Wa Akane Pale Ale
Kizakura Sake Brewing Co., Ltd.

 

Pours with a very nice, dense brown amber color to the pint glass with a visible thickness and decent lacing.
The smell of Cascade hops is omnipresent, makes the impression overwhelming. A typical West Coast American Pale Ale, very well crafted.
Actually this does more than that. As it was crafted in Japan with Fushimi (Kyoto) spring waters, it is very clean and the brewers took the experiment to a higher level: combined the great Cascade hops with the classic Czech Saaz hops! You can't really tell it by the smell but the taste reveals the amount of hops used: it is immensely bitter, actually quite surprisingly.
This took me back a little to be honest, as I associate Cascade with freshness and vividness (like Sierra Nevada), the bitterness makes the experience a little different although not bad at all. At 6% ABV it becomes something like a proto-IPA, being that thick and dense.
I have to say that perhaps this is the best Japanese craft beer I have had so far, and not just because of my favorite Cascade hops but because - unlike most of their over controlled, clean beers - it has real liveliness and daring spirit to it, similarly to its West Coast counterparts.
Very very well done, Kizakura, way to go! Would drink it again!