Michikusa Brewery

Michikusa Brewery is a truly unique brewery. Its president, Akihiro Eto, originally worked as a programmer at an IT company listed on the First Section of the Tokyo Stock Exchange.

He was apparently working grueling hours, with last trains home on weekdays and weekend work being normal. The turning point for his career change was his wife's comment that she wanted to make a Hina doll herself. At first, he thought it was inefficient, but when it was finished, he felt an incredibly deep sense of fulfillment.

Exactly. Driven by the desire to offer opportunities for people to be honest about their feelings through indulgent products, he jumped into the world of craft beer. And the location is amazing too: it's in a former inn called Tamanoi, on the coast of Tsuyazaki in Fukutsu City, a building more than 100 years old and originally registered in Meiji 34 (1901).

It's in Tsuyazaki Sengen, a historic townscape that flourished through coastal shipping during the Edo period. And the biggest feature here is that you can try brewing beer yourself. From malt saccharification to the start of fermentation, you can experience the entire beer-making process over the course of a day. You can also enjoy how the flavor changes at each step.

Their beer brand is FOC. WHITE offers a fresh, gentle sweetness with a hidden acidity; BLOND is a glass full of energetic aromas of lychee, yellow peach, and citrus; and AMBER is characterized by a subtle malt sweetness and toasty roasted notes. Their concept is to avoid chasing sharply distinctive individuality.

They also do OEM brewing for restaurants, making original beer from as little as 50 liters, and they value collaboration with local eateries. Just the story alone of a former programmer brewing beer in a 100-year-old inn while looking out at the sea makes you want another drink, doesn't it?