Marika Brewing

The story of Daisuke Ito and Haruna Ito from Marika Brewing is pretty dramatic. They both worked at a real estate consulting company in Tokyo, but after getting married they quit their jobs and spent 2 years and 2 months traveling through about 100 countries around the world starting in 2018.

While drinking beer in different countries, they came across an IPA made with jasmine flowers in Vietnam and were blown away. That experience sparked a dream: to brew beer they would truly love.

The turning point was the pandemic, which brought them back to Japan. After that, they came to Nagano to help with recovery efforts in areas hit by Typhoon Hagibis in Reiwa 1, and spent a year in the Naganuma and Toyono areas doing house demolition and farm work. There, they discovered the appeal of Nagano's farmers and fruit, and decided to move there.

They DIY-renovated a 40- to 50-year-old storehouse-style building in Daimoncho, near Zenkoji Temple's temple district, turning the first floor into a brewery and the second floor into a cafe. After hearing from the landlord that shops used to line this street, they also felt a desire to bring back the energy of the temple district.

"Mallika" means jasmine in Sanskrit, and "毬花" is the Japanese name for hops. Their original experience in Vietnam became the name itself. Their signature Jasmine IPA is of course a standout, and their Kogyoku IPA, made with Nagano-grown apples, balances the tartness of Kogyoku apples with the bitterness of IPA beautifully. They also make a Ringo de Ale.

What makes Daisuke interesting is that he says, "We don't make house standards." He changes the recipe depending on the season and batch, aiming for bold beers with an IBU around 200. They also keep things playful by hosting a Latin party in spring and releasing an unofficial collaboration beer with Nagano Tokyu Department Store.