New Beers from the Japanese Major Brewing Companies in 2017: Kirin / 日本の大手企業からの新しいビール 2017: キリン

We’re well into 2018 now. It's time to take stock of new beers brought out in 2017 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 these newer brews have fewer than ten ratings.

In the previous post, we looked at Asahi Breweries (HERE). Now let's see what Kirin came up with.

Kirin Brewery Company – 26 new beers in 2017

First, five new entries in the Grand Kirin series, which is usually about as adventuresome as Kirin gets (but not really so much last year):

Kirin Grand Kirin Hikoukigumo to Watashi (Cloud Saison)

Saison 5.0% / Ratebeer Avg. 2.98 / My Rating 3.1

Light fruity nose, with banana, something clove-like, gentle yeasty and estery bits. Clear amber/gold color, somewhat lasting fluffy white head. Fruity and sweet initial, thins out very quickly, and on to final bitterness. Thin body, a touch metallic (as are many of the beers in this series). A wheaty sort of saison. A bit too sweet and lacking much of the freshness of a saison.

Kirin Grand Kirin Tsuyu no Exotic Belgian Inspired

Belgian Ale / 5.5% / RateBeer Avg. 2.9 / My Rating 2.9

Fruity aroma, with bread, grain, a little citrus, and a touch of yeast. Medium-dark gold color. Gentle fruitiness, a bit of spice (which doesn’t seem like coriander). It goes somewhat harshly bitter in late mid palate. Dryish finish. Hmm... barely Belgian at all and not exactly anything exotic, really.

Kirin Grand Kirin IPA

IPA / 5.5% / RateBeer Avg. 2.94 / My Rating 2.7

Nose of light sourish fruit, vegetables, maybe cucumber or washed-out tsukemono. Copper-amber color, with a fluffy white head. Light roast malt, some caramel, gentle tongue-buzzing hops, a bit metallic in mid and final. Thin-medium body. Kind of disappointing. Not very much like an IPA (certainly not any contemporary one).

  
         

Kirin Grand Kirin Japan Pale Lager (JPL)

India Style Lager / 6.0% / RateBeer Avg. / 2.93 / My Rating 2.8

Nose of mild floral hops. Bright and shiny amber gold color. Moderate malt, concentrated fruitiness, maybe overripe kiwi. It has a metallic edge common to many beers in the Grand Kirin series. A final bit of thin bitterness. Thin-medium body. Not bad, but not a lot there. Doesn’t seem to fit any style, really.

Kirin Grand Kirin White Ale

Wheat Ale / 5.5% / RateBeer Avg. / 3.03 / My Rating 3.2

Nelson Sauvin nose, oranges, mild wheat, and yeast note. Medium pale gold color. Flavors have a lot of Nelson hops, green grapes, wheat, and gentle bitterness. Thin-medium body. Okay. But the Nelson hop character really overshadows everything else.

And one, somewhat interesting, departure from Kirin’s typical lager brews:

Kirin Kyo wa Uchi Gohan

German Hefeweizen / 5.0% / RateBeer Avg. 3.05 / My Rating 3.3

Fairly sharp fruity nose, banana and esters. Cloudy light amber/orange color, with a fluffy white head. Thin fruity initial, some citrus, and very late bitterness. Thin-medium body. Not bad. Refreshing stuff... but it falls apart slowly from mid palate.

           

           

And then, far too many of Kirin’s beer excursion, prefecture-by-prefecture, throughout Japan.

Most of these Ichiban Shibori beers are more or less indistinguishable from one another, despite the label claims that they pair well regional cuisines or somehow reflect local character. 

        

Kirin Gunma ni Kanpai Ichiban Shibori

Pale Lager / 5.5% / RateBeer Avg. 2.87 / My Rating 2.7

Gassy nose, light stone fruit, and a strange frozen fish bit, too. Medium gold color. Moderately sweet malt, very tiny touch of bitterness, which then increases slightly toward the finish. Thin-medium body. Okay.

