Tangoya Brewery

Tangoya Brewery in Yosano Town has an incredible story. First, Yosano Town started hop cultivation in 2015, but at the time there was no brewery there.

Yes, it was even described as a town that started hop cultivation without a brewery. Then Yuta Hamada from a company called Local Flag came onto the scene. He is from Yosano Town and founded the company when he was a senior in college. During an internship at a city council office, he met a social entrepreneur and decided to launch a business that would energize his hometown.

What's more, he took a one-year leave from school and studied by visiting more than 20 regions across Japan first. He originally launched the ASOBI BEER brand through contract brewing in 2020, and finally obtained a brewing license in January 2024. Right in front of Yosano Station, he opened TANGOYA BREWERY & PUBLIC HOUSE.

The head brewer is Sakae Suzuki, who came from Hoppukotan Brewing in Hokkaido and specializes in pilsners. His first commemorative brew was Yosano Pilsner called Midaregami. It's 4.5% ABV and uses locally grown IBUKI hops.

Exactly, it carries the place name with pride. They also make things like Citrus Encyclopedia: Kyoto Yuzu Edition, a saison made with the peel of seed-grown yuzu from Kyoto's Sagano area, and Mitsudomoe Pale Ale, brewed with 100% domestic hops from Yosano, Hokuto, and Furano.

Yosano cultivates 11 hop varieties, all hand-harvested. They vacuum-seal and freeze them the same day they are picked, so the fresh-picked aroma remains, completely different from dried hops. There is a terroir philosophy behind it: from a town of hops to a town of beer.

That's a collaboration beer called KYOTO ODASHI GOZE, made with the umami of bonito dashi and Koto-hiki salt from Kyoto Tango. It's a gose style at 3.5% ABV. Brewing beer with dashi and salt is an idea that only a Japanese brewery could come up with. A young founder who started a business at 25 and an experienced brewer have teamed up to express the terroir of the land.