Better life with upcycle Releases Ume Shiso Sour Ale Made with Upcycled Fukui Ingredients
Better life with upcycle released Ume Shiso Sour Ale on September 10. Made with upcycled Beni-sashi ume and Kida shiso red shiso from Fukui, the 4.5% ABV sour ale combines umeboshi-like acidity with apricot and floral hop aromas.
Hop BroA beer made with Fukui plum and red shiso is here: Better life with upcycle's Ume Shiso Sour Ale.
MugiWhat?! Is it a beer like umeboshi? My mouth is puckering already!
Hop BroClose, but it is not just sour. It uses Benisashi plums and red shiso called Kida chiso in a sour ale style.
MugiWhat exactly is a sour ale? I know it is a kind of tart beer, but still!
Hop BroIt is a beer style that uses lactic acidity. This one brings a refreshing tang with depth from plum and shiso.
MugiWow! Plum and shiso flavors in beer—it's like a bento box got promoted to a beer glass!
Hop BroThat is oddly accurate. Triskel and Idaho 7 hops add apricot-like fruitiness and floral notes, creating layers of aroma.
MugiThe hops made it fancy! So it is not a sourness choir; it is an apricot-and-flower chorus!
Hop BroExactly. It finishes with a bread-and-malt graininess. At 4.5% ABV and 14 IBU, it is made for easy drinking.
MugiA breadlike finish? Is Better life with upcycle a brewery rooted in a bakery?
Hop BroYou got it. Backed by a bakery founded in 1923, it upcycles bread crusts and more. This release gives used plum liqueur and cider ingredients a new life through upcycling.
MugiIt is lovely that plum and shiso become a pink beer after their first job. At 572 yen per 350ml can, I want to find one chilled!
Hop BroA little yeast haze is fine, too. Serve it cold and enjoy a glass of pink refreshment with plum, shiso, and hops.
MugiI want one! It suits a plum mood or a floral mood. Let's put a toast on tonight's schedule!
A sour ale built around upcycled ume and red shiso
Better life with upcycle, based in Ebina, Kanagawa, has released Ume Shiso Sour Ale. The 350 ml can is priced at ¥572 including tax. Classified as an American-style Sour Ale w/ Ume, Red Shiso, the beer has an ABV of 4.5% and an IBU of 14.
The beer uses Beni-sashi ume from Fukui Prefecture that had been used in making plum liqueur, together with red shiso used in a cider made with Fukui’s traditional Kida shiso. After completing their original roles, both ingredients were upcycled into a new beer.
Umeboshi-like acidity and layered hop character
Ume, red shiso, and acidity from lactic acid bacteria form the core of the flavor. The combination suggests the character of a red pickled plum, bringing a refreshing sourness with a deeper, savory-fruited dimension from the ume and shiso.
Triskel and Idaho 7 hops add another layer, contributing apricot-like fruitiness and floral aromas. These hop notes complement the Japanese ingredients and keep the beer from feeling defined by acidity alone. On the finish, bread and malt-derived graininess spreads across the palate, leaving a soft cereal impression.
The beer is pink in color, giving it a friendly, distinctive appearance. It is sold refrigerated, and the brewery notes that yeast-derived haze may occur without affecting quality.
From a century-old bakery to sustainable beer
Better life with upcycle draws on a bakery founded in 1923 and its ongoing efforts to give new value to food that might otherwise be discarded, including bread crusts. The brand describes its approach as a dual craft of boulangerie and brewery. After working with brewers across Japan, it now also produces beer at its own brewing facility in Ebina.
Ume Shiso Sour Ale expands that upcycling story beyond bread, connecting ingredients from plum liqueur and cider with modern sour-beer techniques. Its combination of umeboshi-like acidity, red shiso, fruit-forward hops, and a bready malt finish makes it a compact expression of the brand’s sustainable approach to brewing.
Keep refrigerated. Alcohol consumption is prohibited for anyone under 20 in Japan.
Information may be inaccurate. Please refer to the brewery’s official channels for the latest details.
Hop BroA beer made with Fukui plum and red shiso is here: Better life with upcycle's Ume Shiso Sour Ale.
MugiWhat?! Is it a beer like umeboshi? My mouth is puckering already!
Hop BroClose, but it is not just sour. It uses Benisashi plums and red shiso called Kida chiso in a sour ale style.
MugiWhat exactly is a sour ale? I know it is a kind of tart beer, but still!
Hop BroIt is a beer style that uses lactic acidity. This one brings a refreshing tang with depth from plum and shiso.
MugiWow! Plum and shiso flavors in beer—it's like a bento box got promoted to a beer glass!
Hop BroThat is oddly accurate. Triskel and Idaho 7 hops add apricot-like fruitiness and floral notes, creating layers of aroma.
MugiThe hops made it fancy! So it is not a sourness choir; it is an apricot-and-flower chorus!
Hop BroExactly. It finishes with a bread-and-malt graininess. At 4.5% ABV and 14 IBU, it is made for easy drinking.
MugiA breadlike finish? Is Better life with upcycle a brewery rooted in a bakery?
Hop BroYou got it. Backed by a bakery founded in 1923, it upcycles bread crusts and more. This release gives used plum liqueur and cider ingredients a new life through upcycling.
MugiIt is lovely that plum and shiso become a pink beer after their first job. At 572 yen per 350ml can, I want to find one chilled!
Hop BroA little yeast haze is fine, too. Serve it cold and enjoy a glass of pink refreshment with plum, shiso, and hops.
MugiI want one! It suits a plum mood or a floral mood. Let's put a toast on tonight's schedule!
