Category: English

On November 18th(Wed.), 2020, the Asia Beer Championship 2020 awards were announced. Far Yeast Brewing took home four awards, including a gold medal for “Far Yeast Tokyo White” in the Saison category. In addition to a gold medal for Tokyo White, Far Yeast Brewing won a silver medal in the Wild Ale category for “Off Trail: Ume-kin’ Me Crazy!”, another silver medal in the Fruit Flavoured Beer category for “Kriek in the flesh”, and received a Chairman’s Selection for “Peach Haze” in the New England Style IPA category. 

About Asia Beer Championship

The Asia Beer Championship is an international beer competition for asian breweries. Beers & Ciders may be entered in any of the 22 different style categories. The top 3 beers in each category are awarded Gold, Silver & Bronze medals respectively. All beers that reach a predetermined level of quality receive a “Chairman’s Selection” accolade.

The 2020 competition was judged in Singapore on November 6th and 7th, 2020 with the results announced on November 18th in an online award ceremony. 

More details for Asia Beer Championship : Asia Beer Championship – Home

 

【Awards beers detail】

「Far Yeast Tokyo White」

Far Yeast Brewing’s flagship saison beer. 

Dry, smooth Saison boasting an aroma that is both refreshing and fruity, derived from a combination of esters and hops.

More details about Tokyo White : https://faryeast.com/en/far-yeast/

 

Price：Open Price

Ingredients：Malted Barlet, Malted Wheat, Hops, Raw Wheat, Sugar

ABV：５％

Brewed at the Headwaters Brewery, Japan

330ml bottle / 350ml can

 

「Ume-kin’ Me Crazy!」

As part 2 of our Yamanashi Support Project, Ume-kin’ Me Crazy! was brewed in Kosuge village. We fed plums harvested locally in Kosuge Village to our barrel-aged wheat-strong ale, creating a complex sour ale with a refreshing plum aroma reminiscent of ume-shu.

More details about Ume-kin’ Me Crazy!  : https://faryeast.com/en/news/17154/

Price：Open Price

Ingridients：Malted Barley, Plum, Sugar, Hops

ABV：7.7％

Brewed at the Headwaters Brewery, Japan

330ml bottle / 750ml bottle / 10 L keg

 

「Kriek in the flesh」

Kriek in the Flesh is a kettle-soured fruit ale made with sour cherry juice. We developed this beer in collaboration with our good friends at Culmination Brewing in Portland, Oregon. 

More details about Kriek in the flesh  : https://faryeast.com/news/16692/

Price：Open Price

Ingridients：Malted Barley, Cherry juice, Sugar, Hops

ABV：4.5％

Brewed at the Headwaters Brewery, Japan

350ml can 

 

「PEACH HAZE」

As part 1 of our Yamanashi Support Project, Peach Haze was brewed in Kosuge village. 

This fruit-forward hazy IPA was brewed with Fresh Peaches from Yamashita Peach Farm in Yamanashi City in the Kofu Basin.

More details about Peach Haze  : https://faryeast.com/news/16941/

Price：Open Price

Ingridients：Peach, Malted Barley, Flaked Oats, Malted Wheat, Hops, Sugar

ABV：5.5％

Brewed at the Headwaters Brewery, Japan

350ml can / 15L keg / 20L keg

We’d like to congratulate all of the other breweries who also medaled in the Asia Beer Championship 2020 and express our appreciation for all of the participating breweries! With healthy competition in our industry, we hold each other to a higher standard and all of our beers improve. A Special Congratulations to Ugly Half Beer in Taiwan, Effingut Brewery in India, Outlaw Brewing in Thailand, NBeer Craft Brewing in China, AnC Brewing in Korea, and Jim & Dad’s Brewing in Taiwan, who all medaled in the same categories as us. Thank you for the stiff competition!

Far Yeast Brewing Co. (Head office: Kosuge, Yamanashi Prefecture; Representative Director: Shiro Yamada), a craft beer brewery that brings beer brimming with originality from Japan to the world, has announced the third installment of the “Yamanashi Support Project” to liven up Yamanashi Prefecture with beer: “Grapevine”. This Italian Grape Ale is brewed with grapes from Nirasaki City, Yamanashi Prefecture. 

