Inkhorn Brewing's Bulbul Taps at vivo! BEER + DINING BAR in Ikebukuro
At vivo! BEER + DINING BAR in Ikebukuro, Inkhorn Brewing's fruit sour ale Bulbul has been tapped. The beer combines gentle acidity with boysenberry and vanilla, joining a lineup of 20 draft beers at this craft-beer-focused pub.
Hop BroThere’s a taproom update in Ikebukuro worth talking about. At vivo! BEER＋DININGBAR, Inkhorn Brewing’s newly tapped Bulbul just went on.
MugiWait, Bulbul is such a cute name! What kind of beer is it?
Hop BroIt’s a fruit sour ale with gentle tartness, layered with boysenberry and vanilla.
MugiWhen I hear sour ale, I picture maximum puckering mode and my face folding in half!
Hop BroThat’s the fun part. Bulbul isn’t aggressively sour; it has a light, easy finish that works well with food.
MugiOh wow! Berry and vanilla makes it sound like a dessert you can drink.
Hop BroMore like soft fruit character than heavy sweetness. And the bar has 20 beers on tap, from IPA to stout, so the range is serious.
MugiTwenty taps!? That’s not a lineup, that’s a happy little crisis for anyone trying to choose!
Hop BroExactly. You’ve also got beers like Inkhorn’s Lapwing#2 and Shiga Kogen’s Italian Sttle Pils, and once you factor in food pairing potential, it gets dangerous fast.
MugiThat’s unfairly tempting. If they open from 4 p.m. on weekdays, I’m ready to head straight to Ikebukuro after work and start with Bulbul.
Hop BroBulbul first for the fruit and tartness, then a wider tasting run across the taps. At that point, it’s officially a perfect beer night.
vivo! BEER + DINING BAR, a craft-beer pub tucked away in the basement near Ikebukuro East Exit, has tapped Inkhorn Brewing's Bulbul. The bar is known for its 20 draft lines and its easy access to a broad range of beer styles, and it opens at 4:00 p.m. on weekdays.
Bulbul is described as a fruit sour made by blending boysenberry and vanilla into a sour ale with a gentle acidity. It is a style that should appeal to drinkers looking for something bright, fruit-driven, and slightly playful without losing the structure of a sour ale.
The day's tap list also showed how wide the selection is. Alongside Bulbul, the lineup included beers such as Inkhorn Brewing's Lapwing#2, Be Easy Brewing's Tohoku 6Hop, TOKYO ALE WORKS' In Cahoot Vol7*By the Basy IPA, and Shiga Kogen's Italian Sttle Pils. That mix covers hazy IPAs, pale ales, pilsners, wheat beer, saison, and stouts.
For fans of fruit-forward beers, there were more options too, including Ushitora Brewery's Ichi-go Oukoku and Y.Market Brewing's Purple Sky Pale Ale. At the other end of the spectrum, the bar also offered Minoh Beer Stout, Guinness Draft, and Kirin Heartland, making it easy to move from hoppy beers to darker, malt-driven choices.
Food is part of the draw as well. Seasonal dishes on the menu included homemade duck ham with balsamic and blueberry sauce, potato salad with prosciutto, olives, and cream cheese, and other bar-friendly plates that can be matched to the beer list.
For anyone in Ikebukuro looking for a sour ale with fruit character, Bulbul is a timely addition to a tap list that already spans plenty of styles.
Information may be inaccurate. Please refer to the venue’s official channels for the latest details.
Hop BroThere’s a taproom update in Ikebukuro worth talking about. At vivo! BEER＋DININGBAR, Inkhorn Brewing’s newly tapped Bulbul just went on.
MugiWait, Bulbul is such a cute name! What kind of beer is it?
Hop BroIt’s a fruit sour ale with gentle tartness, layered with boysenberry and vanilla.
MugiWhen I hear sour ale, I picture maximum puckering mode and my face folding in half!
Hop BroThat’s the fun part. Bulbul isn’t aggressively sour; it has a light, easy finish that works well with food.
MugiOh wow! Berry and vanilla makes it sound like a dessert you can drink.
Hop BroMore like soft fruit character than heavy sweetness. And the bar has 20 beers on tap, from IPA to stout, so the range is serious.
MugiTwenty taps!? That’s not a lineup, that’s a happy little crisis for anyone trying to choose!
Hop BroExactly. You’ve also got beers like Inkhorn’s Lapwing#2 and Shiga Kogen’s Italian Sttle Pils, and once you factor in food pairing potential, it gets dangerous fast.
MugiThat’s unfairly tempting. If they open from 4 p.m. on weekdays, I’m ready to head straight to Ikebukuro after work and start with Bulbul.
Hop BroBulbul first for the fruit and tartness, then a wider tasting run across the taps. At that point, it’s officially a perfect beer night.
