IPA
Onuma Brewery

P0urs a clear orangey amber with plenty of foam in the Hakodate Trolley glass. This is an extremely friendly and easy to drink hoppy brew. It's not the over-hopped scowling West Coast stuff, but there is plenty of hop flavor and a pleasing bitter finish. It's quite malty and just a little sweet. Plenty fruity with apple and peach flavors, and a woodsy dark finish. Mothfeel is lush and sudsy. I think with the alcohol strength this should be a DIPA rather than the regular IPA as originally added to BA. From the 350 ml can purchased in Hokkaido and mellowed for a few months in my fridge. Dated 10.05.25.

 

Bought a bottle of this from Tanakaya in Mejiro, Tokyo. Poured into a Baird pint glass. Beautiful semi-cloudy amber color with a slight head on it that disappeared halfway through its life. Wonderful scent of Aomori apples coming off this Hokkaido brew. Pleasant taste with not much of an afterbite, but traces of bitterness do get caught in the throat that should not be there. No excess gas and a smooth coating. Overall, this is a great brew and at 8% it does its work as a great single brew. It feels more like an afternoon brew than an evening, possibly because of the apple traces.

Appearance: Foggy amber-tangerine, almost opaque with a smooth, even, marzipan cream-yellow head. Good retention.

Smell: Loads of fresh hops, very piney and resinous with a hint of floral spice. A zip of clear alcohol cuts through a marshmallow-soft caramel-honey malt base to subtly boost the hops' piquancy. Some vaguely roasty toffee and fruit notes appear as well - pear, mostly, with a touch of pineapple and some tart cherries.

Taste: Yum. Sweet at first, but the malts don't have a chance, as the hops and alcohol rush in from all sides for a spicy, bitter, tangy ambush on the palate. Very boozy, but not in an abrasive way. Notes of vanilla, caramel, orange peel, brandy, and even some cocoa abound. Reminiscent of Campari at times, when the sweetness of the malt and the spice of the hops and booze combine just so. Remarkably sticky and resilient, with a lip-smacking hop aftertaste.

Mouthfeel: Ridiculously smooth and full on the palate. Pleasantly sticky and thick.

Drinkability: Mmmmm. This is a very good IPA, and not just by Japan's standards. Very hoppy, yet round and robust in the malt department as well. An easy and exciting sipper. Definitely seek it out if you're in Hokkaido.

This bottle of ipa has a sticker on it proclaiming its gold medal at the international beer fest.

Appears to be unfiltered, dark orange color body and a bountiful white foam bubbles top. Nose is candy sugar and honey -- super sweet -- like there were no aroma hops to counter the 7.5 percent alcohol producing malt. That said not even the 7.5 does much to cover the overt sugar.

It's similarly sweet in the mouth, but has much more impact from the alcohol, giving it some balance. Bittering hops are evident in the aftertaste, but the overall affect of the brew is stuck on the sugar sweetness and alcohol. Not my idea of an American or British IPA. Tastes a bit like a homebrew "IPA" I made once. High carbonation.

They could have told me this was an american belgian-style tripel and I'd give it a decent review..

app: orange, misty, crazy head
aro: bready and leafy, sweet?
tas: sweet, the sweetest ipa in the world, i guarantee, malt flavor is also huge.

This tastes like is almost like hommel popperings, in sweetness, but only without as much hops.

This is like drinking desert IPA.

This is really interesting, but I do not think I like it very much. If I saw it I would get it again just for the trip.