Hachijojima Beer

Hachijojima Beer is a brewery on Hachijo Island in Tokyo, about 10 hours by ship from Takeshiba. They call themselves "the brewery that makes Hachijo Island lemon beer."

Their flagship is "Hachijojima Lemon Pale Ale." It's a pale ale made with Hachijo Fruit Lemon, a citrus specialty of the island, and it has a rich citrus aroma with a gentle tartness. Hachijo Fruit Lemon is so full-flavored you can even eat it with the peel on, and they bring that character straight into the beer.

Another interesting one is "Hachijojima Sea Breeze Shiitake Porter." It's a porter made with "Umikaze Shiitake" mushrooms grown at the Dai-Ryu Farm on the island, and it has a deep richness and a subtle bitterness. Using shiitake in beer is pretty bold, isn't it?

The glutamate-based umami in shiitake overlaps with the roasted character of a porter, which gives it depth. Beer that can only be made with local island ingredients is exactly what craft brewing is all about.

Basically, yes, it's a beer you can get on the island. Hachijo Island itself is a shochu culture island with four distilleries, and the addition of a beer brewery is a new development. The idea of turning local agricultural products into beer is, I think, something that really sets a remote-island brewery apart.