Y Market Brewing in Nagoya will release its new fruit-category beer 'JUNION' on April 16, 2026. The style is `Sake Yeast Ale w/Lychee`, with an alcohol content of 5.0% and an IBU of 28.02. The beer is designed with drinkability as a craft beer in mind while incorporating elements of sake.

At the core of this beer is the combination of sake yeast, rice flour, white koji, and lychee. In brewing, rice flour and white koji are used to create a wort environment suited to sake yeast, and the rice flour is heat-treated to make it easier to saccharify. White koji is used differently in saccharification and fermentation to control acidity and the flow of fermentation. Hersbrucker and Nelson Sauvin Cryo hops add depth to the aroma.

The tasting notes describe a lightly hazy yellow color, a light body, and restrained malt character. The flavor combines the gentle sweetness from rice and the acidity of koji to create a crisp finish, while the lychee fruitiness adds fullness. The finish also reveals notes reminiscent of white grape and earth from Nelson Sauvin, giving it complexity that goes beyond a simple fruit beer.

The beer was inspired by participating in the Wano Beer Festival and by the idea of a fusion between sake and craft beer as a commemorative beer for the 12th anniversary of Ebisu's Bakushu-an. Y Market Brewing is known as a Nagoya-based brewery that works across a wide range of styles, and with 'JUNION' it puts Japanese ingredients and fermentation design front and center. It is presented as a beer to slowly savor in a glass, like Champagne or white wine.