I apologize friends...I have been busier than a bee this week and I haven't been able to get up as many articles as I would have liked. Let's jump into it on a brisk Friday morning in the hills....
If you are in the Tokyo area, get to Oktoberfest 2009 in Hibiya. At the site you can check the dates for the other parties around the island culminating with the REAL Oktoberfest in Yokohama in October. This weekends festivites start today and run until the 31st of May.
Here is a list of what will be on tap this week:
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| Franziskaner
Hefe
Weisbier
Gold |
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If I was going, I'd be all over Fujizakura's brews and that Spaten Optimator!!!!Also, if you haven't already heard or read in the comments, the
Minoh Beer Festival has been canceled due to the Pig Flu....dammit! Never fear though! The word on the street is that it is back on for
June 27th and 28th!!!Be back soon, with news of an upcoming interview....that IS THE BIGGEST ONE WE HAVE EVER DONE, AND ONE THAT YOU WON'T WANT TO MISS!!!!!!
10 comments:
very cool blog. I first had the idea to do beer reviews when I came to Japan and saw the uniformity of usual beers. I wanted to do a review to sort out the fine differences between them, and i've considered starting a separate blog for it too!
But now I see that you've got it seriously covered! Haha, keep up the good work.
Mike, thanks for stopping in. Always good to meet some other good beer fans out there. Any good craft beer in your area?
The Fujisakura is the best value beer at the oktoberfest. They brought out a new glass for their marzen. I'ts a pretty solid looking mug. Held it in my hands a few weeks ago, at the brewery. I hope most Japanese will support the Japanese craft beers, rather than the fat cats supplying the German beers. The optimator and Spaaten Helles are fine beers, as is the Franziskaner. Not wasting my money on erdinger or bitburger or kostrizer. The Yokohama used to be the best but they are all getting silly. now u have to pay to get into Yokohama. The organisers are rying to control people more and more and get everyone's money, as opposed to the whole idea of an oktoberfest which should be party! They used ot be awesome.
Chuwy, you got that right. I hope everyone drinks it instead of some of the other German choices...Bitburger is a huge letdown for me...
Why is it that I'm not surprised about beer organizers trying to squeeze folks for money.
Why don't we organize our own jibeer summer festival, centered around good beer and the common man....or good beer and country boys???
That Spaten Optimator is looking MIGHTY fine. MMMMMM
lucky!!!!!!!!
Was out there at the Oktoberfest earlier this evening. Crazy crowds of people, though the lines for beer went pretty quickly.
Screwy system for beer ordering though; have to first stand in line to buy tickets for the beer you want to drink, which includes a 1,000 yen deposit for the glass, then take the tickets for said beers to the actual beer line, where you wait in line *again* to get your beer, which will cost you 1,500 yen for a normal and 3,000 yen for a big'un. Once you're finished drinking, you go stand in line to return your glass to get your deposit back before standing in line yet again to get the tickets for your next beer.
Was pretty happy to drink Franziskaner again on tap for the first time in years, but the sheer time and cost involved in doing so makes me question whether I'll be visiting this Oktoberfest again before it concludes.
Yes, they had a ridiculous system for the German beers. Not the first time this has happened in Japan! Just go to the Taproom in Nakameguro. When that started up and the queues just to order your beer stretched to the door (you had to then sit down and another member of staff would vainly try to find you and bring your beer/s to you about 20 minutes later - I got another persons beer more than once. Someone must have gotten mine too. Things have improved since then, though), I thought that was about as ridiculous as it got. Then I went to the oktoberfest.
John, perhaps you should've taken our suggestion and just went to the Fujisakura stand. No real queues and you just get your glass and beer in one go and it's a damn sight cheaper for just as fine a beer, although the Spaaten helles is much nicer than the Fuji pilsner and the optimator is one heck of a 'hello, good morning and goodnight' brew, at 7.2% of velvety goodness!.
I think the German beers were like 1300yen for a normal beer which isn't even 500ml - it's served in the silly little glasses they used last year, at Yokohama. The buggers! The 3,000 gets you about a litre or a maas. Fujisakura pilsner, weissen, weiss dunkel (this years was quite good) or marzen costs 1,000yen for 500ml. Quicker, faster, plus it's not owned by a multinational coporation (at least I don't think so - they are owned by quite a big Japanese corporation, though). I went twice, so far. Supported the Japanese craft beer both times. Alos brought some cheaper Japanese craft beer in my bag on the Fri and my friend was giving out free German beer on the Saturday, so got my money's worth.
No bloody way I'm gonna fork out the kind of cash the Japanese public were, time and time again AND queue up for ages for the privilage. I understand your fristration. This is the way the oktoberfests in Hibiya and Yokohama have been going for a few years now. Tighter control, more squeezing of our wallets. I say screw them. Bring on the free beer and the cheap booze from outside. I buy my first drink and that's about it. I still support the craft beer industry through my bottle shop purchases and shove a silent two fingers up to the man. Prost!!
The atmosphere there was not bad. Lots of pretty girls and more than enough half naked German men in vests and leather pants - if that's your thing. For me, one is more than enough. i didn't thinkthe band this year were very good. They are yet again tucked away into one end of the grounds. Just grab a fujisakura and walk around, make new friends and get gloriously drunk!
I was there on Friday and got hammered. I only went to Fujizakura. I tell people ALL THE F(O&U(*UING TIME don't get the German beers. Get the better tasting, cheap Japanese beers. Of course, when I tell people this, they go drink expensive German beers and complain about the price. I can't win. I remember in 2006 or 7, it was only 800 yen for the Fujizakura. A 1000 isn't the end of the world and I am glad they are doing well, but I would like to see more Japanese brewers. It is too bad Yokohama is gone, as they have they improved their offerings, but they have also moved away from German style beer. They really need to get Miyoshi Becken. Now those guys can make seriously good beer.
Yes, pity Yokohama isn't ehre.
Perhaps they'll get Becken involved when it goes to south Japan? I'll ask the sister, next time I see her.
Funnily enough, I was drinking a Becken weissen and a Becken weissen bock on the Friday, just before I met you. About 500yen from Tanakaya and very good beers they are. Becken is really getting better and better, more so than Yokohama. Wanna try Yokohama's new Green Fresh - it may be for the Green Sheep. Was gonna go there today but gonna meet you guys in the Oktoberfest instead. Another chance to be strong and stay out of that fountain.
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