt initial flavor, a light touch of barley
spirits in mid palate, and a bit of gentle sweet dark fruitiness in mid and
final. Has a bit of märzen character, but it doesn’t really feel so close to the
style. Some roasty/toasty malt and the added spirits are fairly restrained and
covered up.
Sapporo Mugi to Hoppu Aki no
Kaori Mugi
Amber
Lager/Vienna 5.0% Rating: 2.4 RB Avg.
Rating: 2.46
A light
fruity nose, with a bit of caramel, and some spirits. Medium copper/amber
color. Thin dark fruit flavor, light roast malt. The mid palate features a
rather rough spike in spirits. Mild, flattish finish. Thin-medium body. Not
much of an amber or a Vienna. The added spirits are too evident here for it to
be pleasant.
Sapporo Mugi to Hoppu
Platinum Clear
Pale
Lager 5.0% Rating: 2.3 RB Avg.
Rating: 2.58
Thin
fruit/vegetable aroma, small citrus, but mostly light stinky sewer. Medium pale
straw color. Very mild malty initial, gentle and sort of sweet through mid
palate, with very low hop presence. Thin, watery body. Innocuous, mild stuff.
This series definitely has a less noticeable spirits character than the average
daisan beer or happoshu.
Sapporo Mugi To Hoppu The
gold Extra Malt
Pale
Lager 5.0% Rating: 2.4 RB Avg.
Rating: 2.64
Fruity
nose, with peaches, light stinky spirits, and some small citrus notes. Flavors
are simple, with light artificial sweeteners. Moderate hopping, which
intensifies a bit in mid palate and then trails off. Thin-medium body. Spirits
are obvious in the aroma, not so much in flavor. Tolerable, but there’s not
really much here.
Sapporo Beer Surprise Shifuku
no Nigami
Pilsener 5.0% Rating: 3.2 RB Avg. Rating: 2.96
Light
malty aroma, with moderate pleasant fruitiness, grass, and noble hops. Bright
gold straw color. Flavors of pale malt, bread, and crackers. The hops
(Hallertauer, I think) really intensify in mid palate ... almost to the point
of unpleasantness. Thin-medium body. Interesting, and very highly-hopped-up,
beer from a Japanese major.
Sapporo Lager’s High Hojun no
Nodogoshi
Pale
Lager 7.0% Rating: 2.1 RB Avg.
Rating: 2.63
Nose
of grass, stinky weeds, sewer, and small alcohol fumes. Clear gold amber color.
Thin rasty maltiness (extract?), a rude chemical-tasting mid palate with
spirits somewhat evident, and prickly light bitterness in finish. Thin-medium
body. Junk.... but just a little less junky than the other two in this “Lager’s
High” series.
Sapporo Kanpai Ale
Golden
Ale/Blond Ale 5.5% Rating: 2.9 RB Avg. Rating: 2.65
A light
sweet fruity nose, with some vegetal notes and a starchy malt powder mix.
Medium straw color, with a frothy head. Thin fruity initial, peach maybe,
starchy light sweetness in mid palate, small rough hit of bitterness in late
mid, and an innocuous mild finish. Thin-medium body, a bit thick perhaps. This
one is lightened up with the Japanese majors’ favorite combo: rice, corn, and starch.
Not too bad, though....really.
Sapporo Kuro Label Hokkaido
& Tohoku Selection
Pale
Lager 5.0% Rating: 0 RB Avg. Rating:
2.85
No
chance to rate this one
Sapporo Kuro Label The
Hokkaido
Pale
Lager 5.0% Rating: 0 RB Avg. Rating:
2.92
No
chance to rate this one
Sapporo Hokkaido Namashibori
Pale
Lager 5.5% Rating: 0 RB Avg. Rating:
2.64
No
chance to rate this one, either
Sapporo Crystal Belg
Saison 4.0% Rating:
2.6 RB Avg. Rating: 2.88
Light
citrus aroma, with (yes, and it’s unusual) strawberries, and a small bit of
spirits. Clear bright gold amber, thin filmy head. Mild indeterminate
fruitiness, spirits intrude a little in mid palate, and it floats away to
nothing. Thin-medium body. Well, what do you know?.... a "daisan
saison." I suppose it had to happen at some point.
Sapporo Classic Haru no Kaori
Pale
Lager 5.0% Rating: 0 RB Avg. Rating:
2.96
No
chance to rate this one
Sapporo Classic Natsu no
Soukai
Pale
Lager 5.5% Rating: 0 RB Avg. Rating:
2.92
No
chance to rate this one
Sapporo Draft Beer Kuro Label
Extra Brew
Pale
Lager 5.5% Rating: 3.2 RB Avg.
Rating: 2.67
A
grainy aroma, which sweetens up with light cake notes and powdered sugar. Clear
straw color. Flavors of grain, sweetish malt, very gentle hopping, and a lightly
sweet finish. Medium body, a bit thicker than typical for the style. Nice
enough. More body and flavors than most Japanese major lagers. Very drinkable.
Sapporo Kaori no Goku Zero
Pale
Lager 6.0% Rating: 2.2 RB Avg.
Rating: 2.29
Large
sugary, fruity nose, with some pineapple and apple notes, and a small bit of
spirits. Clear medium amber color. Thick fruity initial flavor, kind of like
fruit juice and light wine, which flattens out quickly. Mild alcohol warmth in
finish. Thin-medium body. Weird stuff. Not entirely unpleasant, but so
artificial in flavor.
Sapporo added three more
beers to their “Craft Label” series:
Sapporo Craft Label Hello!
Weizen
German
Kristallweizen 5.0% Rating: 2.5
RB Avg. Rating: 2.68
Light
banana nose, with a small chemical spice-like note. Medium gold straw color and
not very much head (for a weizen). Sweetish banana initial flavor, and it
becomes a bit harsh in mid palate with some unusual bittering. The harshness
continues through to the finish. Thin-medium body. Seems very thin. That mid
and final roughness doesn’t help things much. They really didn’t get this one
right. Goodbye! Weizen.
Sapporo Craft Label Kaori
Odoru Juggling IPA
India
Pale Ale (IPA) 6.0% Rating: 2.6 RB Avg.
Rating: 2.82
Nose
of caramel and mild piney hop. Reddish/amber color and a fast-failing head.
Sweet initial flavors, with artificial sweetener, cookie-ish, mild citrus. Thin-medium
body. It sort of improves through palate stages ... but it’s not really much of
an IPA. Quite weird, actually... but drinkable.
Sapporo Craft Label That’s
Hop Sorachi Ace
Golden
Ale/Blond Ale 5.5% Rating: 0 RB Avg. Rating:
3/02
No
chance to rate this one
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