Fuji to Hood: A Japan/Portland Beer Collaboration Brewfest

Here’s an event which should appeal to Portland Japanophiles and beer lovers, neither of which there is a shortage.

On April 21, Fuji to Hood will be held from 12 noon to 4pm in The Bindery Annex building in Portland. Ten beers and one cider, all collaborations between Portland-based breweries and Japanese brewers. Each was brewed using one or more Japanese ingredients --some fairly commonplace, and some quite unusual (indigo beer anyone? How about a shiso brew?)

A ticket costs $25, and includes one Fuji to Hood event glass and 12 drink tickets. .

Here are the brewers, the collaboration beers, and the special ingredients used:

Breakside Brewery / Far Yeast Brewing

Sweet Osmanthus Saison

(kinmokusei flowers)

5.9%  / 25 IBU

Burnside Brewing Co. / Yokosuka Brewing

“Who’s Umami?”

(shiitake powder)

5.8%  /  21 IBU

Cascade Brewing / Y.Market Brewing

Shiso Sour Red Basil Ale

(fermented red shiso leaves)

7.5% / 9 IBU

Culmination Brewing  /  Ise Kadoya Brewing

Oishi Nashi

(yeast from a tree at Ise Shrine and Asian Pear juice)

4.8%

Ecliptic Brewing  /  Heiwa Shuzou

Shi Shi Saison

(sansho and yuzu peel)

6.8%  /  IBU 20

Ex Novo Brewing  /  Rise & Win

Going Postal Citrus Sour

(yoko citrus and indigo leaves

5.4%  /  IBU 46

 

quite a color to this one! Maybe there's no SRM label for it.

Gigantic Brewing  /  Harvest Moon Brewing

Oni Kawaii

(black rice and marionberries)

4.2%

Hopworks Urban Brewery  /  Nihonbashi Brewing

Hinoki Lager

(sake kasu and Japanese cypress chips)

5%

Reverend Nat’s Hard Cider  /  Son of the Smith Hard Cider

Yaoyorozu, aka 8 Million

(Nagano wild yeast and Nagano apple blossom honey)

6.8%

Upright Brewing  /  Kyoto Brewing Company

Pacific Herbs

(rice, sansho, mikan peel, and shiso leaf)

4.4%

Widmer Brothers Brewing  /  Spring Valley Brewing

Sudachi Ace

(sudachi and kabosu)

2%

https://fujitohood.com/

https://www.facebook.com/fujitohood/

2016 Poll on Japan's Best Craft Breweries

In early 2015, a Japan-based RateBeer member asked people who frequent the Japan forum group of the Rate Beer site to take part in a survey to determine the best breweries in Japan. That fellow has since moved out of Japan, but this year another member created the same survey.

Each participant was asked to give his/her top ten breweries, ranked in order from one to ten. Points were awarded from 10 down to 1 for positions 1 to 10. Some participants chose to focus on how well they felt the breweries did 2016 alone; others voted based on their impressions over several years.

And… drumroll please! Here are the results for 2016:

1. Shiga Kogen Beer (Tamamura-Honten) (117 points)

2. Kyoto Brewing Company (103)

3. Yorocco Beer (101)

4. Y Market Brewing (84)

5. Fujizakura Brewery (69)

6. Shonan Beer (Kumazawa Brewing) (60)

7. Oni Densetsu (Noboribetsu) (56)

8. Oku Noto Beer (Nihonkai Club) (52)

9. Zakkoku Kobo Microbrewery (34)

10. Devil Craft (33)

11. AJB (Anglo-Japanese Brewery) (19)

12. Baird Brewing Co. (14)

13. Thrashzone Brew Labo (12)

14. Ushi-Tora Brewing (11)

15. Baeren  (10)

16. Ise Kadoya  (8)

17. Brewery Songbird (7)

17. Daisen G Beer (7)

17. Atsugi Beer Company (7)

20. Swan Lake (Hyouko Yashiki No Mori Brewery) (6)

21. Mojiko Retro Beer (4)

21. Hitachino Nest (Kiuchi Brewery) (4)

24. Locobeer (3)

24. Yo-Ho Brewing Company (3)

26. Outsider Brewing (1)

26. Oh! La! Ho (1)

The top ten list looks somewhat similar to last year's. However, Minoh, Swan Lake, and Thrashzone Brew Labo, dropped below, while both Oku Noto Beer (Nihonkai Club) and Devil Craft broke in.

Shiga Kogen retained its top position, despite some trouble with bottling and sanitation. Their 10th anniversary beer, Sono Ju, as well as Takashi Imperial Stout are very highly regarded.

There was lots of praise for Brewery Songbird, which was the only new brewery on the list for 2016.

One big surprise: Minoh Beer, rated at #9 last year, did not receive a single vote and dropped off the list completely.

More people participated in the poll last year, and so this year's list included fewer breweries (26 compared to 37 last year)

For comparison, below are the rankings for 2015.