Kirin Tochigi ni Kanpai Ichiban Shibori

Pale Lager / 5.0% / RateBeer Avg. 2.85 / My Rating 2.6Small citrusy nose, a bit sewery, some sulfur or gunpowder. Pale straw color, with good lace. Moderate fruity initial, goes fizzy and a bit harsh in mid palate, mild bittering, and a thin airy finish. Thin-medium body. Not more than marginally different (except for the nose) from the other in the series. Not terrible.

    

Kirin Kagoshima ni Kanpai Ichiban Shibori

Pale Lager / 5.5% / RateBeer Avg. 2.87 / My Rating 2.7

Light citrus nose, some stone fruit and starch. Medium gold color. Mild fruit initial, a touch of citrus, and pffft.... out it goes, like a dead volcano. Thin body, a bit watery. A very gentle version of an already light brew.

Kirin Miyazaki ni Kanpai Ichiban Shibori

Pale Lager / 5.5% / RateBeer Avg. 2.92 / My Rating 2.9

Mild fruity nose, scratchy, and a little weedy. Deep dark gold color. Light sourish fruitiness, turns sweet in mid palate, very thin bitterness. Thin-medium body. Not a lot here. All malt, and pleasant enough.    

Kirin Nara ni Kanpai Ichiban Shibori

Pale Lager / 5.5% / RateBeer Avg. 2.89 / My Rating 2.8      

Just little citrus and thin malt in the nose. Clear medium gold color. Mildly rich maltiness, watery fruit, and very gentle bittering. Thin body. It’s all malt but doesn’t really taste like it.

Kirin Okinawa ni Kanpai Ichiban Shibori

Pale Lager / 5.0% / RateBeer Avg. 2.83 / My Rating 2.5

Weedy and lightly sewery nose. Clear gold color. Fairly rich malt initial, thin grassy hops,. The hops grow rougher in mid palate and final. Thin-medium body, and something weird (like a coating of grease on the lips). All malt, but doesn’t seem that way. This one was actually made at the Fukuoka brewery.    

Kirin Saitama ni Kanpai Ichiban Shibori

Pale Lager / 5.5% / RateBeer Avg. 2.92 / My Rating 2.9

Light starchy and thinly malty nose. Medium pale gold color. Thin, mild fruity initial, good moderate bittering in mid palate, and a smooth balanced finish. All malt. Okay.

Kirin Tokyo ni Kanpai Ichiban Shibori

Pale Lager / 5.0% / RateBeer Avg. 2.83 / My Rating 3.1

Light stinky weedy nose. Clear medium gold color. Thin sweet malt flavors, a bit biscuity. Sweetness increases in mid palate. Mild bitterness in late mid palate and finish. It’s all malt.... yet doesn’t have premium lager character. No added spirits, but it tastes like it has some.

Kirin Wakayama ni Kanpai Ichiban Shibori

Pale Lager / 5.5% / RateBeer Avg. 2.98 / My Rating 3.2

Small weedy and citrusy nose. Pale gold straw color. Moderately sweet malty initial, light bittering, Balances very nicely in late mid and final. Smooth finish. Thin body, with a bit of creaminess.  All malt. One of the better ones in this series.

 
Kirin Saga ni Kampai Ichiban Shibori

Pale Lager / 5.0% / RateBeer Avg. 3 / I did not rate this one

Kirin Shimane ni Kanpai Ichiban Shibori

Pale Lager / 5.0% / RateBeer Avg. 2.87 / I did not rate this one

Kirin Ichiban Shibori Kumamoto ni Kampai
Amber Lager/Vienna / 5.% / RateBeer Avg. 2.85 / I did not rate this one

Kirin Ichiban Shibori Tottori Zukuri

Pale Lager / 5.5% / RateBeer Avg. 2.89 / I did not rate this one

Two more varieties of Ichiban Shibori:

Kirin Ichiban Shibori Natsu Saeru Hop

Premium Lager / 5.0% / RateBeer Avg. 2.89 / My Rating 3.2          

The label has a poem by Tanikawa Shuntaro:

Summer’s come jumping over the horizon
It’s here and has overwritten a painful memory
His face dazzling
A man grabs tomorrow bare handed

I wish more brewers would offer short poems on their cans and bottles.

