Hitachino Nest Anbai Ale
Kiuchi Brewery

Hitachino Nest Anbai AleHitachino Nest Anbai Ale
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From:
Kiuchi Brewery
 
Japan
Style:
Gose
Ranked #90
ABV:
7%
Score:
87
Ranked #15,457
Avg:
3.9 | pDev: 10%
Reviews:
49
Ratings:
213
Status:
Active
Rated:
Feb 20, 2024
Added:
Dec 04, 2013
Wants:
  15
Gots:
  20
Anbai literally means “Salty Plum” and the word is also used to describe the stat of taste and flavor. Ii Anbai means “just right”!

Hitachino Nest Anbai Ale is brewed based on the high alcohol version (7%) of the siganture beer Hitachino Nest White Ale, infused with locally grown green sour plum (ume), and finished up with a pinch of Japanese sea salt (moshio). The balance of sourness, bitterness, comes from the plum and subtle saltiness, great umami taste of the sea salt is “Ii Anbai - just right!”
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Ratings by GRG1313:
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Rated by GRG1313 from California

3/5  rDev -23.1%
look: 3 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

Nov 05, 2016
More User Ratings:
 
Rated: 3.5 by AbeO

Feb 20, 2024
 
Rated: 3.75 by mpenske from California

Feb 16, 2024
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Reviewed by jmdrpi from Pennsylvania

3.71/5  rDev -4.9%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.75
330 ml brown bottle

pours a cloudy dark yellow color, with white head. Just mildly tart, but definitely has the saltiness. The plum flavor is fairly mild. thin to medium bodied
Jan 01, 2024
 
Rated: 3.98 by blissfulNemo from Michigan

Sep 27, 2023
 
Rated: 3.72 by emerge077 from Illinois

Aug 21, 2023
 
Rated: 3.95 by Chuckdiesel24 from Illinois

May 25, 2023
 
Rated: 3.79 by robotic_being from Illinois

Jan 18, 2023
 
Rated: 3.94 by shelby415 from Oregon

Nov 14, 2022
 
Rated: 4.25 by TallGuyCM from California

Jun 10, 2022
 
Rated: 4.06 by cold_beer

May 07, 2022
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Reviewed by imnodoctorbut from Texas

4.49/5  rDev +15.1%
look: 4 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.75 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.5
pours a cloudy marigold body with a chalk white frothy foam head that puffs up to about two fingers and holds with moderately low retention before easing down to a thin patchy cap, leaving occasional sticky sudsy lacing behind as it does.

aroma is sweet, floral, then super tart with minerally tinge. ume and salt, indeed.

taste is a super juicy ume and salt hit, sweet and lightly tart. canNOT taste the abv at all...also hits a little floral and woody around the edges. super pleasant with a tad of minerality

mouthfeel is high carbonation and medium-light body that runs fluffy with a light sea water tinge. finishes tart and juicy with a ume and salt aftertaste that lingers for a while.

overall:
for starters, I am a huge ume wine fan (thanks, Midnight Diner), a lover of the odd gose that doesn't just settle at "lime tinged sea water" and an avid Hitachino Nest White Ale enthusiast, so this was an instant hit for me. I flew through the single bottle I grabbed from the store and was left wanting at least three more to just lavish in it for a bit. rest assured, I'll be snagging this one again real soon. could also make a killer sake bomb, actually. if you like ume and wish it were in beer form, this is a great start.
Feb 27, 2022
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Reviewed by SABERG from Massachusetts

4.1/5  rDev +5.1%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
Poured from the 11.2 oz bottle into the test glass. No visible date code to be had.
A - Apricot colored backdrop, vibrant carbonation. A lasting cap of white, tightknit froth lasts the entire experience.
S - Subtle plum thread, a lovely mineral element mathches well. A very floral aspect is the main actor and quite a nice treat.
T - Plum skin and chalky minerals, lovely base of light grain all work so very well
M - Medium in body with a spritzy carbonation keeps things moving along. Walks the tightrope between sweet and sour with near perfect balance. Palate response is quick , the finish is just as quick. with a lovely fruity linger.
O - A nice treat here, the tension between the sweet/tart is a delight, The body and carbonation are just right. What a lovely offering
Nov 21, 2021
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Reviewed by detgfrsh from Texas

