COEDO Brewery to Release Limited Saison for the 1,000th Anniversary of Kawagoe Hachimangu on March 27
COEDO Brewery, based in Higashimatsuyama, Saitama Prefecture, will release a limited saison on March 27, 2026 as a commemorative project anticipating the 1,000th anniversary of Kawagoe Hachimangu's founding. The collaboration uses Japanese black tea from the Kawagoe brand "Kawagoe Tea" and layers regional history and ingredients into one beer.
Hop BroCOEDO Brewery is releasing a limited saison to mark the 1,000th anniversary of Kawagoe Hachimangu's founding. And with a release date of March 27, 2026, it definitely has plenty of buzz.
MugiWait, a beer for a shrine celebration!? And it's a limited-batch saison too - sounds cool, but kind of hard to picture!
Hop BroThe name is COEDO Anniversary Ale Project, officially "Kawagoe Hachimangu Celebration 1,000th Anniversary Ale." It's a very COEDO-style project that turns a local milestone straight into a glass.
MugiOhhh! I get that saison has a summery vibe, but what does it actually taste like?
Hop BroSaison was originally a seasonal beer for farmers, and this one is interesting because it layers in Kawagoe Tea's Japanese black tea. The ingredients are malt, black tea, and hops, so it was designed to be light while bringing out the aroma of tea leaves.
MugiI thought adding tea would make the beer turn into a dessert, but that's not the case! So it's about balancing sweetness and aroma?
Hop BroExactly. It has the rich sweetness and full aroma that are characteristic of Japanese black tea, plus that reddish amber look, so it's already one of those beers that looks delicious the moment you pour it.
MugiThe kind that wins you over just by looking at it...! But how do a shrine, tea, and beer connect?
Hop BroKawagoe Hachimangu is a place with a long history, and Kawagoe Tea is also an ingredient that carries the memory of the land. What COEDO Brewery did here was reinterpret the region's history and turn it into a beer - that's the core of this release.
MugiSo it's not just a souvenir, but something with a real local story behind it. I want to try this as a beer that pairs well with meals!
Hop BroAt the end of the day, the best way to enjoy it is probably to taste the memory of Kawagoe itself while sharing this limited saison that marks a shrine milestone. It makes me want to grab a glass right now.
MugiYeah, I'm completely in the mood to drink it now! Today feels like a day to toast with COEDO's limited saison!
Limited Brewing for a Regional Milestone
COEDO Brewery, based in Higashimatsuyama, Saitama Prefecture, has announced a collaboration beer tied to the 1,000th anniversary project for Kawagoe Hachimangu: "COEDO Anniversary Ale Project Kawagoe Hachimangu Celebration 1,000th Anniversary Ale." The release date is March 27, 2026, and it will be a limited-batch saison-style beer made with Japanese black tea from "Kawagoe Tea," a brand known as a symbol of Kawagoe.
Beer Characteristics
The ingredients are malt, tea (from Kawagoe), and hops. The product description says it has the rich sweetness and full-bodied aroma unique to Japanese black tea, and presents itself as a softly amber-colored beer with a reddish hue. Designed with the lightness typical of a saison and layered with tea-leaf nuances, it seems well suited to pairing with meals.
Background to the Collaboration
Kawagoe Hachimangu is a historic shrine within walking distance of Kawagoe Station, and is said to have been founded in 1030, during the Chogen era. The article notes that it has long been revered by successive lords of Kawagoe Castle, and that it is the only shrine in the city to bear the place name "Kawagoe" ("Koegoe"). COEDO Brewery positions this milestone not as a simple commemorative product, but as an opportunity to share the region's history and culture.
Connection to Kawagoe Tea
The Kawagoe Tea used in the beer is a famed tea mentioned in documents from the Kamakura period, and is also considered one of the origins of what is now Sayama tea. The producer, Ono Bun Seicha, is a tea farm in Shimoakasaka, Kawagoe, that has handled everything from cultivation to processing and sales in an integrated way for more than 100 years, and is also known for efforts such as Kawagoe black tea. By turning local ingredients into beer at a local brewery, the project brings the memory of the land to life in a single glass.
A local shrine, tea, and craft beer. From COEDO Brewery's perspective, this is a limited project worth watching, one that reinterprets Kawagoe's history as a drink.
Information may be inaccurate. Please refer to the brewery’s official channels for the latest details.
Hop BroCOEDO Brewery is releasing a limited saison to mark the 1,000th anniversary of Kawagoe Hachimangu's founding. And with a release date of March 27, 2026, it definitely has plenty of buzz.
MugiWait, a beer for a shrine celebration!? And it's a limited-batch saison too - sounds cool, but kind of hard to picture!
Hop BroThe name is COEDO Anniversary Ale Project, officially "Kawagoe Hachimangu Celebration 1,000th Anniversary Ale." It's a very COEDO-style project that turns a local milestone straight into a glass.
MugiOhhh! I get that saison has a summery vibe, but what does it actually taste like?
Hop BroSaison was originally a seasonal beer for farmers, and this one is interesting because it layers in Kawagoe Tea's Japanese black tea. The ingredients are malt, black tea, and hops, so it was designed to be light while bringing out the aroma of tea leaves.
MugiI thought adding tea would make the beer turn into a dessert, but that's not the case! So it's about balancing sweetness and aroma?
Hop BroExactly. It has the rich sweetness and full aroma that are characteristic of Japanese black tea, plus that reddish amber look, so it's already one of those beers that looks delicious the moment you pour it.
MugiThe kind that wins you over just by looking at it...! But how do a shrine, tea, and beer connect?
Hop BroKawagoe Hachimangu is a place with a long history, and Kawagoe Tea is also an ingredient that carries the memory of the land. What COEDO Brewery did here was reinterpret the region's history and turn it into a beer - that's the core of this release.
MugiSo it's not just a souvenir, but something with a real local story behind it. I want to try this as a beer that pairs well with meals!
Hop BroAt the end of the day, the best way to enjoy it is probably to taste the memory of Kawagoe itself while sharing this limited saison that marks a shrine milestone. It makes me want to grab a glass right now.
MugiYeah, I'm completely in the mood to drink it now! Today feels like a day to toast with COEDO's limited saison!