2015 ranking

1. Shiga Kogen (Tamamura-Honten) (191)

2. Y. Market Brewing (150)

3. Kyoto Brewing Company (113)

4.. Fujizakura Brewery (78)

5. Yorocco Beer (59)

6. .Zakkoku Kobo Microbrewery (55)

7. Thrashzone Brew Labo (43)

7. Swan Lake (Hyouko Yashiki No Mori Brewery) (39)

9. Minoh Beer (35)

10. Oni Densetsu (Noboribetsu) (34)

10. Shonan Beer (Kumazawa Brewing) (34)

11. Oku Noto Beer (Nihonkai Club) (28)

12. Daisen G Beer (25)

13. AJB (Anglo Japanese Brewery) (24)

14. Baird Brewing Co. (23)

15. Ise Kadoya (19)

16. Devil Craft (17)

17. North Island Beer (15)

17. Ushi-Tora Brewing (15)

18. Iwate Kura Beer (13)

19. Baeren (12)

19. Locobeer (12)

20. Outsider Brewing (9)

21. Yo-Ho Brewing Company (8)

22. Hideji Beer Brewery (6)

22. Oh! La! Ho (6)

23. Chateau Kamiya (Ushiku Beer) (5)

23. Hitachino Nest (Kiuchi Brewery) (5)

23. Sankt Gallen Brewery (5)

24. Aqula (3)

24. Johana Beer (3)

24. Mojiko Retro Beer (3)

25. Atsugi Beer Company (2)

25. Bayern Meister Bier (2)

25. Coedo (Kyodo Shoji Koedo Brewery) (2)

25. Hida Takayama Beer (2)

26. Tazawako Beer Brewery Pub (1)

A Poll on Japan's Best Craft Breweries

Recently, one of the top RateBeer members in Japan held a poll to determine which Japanese breweries are held in the highest regard by beer geeks in that country. He asked people to rank their top ten breweries in order.

It started out as a poll for RateBeer members only, but was expanded to include a few people who use the Untappd app and also a few people from a prominent Tokyo beer bar. In the end, he received 20 ranked lists. A small sample, admittedly, but many of the participants were the hardest-core of Japanese craft beer drinkers.

Some people ranked the breweries based on all their ratings over many years, while others preferred to focus on the breweries that had most impressed them in the past two or three years.

He created an average ranking by awarding ten points to a brewery that was ranked number one, nine points for a number two ranking, and so on. Thirty-seven different breweries were mentioned. But only two, Shiga Kogen and Y. Market, were mentioned on all 20 lists.

And here are the results, with total points in parentheses:

Shiga Kogen (Tamamura-Honten) (191)

Y. Market Brewing (150)

Kyoto Brewing Company (113)

Fujizakura Heights (78)

Yorocco Beer (59)

Zakkoku Kobo Microbrewery (55)

Thrash Zone Brew Labo (43)

Swan Lake (Hyouko Yashiki No Mori Brewery) (39)

Minoh Beer (35)

Oni Densetsu (Noboribetsu Brewpub) (34)

Shonan Beer (Kumazawa Brewing) (34)

Oku Noto Beer -- Nihonkai Club (28)

Daisen G Beer (25)

AJB - Anglo Japanese Brewery (24)

Baird Beer (23)

Ise Kadoya (19)

Devil Craft (17)

North Island Beer (15)

Ushi-Tora Brewing (15)

Iwate Kura Beer (13)

Baeren (12)

Locobeer (12)

Outsider Brewing (9)

Yo-Ho Brewing Company (8)

Hideji Beer Brewery(6)

Oh! La! Ho (6)

Chateau Kamiya (Ushiku Beer) (5)

Hitachino Nest (Kiuchi Brewery) (5)

Sankt Gallen Brewery (5)

Aqula (3)

Johana Beer (3)

Mojiko Retro Beer (3)

Atsugi Beer Company (2)

Bayern Meister Bier (2)

Coedo (Kyodo Shoji Koedo Brewery) (2)

Hida Takayama Beer (2)

Tazawako Beer Brewery (1)

After the rankings came out, some commented that two of the top three breweries had begun operations only in the past two years. In addition, three of the top five started in the past three years.

Also, the tastes of beer drinkers seem to be more open to the wider variety of styles that these newer breweries make. For example, Kyoto Brewing has produced several interesting varieties of saison and even gose, styles not much seen in Japan until recently. Other breweries are experimenting with wild ales and barrel-aged beers.

Distribution also plays a role here. Some of these breweries’ products are easily obtainable only in a very small region, close to the brewery or brew pub. Several others tend to be available primarily in the Tokyo/Yokohama area, and less so elsewhere in Japan. For example, the output of Thrash Zone and Zakkoku Kobo Microbrewery is not generally seen outside of the Kanto region.

This list would have looked much different five, three, or even two years ago. We can also imagine that it will be altered considerably in the next few years, as newer, more adventurous, and more skillful brewers come on the scene and raise the quality (and variety) of craft beer in Japan.