Fermentation designer Hiraku Ogura guides us around Yamanashi. In this fourth installment of our "Yamanashi Life: Fermentation Glasses" series, we visit Satoshi Niwa, a brewer at Outsider Brewing, a craft beer bar in Kofu, Yamanashi, that creates clever, cool, and sexy craft beer. The term "craft beer" is becoming more prevalent these days. We spoke to him about the appeal of craft beer, visiting a craft beer brewery. ■ What is Craft Beer, Anyway? It's said that there are currently over 200 breweries in Japan. This trend stems from the 1994 revision of the Liquor Tax Act, which allowed breweries to produce alcoholic beverages with an annual production of 60 liters or more. Following this revision, local craft beers began to be brewed throughout Japan. These local craft beers marked the beginning of craft beer in Japan.

By the way, beer from major breweries falls into the "lager" category, and is refreshing and appealing to many people. On the other hand, craft beer, brewed by brewers using their years of experience, wisdom, and skilled techniques, is not only pleasant to drink, but also expresses a truly diverse range of flavors, so much so that it is described as "beer to savor."

■ Craft beer embodies the infinite possibilities of malt, hops, and yeast

Now, let's review the ingredients of beer. The ingredients of beer are simple, if you will. Besides water, there are three elements:

- "Malt," which contributes to color, sweetness, and flavor;
- "Hops," which contribute to aroma and bitterness;
- "Yeast," which brewers select from dozens of varieties.

By combining these three elements, skilled brewers can create countless beers.

Compared to wine, which is highly dependent on the quality of the ingredients, beer is said to be a drink that tests the brewer's sense and skill. Niwa says, "Craft beer's flavor is 30% recipe, 30% brewing technique, and 40% aging control. The brewer's power lies in being able to create the same flavor no matter where they are in Japan, using any water." In fact, Outsider Brewing uses tap water from Kofu to brew their craft beer.

■ Various Beer Styles -- Belgian, German, British

Even beer has its own national characteristics. There are German-style beers that only allow malt and hops, and Belgian-style beers that incorporate herbs and fruits to create a diverse range of beers. When I asked Niwa, "Which style do you like your beers?" he answered with a smile, "All of them!" It seems that in Niwa's hands, it's possible to create delicious beer that transcends style. They brew seasonal craft beers, including ones made with fruits like Yamanashi peaches and Muscat Bailey A.

■ Making craft beer with wild yeast from nature

As a fermentation designer, Hiraku Ogura was astonished by a beer brewing method that day. Rather than using purely cultivated, industrialized yeast to stimulate fermentation, they use a super-wild method of brewing beer by extracting wild yeast from nature. This wild yeast is like a rookie with unknown variables. Even with yeast whose transformation is unknown, Niwa says, "We brew it in one shot without any test brewing." For Niwa, who says, "In craft beer brewing, there is no process that can be cut corners," beer made with this wild yeast is perhaps a mountain worth climbing.

The beer Niwa is currently working on is, quite simply, "beer that pairs well with Japanese food." We brew beer using the umami extracted from shiitake mushrooms and other ingredients to complement Japanese dashi stock. In an age where Japanese cuisine is becoming more globally known, it might be fun to try a beer filtered through Japanese tastes.

If you're curious about the taste of Niwa's beer, try it at Outsider Brewing, located close to Kofu Station in Yamanashi. You're sure to discover "craft beer with infinite possibilities" you've never known before.


[Brewery Information]
Outsider Brewing
1F Miyazawa Building, 1-1-5 Chuo, Kofu City, Yamanashi Prefecture
Tel: 055-223-2622

[Store Information]
Hops & Herbs
2F Miyazawa Building, 1-1-5 Chuo, Kofu City, Yamanashi Prefecture
Tel: 055-225-2622