Nigori Shironama
Nihon Beer K.K.

this japanese witbier certainly looks right for the style. super pale, just slightly foggy, nearly white beer with a very impressive head. like unruly soap suds, the foam is thick and bumpy, with big bubbles popping and making the surface uneven. the retention is also nice.

really impressed with this one so far. it has a solid, good smell, definitely what you should expect of the style. some citrus and corriander, subtle hops and malt, a faint hint of the yeast so easily associated with belgian beers. the taste is good enough. it delivers a flavorful, fruity, interesting beer. lots to like, but it just seems to be missing something, leaves something to be desired.

and i just realized what that would be... food. i had this alone, nothing to munch on. i would say that nigori shironama is like a japanese microbrewed can beer take on hoegaarden light (not light as in abv, just overall smell and taste are like a muted version of the original). but a good one, that should be paired with some cheese or consumed with dinner. worth a try.

A very creamy, longlasting head, with excellent retention over a lightly cloudy pale gold body--with lots of particulate matter. Long, drawn-out lacing. The smell is a bready humid belgian white smell, not bad. Whiffs of sweet crystalized ginger.

The taste is a round and sweet flavorful one, small but enjoyable. It has a very unprocessed and unworked-out feel to it. The yeasty aftertaste is especially nice. Carbonation is close to nil--but doesn't take away too much.

The ingredients include wheat and barley malts, wheat, barley, hops, and natural "shironama" yeast--which is exciting that they have their own yeast, if that's what it means.