A big thank you to Alex for bringing this beer back all the way from Japan!
Kamakura Moon | Kamakura Beer Brewing Company | Kamakura, Japan | Altbier | 5.50% ABV
Served chilled from a 330mL bottle and poured into a snifter. Pours a reddish-amber color with a think white laced head. Smell is of a biscuity malt and earthy hops. Carbonation is moderate to high with a medium body. Taste is sweet and crisp, with a very dry finish. This beer is very European tasting to me (like a much, much better tasting Amstel or Heineken) It still follows the Japanese beer trend of a dry finish (like Asahi) but still has a lingering sweetness and bitterness. It is difficult to detect any noticeable flavors other than the malt.
Overall a very nice beer. It is no surprise that this won the Gold Medal for the World's Best Altbier by the World Beer Awards in 2010. The brewery is a fascinating one, and their beers cannot be found in America at all. Currently, the brewery only produces 130 kiloliters per year, around 400,000 bottles in total. I feel lucky to have been able to try one of those!
91/100 (though I will say this is the top Altbier I have ever tried)
Not enough ratings Beer Advocate
Kamakura Moon | Kamakura Beer Brewing Company | Kamakura, Japan | Altbier | 5.50% ABV
Served chilled from a 330mL bottle and poured into a snifter. Pours a reddish-amber color with a think white laced head. Smell is of a biscuity malt and earthy hops. Carbonation is moderate to high with a medium body. Taste is sweet and crisp, with a very dry finish. This beer is very European tasting to me (like a much, much better tasting Amstel or Heineken) It still follows the Japanese beer trend of a dry finish (like Asahi) but still has a lingering sweetness and bitterness. It is difficult to detect any noticeable flavors other than the malt.
Overall a very nice beer. It is no surprise that this won the Gold Medal for the World's Best Altbier by the World Beer Awards in 2010. The brewery is a fascinating one, and their beers cannot be found in America at all. Currently, the brewery only produces 130 kiloliters per year, around 400,000 bottles in total. I feel lucky to have been able to try one of those!
91/100 (though I will say this is the top Altbier I have ever tried)
Not enough ratings Beer Advocate