Author: JBT Staff

As avid surfers, Philippe Gueulet and his friends felt that being able to bring home some local beer to enjoy after their trips to the Chiba coast would make a fitting end to their fun. If you’ve ever engaged in any kind of beach sport, you probably understand the feeling. There are certainly worse reasons to open a brewery, which is exactly what they did. Gueulet has a distinct resemblance to the actor Woody Harrelson. His almost mischievous, boyish smile is what does it the most. He is smiling throughout our interview, in fact, as he should be given the…

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Over the last few years, the number of breweries in Japan has more than doubled to over a thousand. Of course, breweries are not do-it-yourself kits; they require professionals to set them up. Additionally, ambitious companies are diving into the industry without sufficiently experienced staff, either. Spent Grain has been a key player in providing support for both of these needs. Headed by veteran brewers Ryo Suzuki and Takahiro Nagaishi, the company provides a range of services covering all needs: the design and paperwork for new breweries, the importing and installation of brewery equipment (including entire breweries), brewing training on…

For this issue, we return to the topic of centrifuges. But instead of describing aspects of the machinery, we speak to an experienced brewer about his specific application of the technology. Nick Calder-Scholes is the head brewer at Sydney, Australia’s One Drop Brewing Co (featured in JBT60). Using a centrifuge from GEA, whose systems are available in Japan, he and his team have developed a new brewing process they call Clean Fusion. So far, it has yielded eye-opening (and fan-pleasing) results from their R&D IPA program. Hopefully this practice will spread in Japan, too. Please describe the basic process behind…

Since the birth of craft beer in Japan 30 years ago, there have always been businesses not initially involved in brewing that started operations: hotels, agricultural entities, resorts, liquor distributors, and more. So why not an equipment manufacturer? There have been several, actually, and Hokkai Iron Works Co. is one of the more recent ones. To learn more about why, here we posed some questions to its team: head brewer Yamatani, managing director Ishibashi, operations employee Ueda, and sales manager Hata. We understand that for many years Hokkai Iron Works Co. has been engaged in the manufacture of “dished heads”…

Chiba prefecture is a worthy travel destination. If you don’t overlook it, that is. It’s easy for many to think of Chiba as a kind of metropolitan overflow of Tokyo, or as a bedroom community for the capital. The prefecture’s northwest corner is certainly dense with development. But its rural, hilly interior and long stretches of relatively uncrowded beaches provide ample adventure for those looking for a pleasant, easy getaway. Several of us at the Japan Beer Times have been preaching the pleasures of Chiba’s beaches to friends and family for nearly two decades now. Warm, relatively placid waters in…

The alcoholic beverage industry, including craft beer of course, has historically given the impression of being male-driven. However, there has been a steady trend of its members more actively welcoming women, as exemplified by initiatives such as the Pink Boots Society, a U.S.-based nonprofit organization established to support women working in the craft beer industry. The organization leads efforts to brew beer in conjunction with International Women’s Day on March 8, and the profits are reinvested into supporting women. In fact, opportunities for women in the industry have been expanding in recent years. Nozomi Iwase, the owner of Chigasaki Beer…

Founded in 1999, Yokohama Beer is the oldest brewery in the city. For over 25 years, its seasoned brewers have crafted clean, easy-to-drink beers appreciated by locals and far-flung fans alike. The brewery actively collaborates with the community to connect people and expand cultural ties through beer. Notable initiatives include the beer bike that cruises through Minato Mirai, a running club, and joint activities with local universities. Any time there’s something fun going on in the city, you’re likely to find Yokohama Beer there. One such initiative is the “Brewers One Series”, a special project where each Yokohama Beer brewer…

Alfa Laval’s centrifuges were one topic of our interview with James Fox of Kyoto Brewing Company in JBT60. As we noted, “a centrifuge is a machine that separates solids—such as yeast, hops, and proteins—from the liquid beer through centrifugal force, most often performed during the transfer from fermentation to the conditioning tank.” We’ve increasingly seen Alfa Laval’s centrifuges in craft breweries, but they’re pricey. Are they worth it? For a brewery experiencing demand and/or capacity issues, it’s a “no brainer” in the words of Fieldwork Brewing Company’s production team. This Berkeley, California-based brewery (imported to Japan by Nagano Trading) was…

Bad Beer is the Enemy T-Shirt ¥3,000 Size XS (160) S M L XL XXL XXXL (Super Beer Belly Size) Color Natural White Black Pink Burgundy Hop Green Official Japan Beer Times T-shirts feature our catch-phrase:BAD BEER IS THE ENEMY: just ask your doctor, counselor or best friend. 美味しくないビールは世の中の敵です。Text is hand printed (silk screen) on heavy-weight, quality cotton T-shirts. Several styles are available: beige lettering on burgundy, beige lettering on hop-green, white lettering on black, dark brown lettering on natural beige, dark brown on pink, and white lettering on black. Sizes are extra small (160) through to triple-extra-large. We also…