As COVID-19 continues to lead to event cancelations and a decline in tourism around Yamanashi prefecture, we at Far Yeast Brewing are doing what we can to help revitalize our local agricultural, tourism, and food & beverage industry partners the best way we know how: brewing beer! The first Yamanashi Support Project, “PEACH HAZE,” was brewed in July using peaches harvested in Yamanashi Prefecture. The second project, “Ume-kin’ Me Crazy!” was blended using plums grown in Kosuge Village, home to our head brewery and company headquarters. Both products achieved great success and were very popular.

Our third release in the Yamanashi Support Project is GRAPEVINE, a beer brewed with grapes from Sunrise Farm in Nirasaki, Yamanashi Prefecture. Three grape varieties were used: Kyoho, Gorby, and Pione. Kyoho and Gorby were the grapes produced by a Japanese Viticulturist.  We were planning to brew a beer using grapes from Yamanashi Prefecture, a friend of the head brewer introduced us to Mr. Hirotaka Yokomori of Sunrise Farm, and we were able to brew this beer.

 

■Utilizing grapes that have lost their commercial value due to plant disease

Under the influence of the long rainy season in July and the intense heat in August 2020 this year, the plant disease called Glomerella cingulata spread mainly among black grape varieties such as Kyoho grapes and Pioneer grapes, dropping yields significantly in Yamanashi Prefecture. At Sunrise Farm, our partner for this time, some of the Kyoho grapes and Peonies infected the disease too, and once a part of the bunch infected, the product value vanished, so they were not able to sell them as products. As a result, many defective grapes had to be discarded. However, the part of bunch of grapes that are not affected by the disease is still delicious with a right balance of sweetness and sourness. So, we carefully cut off the diseased part from a bunch of grapes one by one and remained a part that could be used for brewing beer. 

　When we received the grapes from Sunrise Farm, our brewing staff visited them and helped harvest the grapes and dispose of the defective grapes.  We could hear various stories about the difficulties of cultivating crops that are strongly influenced by nature. It was a meaningful opportunity for us to interact with our neighbor agricultural producers in Yamanashi Prefecture.

■Adoption of a part of winemaking methods

We have adopted the “cold soak” method of winemaking. Before the fermentation process, the entire tank is placed in a refrigerated container and marinated at a low temperature for approximately one week to extract more color and aroma components from the grapes. 

■The Italian Grape Ale, with its distinctive fruitiness. 

This beer style is the Italian Grape Ale. It is the beer style started by Italian craft breweries using wine grapes and uses grape pulp, skin, and juice in the beer brewing process. GRAPEVINE introduced cold soak, a wine technique, before the fermentation process, and added fruit juice during the fermentation process. The hops used was Enigma, with tropical fruit, berry, and stone fruit aroma, combined with the grapes’ complex aroma. The pale malt mixes’ bronze color with the grapes’ color to create an orange wine appearance fruity beer. 

GRAPEVINE will go on sale nationwide on Wednesday, November 18.

And, It will be on tap at our brewpub, Far Yeast Tokyo Brewery & Grill, in Gotanda, Tokyo. 

We will continue brewing beers with a variety of made-in-Yamanashi ingredients. 

Yamanashi Support Project page: https://faryeast.com/yamanashi-project3/

【Product Information】

Name：GRAPEVINE

Release date：November 18th(Wed)

Price：Open Price

Ingredients: Grapes (Nirasaki City, Yamanashi Prefecture Origin), Wheat Malt, Hops

ABV：5.5%

Style：Italian Grape Ale

Brewery：Far Yeast Brewing Genryu Brewery 

Format：350ml CAN, 15L SUS keg

＊This beer “GRAPEVINE” was named after its meaning of the word grapevine— born from many people’s connections.

