In a post published by Dragon Brewing at 7:51 p.m. on March 9, 2026, the brewery reported that it had visited Hotei Shokuryo Co., Ltd. in Konan City, Aichi Prefecture. Rather than a simple factory tour, the post also revisits the background behind one of the brewery's signature products.

According to the post, the connection between the two companies began with a question: could the processing residue generated during crouton production, known as crouton flour, be used in beer? The timing overlapped with Dragon Brewing's work on the recipe for "Apple Pie Ale," and the ingredient was adopted.

The brewery explains that the crouton flour not only supports the aroma of plum and cinnamon, but also serves as an important element that creates a toasty aftertaste. It is interesting that the brewery has taken the idea of "upcycling" ingredients all the way into flavor design itself.

On the day of the visit, the team observed the crouton and pie crust production process under strict hygiene controls. Hotei Shokuryo also suggested that using whole-wheat crouton flour rather than ordinary crouton flour might make the beer even more interesting, and the brewery indicated that the next batch will be brewed as Apple Pie Ale "Whole-Wheat Crouton ver."

Dragon Brewing, based in Aichi, also sells its beers through its official shop (https://dragonbeer.base.shop/). This move, which turns food byproducts from a local company into brewing ingredients, is worth watching as a new example of local craft beer in action. In the next lot, the key point will likely be how much of the grain character from whole wheat comes through in the aroma and flavor.