Cat Hop

What kind of brewery is Cat Hop?

hop excitedHop Bro

Cat Hop is Teine's first craft beer brewery. What's more, it's built by renovating the first floor of a detached house.

mugi surprisedMugi

What, a detached house!? They're making beer at home?

hop normalHop Bro

Exactly. Co-founder Mr. Yoshinari bought a house in Teine and turned about 13 tatami mats of space on the first floor into a small brewery, with two 160-liter copper kettles and four chest freezers used as fermentation tanks. Using a tiny-scale brewing method that originated in Shimane called the Iwami method, they handcraft 500 to 600 liters a month.

mugi surprisedMugi

By hand! Everything by hand!?

hop proudHop Bro

From crushing the malt to bottling and labeling, everything. And the brewer, Taiki Higashi, has an interesting background too. He used to be a police officer. He spent seven years at the Susukino police box and with the riot police.

mugi surprisedMugi

What! A police officer turned beer maker!?

hop happyHop Bro

He says he discovered his calling on a cross-country beer trip across the U.S. with a senior colleague. And co-founder Mr. Yoshinari used to be a veterinarian. They were senior and junior classmates at Obihiro University of Agriculture and Veterinary Medicine, and both jumped into beer from completely different careers. Mr. Yoshinari also runs a free school in the same building.

mugi movedMugi

A brewery and a free school under one roof! That feels like such a warm place.

hop excitedHop Bro

And the beer is genuinely good. The flagship 'Teine-ru' is a pale ale made with Cascade and Amarillo hops, Voss Kveik yeast, and quinoa as a supplementary ingredient, with a strong citrus and tropical aroma. 'Teineipa' is a hazy style with a creamy wheat character from three hops: Citra, El Dorado, and Amarillo. At 6% ABV and 16 IBU, it's easy to drink.

mugi excitedMugi

I want to try Teineipa! The name is cute too!

hop normalHop Bro

'Double Teineipa' is a W-hazy at 8.5% ABV with a big banana aroma. They use quinoa in all of them, so they're classified as happoshu, but originally they planned to use matatabi instead. It's a cat-themed brewery, after all. The logo also combines the silhouette of Mount Teine with a cat.

mugi happyMugi

A matatabi beer! I wish I could have tried that too. And there's a 30% student discount, right? Students nearby must be jealous! I'm definitely going to the retail shop at the entrance!

Signature beers: Teine-ruTeineipaDouble Teineipa

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