 

Far Yeast Brewing launches a limited release, “Traverse”, a collaboration beer with West Coast Brewing in Shizuoka. Traverse will be available on the FYB online store starting at 18:00 on Wednesday, October 28th. https://faryeast.stores.jp/ 

To make Traverse, the Off Trail team joined forces with the hop heads over at West Coast Brewing in Shizuoka to produce the best of both worlds: a dry-hopped barrel-aged sour beer! Last July, the WCB brewers came to our brewery in Yamanashi to select the barrels and hops that would go into this blend. Traverse’s Tangerine, White Grape, and Tropical Fruit aromas combine with the gentle sourness, bretty funk, and oak aged goodness of the base beer to take you on a flavor journey across the world.

We named this beer in honor of the long distances the ingredients had to travel to Japan from the far corners of the globe: Hops from New Zealand, Malt from Belgium and Germany, Yeast from the United States, Barrels from France. 

750ml bottles are available on the FYB online store beginning at 18:00 on Wednesday, October 28th. Kegs and 330ml bottles will ship out starting on Thursday, November 12th.

In the spirit of collaboration, we also made a beer over in Shizuoka at the WCB facility: “Yeast meets West”. This pilsner style beer uses cedar from Kosuge village, home of the Far Yeast Brewing Genryu Brewery. “Yeast meets West” will be available on the WCB official EC site (https://wcbshizuoka.stores.jp/) and various bottle shops and beer bars as of Thursday, October 22nd.  

 

【Product information】

Name：Traverse

Release date：November 12th(Thu)

EC site open ：October 28th(Wed) 18:00

Price：Open Price

Ingredients : Malted Barley made in Germany, Wheat Malt, Hops, Sugar, Passion Fruit

ABV：5.6%

Style：Dry Hopped Barrel Aged Sour Ale

Brewery：Far Yeast Brewing Genryu Brewery 

Format：750ml Bottle, 330ml Bottle, 10L SUS keg

 

Far Yeast Brewing Co. (Head office: Shibuya Ward, Tokyo; President: Shiro Yamada), a craft beer maker that spreads distinctive Japanese beers to the world, will relocate its directly managed pub from its previous location in Shibuya 2-chome to Far Yeast Tokyo Brewery & Grill, a new company-owned and operated brewpub in Gotanda. The new restaurant’s Grand Opening is scheduled for Wednesday, October 14th, 2020.

Compared to our former restaurant, Far Yeast Tokyo Craft Beer & Bao*, our new location will have five times the seating capacity and a distinctive and wide variety of food and beverages to choose from, perfect for any occasion.

*Far Yeast Tokyo Craft Beer & Bao” in Shibuya, closed on Sunday, August 23.

Far Yeast Tokyo Craft Beer & Bao, our first directly managed pub, opened in July 2017 in Shibuya and has become known throughout Tokyo as a great place to enjoy our full range of craft beer on tap. Over the last three years we out-grew the 2.5 square meter restaurant location and decided to relocate to accommodate the growing demand for a high quality craft beer and dining experience.

Far Yeast Tokyo Brewery & Grill’s inviting glass-walled spacious location in Gotanda, Tokyo, will seat 105, including 30 seats on the terrace. 

The pub has twenty taps and offers carefully selected craft beers on draft, including the company’s core brands: the KAGUA and Far Yeast series, and Japanese and international guest beers. The menu focuses on grilled dishes such as the herb-grilled Daisen origin chicken and grilled Japanese origin beef. Additionally, the food menu spans more styles to complement the beer including Napoli pizza and charcuterie plates. We also serve the legendary Ozaki beef, which is in constant demand in Japan’s domestic market and overseas.

The Gotanda brewpub also houses a 300L brewery scheduled to begin operations in January 2021. One tenth the size of our head brewery in Yamanashi, Gotanda’s brewery will offer experimental, limited edition beers brewed on-premise and will enable us to fill the needs of restaurants and other customers interested in small-scale customized beers. 

Like our other directly managed restaurants in Atami and Fukuoka, we have adopted the same stringent measures following municipal government guidelines to prevent the spread of coronavirus. We appreciate your willing participation in adhering to these guidelines. 