Mildly stinky, grassy hop nose (Hersbrucker, says one blogger). Thin medium gold color. Grassy, with light mid palate malt sweetness, a thin, balanced finish. Has more or less the character of a pilsner.

Kirin Ichiban Shibori Wakaba Kaoru Hoppu

Pale Lager / 5.0% / RateBeer / Avg. 2.79 / My Rating 3

Another one with a poem by Tanikawa Shuntaro on the label:

“Flowers beneath a spread of white clouds, and over the clouds a deep sky."

These words I wrote in my youth --

don’t grow old because nature renews itself every year.

Taste the essence of spring now, for the first time in your life, 
it has come alive in you.

Here’s to your freedom, bitter delight!

Nose of sweetish pale malt, thin floral and grassy hops (Ibuki hops, which were also used in the 2016 Ichiban Shibori Toretate Hop beer). Pale straw color, filmy white head. Flavors of grain, cookie dough, and mild tangy hops. Thin body. Fairly pleasant, edging toward pils character,

           

Last, and almost least, one more in the Tanrei line:

Kirin Tanrei Green Label Kaze Soyogu Lemon Peel

Fruit Beer / 4.5% / RateBeer Avg. 2.37 / My Rating 2

Nose of light stinky weeds, citrus, and wet dog. Thin pale straw color, with fat bubbles shooting up from the bottom of the glass. Light sweetish malt, tinge of lemon. Thin body, harshly carbonated, rough on the tongue. This is junky stuff which shouldn’t be released until the hot summer months, if even then. Lemon note is so light; it barely touches the fruit beer category. 

Pulling up the rear, in terms of quality and quaffability, are four new “beers” in Kirin’s Nodogoshi series, which are among the cheapest and hardest to drink:

Kirin Nodogoshi Haru no Kassai

Pale Lager / 5.0% / RateBeer Avg.     2.34 / My Rating 1.4

Super sewery nose, weeds, and spirits. Bright gold color, thin and quickly diminishing filmy head. Thin rasty grain, spoiled fruit, and slight bit of rough bitterness. Thin body. This one will ruin your hanami party.        

Kirin Nodogoshi Hana Awa

Imperial Pils/Strong Pale Lager / 6.0% / RateBeer Avg. 2.58 / My Rating 2.2

Nose of grain, grain, and light spirits. Very pale sick yellow color, thin fat-bubbled head. Grain, slightly overripe slushy stone fruit, grain spirits, and small bitterness in the finish. Thin-medium body. Kind of rough from mid palate onwards.

Kirin Nodogoshi Special Time

Pale Lager / 5.0% / RateBeer Avg. 2.64 / My Rating 2.4

Dull thin fruity nose with s slight bit of added spirits stink. Bright gold, with a fluffy white head. Sweetish initial, with grain, touch of spirits. Thin-medium body. This one puts a claim of 100% barley on the front of the can... but it has a healthy dose of added spirits. Not exactly terrible, but fairly innocuous flavor.

Kirin Nodogoshi Zero

Pale Lager / 4.0% / RateBeer Avg. 2.6 / My Rating / 1.4

Ah, the loneliness of the long-distance Nodogoshi series rater. I know I’ll be here a long time by myself, maybe forever. And perhaps I deserve to be. Nose of light apple and grape. Bright coppery yellow color, with a solid tube of carbonation rising from the center. Thin flavors of rough fruit, apples, grain spirits, and basically just flavored soda water. Harsh on the tongue. It’s quite an achievement to make a beer this bad, and it’s hard to imagine many beers getting to this low level. Nine ingredients are listed, including red wine extract.