Miyata Beer

Miyata Beer, Miyata Beer. It's a really tiny brewpub in Yokokawa, Sumida Ward, in the Oshiage area. It opened in 2014.

It's a simple space devoted entirely to drinking beer, with only 4 to 5 counter seats and two tables. They don't serve food, so it's a bring-your-own-food style. They brew Monday through Thursday and operate as a pub only from Friday through Sunday.

Each batch is an ultra-small lot of about 100 liters. What's more, they use no dry yeast or malt extract at all, brewing all-malt beer with fresh yeast. The owner learned brewing at a microbrewery in Tochigi.

Along with standard Golden Ale, Pale Ale, IPA, and Brown Ale, the adjuncts are interesting too. They make beers using ingredients like butterbur sprouts, coffee, ginger, coriander, and juniper berries. They even had a Pale Ale scented with chamomile.

Their Golden Ale is unfiltered and slightly cloudy, with a gentle sweetness followed by a faint bitterness. Their Pale Ale is crisp and clean, with no off-flavors, and is praised for its clear hop aroma and malt flavor.

Exactly. They have up to five taps. What you'll find depends on when you go, so it's a bit of a surprise. That quiet, tucked-away brewing feel in a back alley downtown is what makes it so appealing.