Our head brewery in Yamanashi is currently preparing a limited edition beer to commemorate the grand opening of Far Yeast Tokyo Brewery & Grill, to first be tapped at the grand opening on Wednesday, October 14. The limited-edition beer uses the new Talus hop, first released for commercial sale this year. It will be a sessionable beer with a gorgeous hop aroma perfect for the first drink of the night. Through brewing, selling beer, and operating directly managed pubs, we will continue to promote the enjoyment of unique craft beer in Tokyo and around the world.

 

【Food menu example】

 

【Restaurant Info】

Name: Far Yeast Tokyo Brewery & Grill

Address: 1-15-6 Nishi-Gotanda, Shinagawa-ku, Tokyo

 

Access : 

3-minute walk from Gotanda Station on the JR Yamanote Line 

5-minute walk from Gotanda Station on the Toei Asakusa Line

3-minute walk from Tokyu-Ikegami Line Osaki-Hirokoji station

 

Open hours: Weekdays 11:30 – 15:00, 17:00 – 23:00

　　　　　    Saturday and Sunday 11:30 – 23:00

　　　　　    Subject to change 

Open all-year-round

Seats:  Maximum 105 seats (75 inside and 30 on the terrace)

　　　  Under the COVID-19 situation, we operate with fewer seats.

 

Instagram：https://www.instagram.com/faryeasttokyo 

 

Starting in September 2020, Far Yeast Brewing Co., Ltd. will relocate its headquarters from Shibuya-ku, Tokyo to its head brewery, Genryu Brewery, in Kosuge Village of Yamanashi Prefecture.

The global impact of COVID-19 has led to a rapid shift in our working style, increasing the need and practice of telecommuting, culminating in our decision to relocate our head office to Kosuge Village. This move enables us to work more closely with the local community and Yamanashi prefecture to increase our contribution to revitalizing efforts in the region.

■Promote teleworking

In response to the spread of the new coronavirus, employees working at the head office in Shibuya Ward, Tokyo, have already been working remotely since April. Our company’s standard practices have been built around sharing information and holding internal meetings online due to our dispersed operations between our brewery in Kosuge and our directly managed restaurants in Atami, Fukuoka, and Shibuya. Therefore, our employees effortlessly overcame the hurdle to transition to a remote work system, resulting in a positive impact on business efficiency. We are convinced that providing our employees with different working style options that reduce the restrictions of time and place is a necessary step to keep our growing company attractive to new talent interested in joining our team.

■Contributing local revitalization 

We are honored to be the first company to move its head office to Kosuge Village in Yamanashi Prefecture. Kosuge Village is located at the headwaters of the Tama River and is blessed with abundant nature and water. We established our head brewery, named Genryu Brewery, in Kosuge Village in 2017. Since then, various initiatives have been undertaken in cooperation with the Kosuge Village Office and local businesses in Kosuge village and Yamanashi Prefecture. In 2017, we collaborated with the Kosuge Village volunteer team to brew a limited edition beer for the Tama Genryu Festival. To revitalize Yamanashi with beer, we launched the “Yamanashi Support Project” in July 2020 with a beer brewed with peaches grown in Yamanashi Prefecture. We will continue to strengthen our ties with the local community and actively work to employ residents and promote immigration. Because of the lifestyle changes caused by the Covid-19 pandemic, there is a growing trend of escaping the city center in search of a nature-rich living environment. Our response to this trend is to provide attractive workplaces for employees and help to revitalize the region.

About Far Yeast Brewing Co., Ltd.

“Democratizing beer” – Developed under the mission to “re-establish the diversity and abundance of true beer culture, which has sadly been hidden by relentless over-commercialisation.” To achieve this goal, we enlist our Japanese flavored beer brand “Kagua,” Tokyo themed brand “Far Yeast,” and Innovative beer brand “Off Trail” to spread our distinctive beers to the world.

<Contact for this release>

Far Yeast Brewing Company　PR team：Sasaki・Oshiro
Mail：pr@faryeast.co.jp　 TEL：03-6849-2812