But if you drink, please do so legally and responsibly. ]

"Ah, this is such a throwback!!

OK, so, let me tell you a story:

Once upon a time I lived in New York City

by a Japanese import grocery store.

They used to sell beer with cute little owl logos on it

but back then I really wasn't into beer

and thought they were all gross so I never thought to buy it.

Fast forward a few years,

and suddenly I've been invited out to Ibaraki Prefecture,

home to the Kiuchi Brewery in Japan,

which makes Japan's one and only

craft brand, "Hitachino Nest Beer".

Once we got there and saw the same owl logo

I finally realized, this is the same brand I saw in New York.

So, we can finally solve the mystery

and see what Japan's famous craft beer

is all about.

We just made it to the factory and

and immediately there's this delicious fragrance of...

BEER.

"So we'll start off over here"

Like any beer, the first step is to the simmer down the main ingredients

so that it begins to separate and purify.

Just be careful, because if you open the hatch

you're in for QUITE the potent smell!

( "WHAT KIND OF SMELL?!" )

One thing that makes Nest Beer so special

is the range of ingredients they use

and the workers who will try nearly anything to make a new flavored brew.

Munich.... malt??? What is that???

That's because the Kiuchi family tradition behind nest beer

has been used to brew for almost 200 years here

using similar sake distilling techniques

now to create more colorful flavors of beer.

So all the different steps it takes to make the beer

are connected through pipes from buliding to building.

We've gotta follow this to the next level of beer!

"Wait, just this part right here???"

"This level right weights one ton."

This is one ton?!

That's heavy!

This metal must be pretty sturdy...

And here we have "Pilsner..."

Ah yeah, that's a beer too!

One ton... two tons...

So just this here is one elephant.

Since an elephant weighs just over about two tons.

Seven THOUSAND liters of beer!

In just one of these!

Ales brewed in wine and cherry blossom barrels...

beers made with ginger and red rice...

and my favorite, the delicate White Ale.

All of their beers are made locally

using grains from the same fields that are used

to make Ibaraki Prefecture's famous soba.

And of those, over half are sold by export around the world.

[Ship to the Netherlands]

As for Japan,

you can buy them easily at the Isetan in downtown Shinjuku.

The first floor may look like a typical department store

but if you go down one floor to the basement,

you'll find Nest Beer and other local brews.

Plus they're right next to the 'bento' prepared lunches and other foods

that look so good!!!

This will make a great gift for my friends when they visit!

Yep, it's Spring time in Japan!

Which means picnics in the park and fun under the cherry blossoms.

My friends here just flew in from the states

so we decided to take it easy with the familiar feel

but special flavor of a Japanese-style craft beer.

("Have you guys had this one before?)

"No, we haven't had it before!"

"The blue one is my favorite!"

Cheers!

I still have one question: Why is it an owl?

Oh, it's an owl because

there were a lot of owls living here since a while back

so we just kind of made it our mascot.

That's great.

If you'd like to try Nest Beer for yourself

check out the link to Isetan Shinjuku

in the description below!