3.93/5  rDev +0.8%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
From a bottle. Cloudy orange color with a thin layer of white head. Sour and citrusy smell. Slick feel with good carbonation. Plum and some earthy malt with a light saltiness on the finish. Unique flavor combination that works well
Oct 11, 2021
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Reviewed by JonnoWillsteed from England

2.95/5  rDev -24.4%
look: 4 | smell: 3.25 | taste: 2.75 | feel: 2.75 | overall: 2.75
Blind-tasted except for the beer's name and brewery/country, zero reviews below read (yet!)...
L- Pours amber-orange. Some sediment enters the pour late on hence slightly hazy. 5mm just off-white foam cap.
S- There is something very unusual with the smell. Maybe a fruit note? It's quite aromatic.
T- Oh mama, that's dry/sour! Why does this shade of green on a beer's lable invariably = sourness!? Any malt in this seems invisible vs the sourness.
F- Dry, sour, the body shrinks into the background.
O- Well it's certainly surprising to find this bitter+sour in a Japanese beer as they're uncommon in Japanese F+B as a whole, X-ref: 'Asian bitter gene'. Gene TAS2R38 makes the JPnese people + other Pac-Rim nationals prone to being super-tasters of bitter tastes. If I struggle with this I really wonder why it's the JPnese themselves brewing this style.
ps. About half way in my palate relaxes a touch and this beer is no longer quite so challenging. However it remains something very different.
Review2004/scoring all done, now the reveal, I get to read the lables to see what I missed! ==> Contains JPnese salted green plum; a-ha! But hang on, salt in a beer, that's surely a first. 'Salty sour, brewed with plums'.
330ml bottle BB: 03/22 £3.75 Bought from TremblingMadness, York/UK as part of a large pick-your own consignment to London.
Aug 09, 2021
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Reviewed by OlaB from Norway

4.2/5  rDev +7.7%
look: 3.75 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.25
Pours a hazy golden color with a small top off white head that dissolves quickly.
Aroma is of sour plums, apples, citrus and salt.
The taste is sour and tart with a nice salty profile allong with sour plums. I sense some slight malt notes in the background. The plum and salt flavour is really nicely ballanced.
Prickly and smooth mouthfeel with a medium carbonation and a light body.
This one was really refreshing and tasty.
Jun 22, 2021
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Reviewed by Sigmund from Norway

3.74/5  rDev -4.1%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.75
330 ml bottle, from Vinmonopolet, Nettbutikken. ABV is 7.5%. Hazy brownish-orange colour, moderate white head. Aroma of sour plums, lemons and sea salt. Medium sour flavour with the same elements as the aroma, low bitterness. Refreshing.
May 08, 2021
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Reviewed by brentk56 from North Carolina

4.16/5  rDev +6.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
Appearance: Pours clear and amber color with a thin head that fades to a ringlet; squiggles and dots linger

Smell: Not being familiar with ume, I detect a plum aroma that also has a lychee element

Taste: Plum and lychee forward with a very subtle sour element that emerges; a hint of salt balances the profile, after the swallow

Mouthfeel: Medium body with moderate carbonation

Overall: An interesting variation; not a true Gose but quite enjoyable
Apr 07, 2021
 
Rated: 3.54 by desint from Belgium

Feb 28, 2021
 
Rated: 3.96 by cauchysequence from Maryland

Dec 30, 2020
Hitachino Nest Anbai Ale from Kiuchi Brewery
Beer rating: 87 out of 100 with 213 ratings