At Hamamatsucho SOUL BIRD, "blueberry noir" is tapped, with three Yamabushi beers and 10 taps on offer
On May 21, the beer pub "Cafe & CraftBeer Dining SOUL BIRD" in Hamamatsucho, Tokyo, unveiled its lineup of three bottles and 10 draft beers. Along with bottles from the Yamabushi series, the selection ranges widely from coffee bitters and oyster stout to IPA.
Hop BroHamamatsucho's Cafe & CraftBeer Dining SOUL BIRD has put together a lineup that's perfect for a rainy night. With three bottles and 10 taps, they're going pretty hard.
MugiWait, three bottles and 10 taps? That's a lot! Just looking at the menu has my stomach raising a glass before I do!
Hop BroThe one to watch is definitely blueberry noir. It's a fruit saison from Yamabushi - Shiga Kogen Beer, combining berry aroma with the lightness that makes saison what it is.
MugiWhat's a saison!? And what's a fruit saison? The name alone is so stylish that my vocabulary is getting left behind!
Hop BroRoughly speaking, it's a beer where the yeast aroma takes center stage. It's not just about the toasty sweetness of malt; fruity and spicy notes can come through, and adding blueberry on top makes it really lively.
MugiI see! And they even have two wood barrel-aged Yamabushi beers, which suddenly makes it feel like a grown-up night! Do barrels really change the flavor that much?
Hop BroThey do, a lot. For example, a 11.5% barrel-aged beer is a world where alcohol depth and barrel-derived aroma hit you hard, and something rich like Wood Barrel-Aged Yamabushi Extra Quadrupel is fun when you take your time with it.
Mugi11.5% is basically a beer that's your "take your time with it" partner! And now there's even taro "grand cru" with peach in it too? It's like the fruit council has convened!
Hop BroExactly. Wood Barrel-Aged Yamabushi taro "grand cru" is a fruit ale made with peaches, so it's interesting to see how the fruit character and the aged depth balance each other. Bottles like this are meant to be enjoyed slowly.
MugiThe taps are amazing too! Just hearing Kesennuma Oyster Stout makes me smell the sea and dark beer already! Does it go with oysters?
Hop BroIt does, and the taps also have IPA all lined up, from stout to Hazy IPA and double IPA, which feels very SOUL BIRD. It's great with food or for comparing styles, and tonight is definitely not a one-drink kind of night.
MugiWow, then there's no choice but to go! A toast on a rainy night sounds unbelievably good, doesn't it?
Tokyo's Hamamatsucho Cafe & CraftBeer Dining SOUL BIRD introduced the beers being served that day in a May 21 post titled "HAPPY NIGHT SOUL BIRD." Set against an evening of rain, the lineup features beers with character on both bottle and tap.
Three bottles to watch
- blueberry noir (Yamabushi - Shiga Kogen Beer)
- Wood Barrel-Aged Yamabushi Extra Quadrupel (Yamabushi - Shiga Kogen x Mugi Zakkoku Kobo)
- Wood Barrel-Aged Yamabushi taro "grand cru" (Yamabushi - Shiga Kogen x Minoh Beer)
`blueberry noir` is a fruit saison, `Wood Barrel-Aged Yamabushi Extra Quadrupel` is a 11.5% barrel-aged ale, and `Wood Barrel-Aged Yamabushi taro "grand cru"` is a barrel-aged fruit ale made with peaches. All three incorporate bottle conditioning or barrel aging, making them the kind of beers you want to savor slowly for their aroma and depth.
The taps cover a wide range of styles
On draft are `LIE DOWN` (Gangi Brewing), a bitter with coffee, `Kesennuma Oyster Stout` (And Beer), `Debbie's Pale Ale` (Be Easy Brewing), `CoCo Mugi` (Hop Kotan Brewing), `Kuma wa Tenneniro` (Chichibu Beer), `Must be the Honey` (Belching Beaver), `SAKE SILKY HAZY` (Jokun Brewing Lab), `hazy ipa`, `Bengala Red` (Beppu Brewery), and `Doubled Up IPA` (Revision). The selection spans stout, pale ale, wheat ale, sour, Hazy IPA, and double IPA, making it a lineup that works both with food and for a tasting comparison.
SOUL BIRD is a beer pub in Hamamatsucho where you can casually pair craft beer with food. On this night, the standout feature of the lineup was the wide range of choices, from barrel-aged bottles to classic IPAs, for a relaxed evening of drinking.
Information may be inaccurate. Please refer to the venue’s official channels for the latest details.
Hop BroHamamatsucho's Cafe & CraftBeer Dining SOUL BIRD has put together a lineup that's perfect for a rainy night. With three bottles and 10 taps, they're going pretty hard.
MugiWait, three bottles and 10 taps? That's a lot! Just looking at the menu has my stomach raising a glass before I do!
Hop BroThe one to watch is definitely blueberry noir. It's a fruit saison from Yamabushi - Shiga Kogen Beer, combining berry aroma with the lightness that makes saison what it is.
MugiWhat's a saison!? And what's a fruit saison? The name alone is so stylish that my vocabulary is getting left behind!
Hop BroRoughly speaking, it's a beer where the yeast aroma takes center stage. It's not just about the toasty sweetness of malt; fruity and spicy notes can come through, and adding blueberry on top makes it really lively.
MugiI see! And they even have two wood barrel-aged Yamabushi beers, which suddenly makes it feel like a grown-up night! Do barrels really change the flavor that much?
Hop BroThey do, a lot. For example, a 11.5% barrel-aged beer is a world where alcohol depth and barrel-derived aroma hit you hard, and something rich like Wood Barrel-Aged Yamabushi Extra Quadrupel is fun when you take your time with it.
Mugi11.5% is basically a beer that's your "take your time with it" partner! And now there's even taro "grand cru" with peach in it too? It's like the fruit council has convened!
Hop BroExactly. Wood Barrel-Aged Yamabushi taro "grand cru" is a fruit ale made with peaches, so it's interesting to see how the fruit character and the aged depth balance each other. Bottles like this are meant to be enjoyed slowly.
MugiThe taps are amazing too! Just hearing Kesennuma Oyster Stout makes me smell the sea and dark beer already! Does it go with oysters?
Hop BroIt does, and the taps also have IPA all lined up, from stout to Hazy IPA and double IPA, which feels very SOUL BIRD. It's great with food or for comparing styles, and tonight is definitely not a one-drink kind of night.
MugiWow, then there's no choice but to go! A toast on a rainy night sounds unbelievably good, doesn't it?
