Hitachino Nest XH

Brewed by Kiuchi Brewery
Style: Belgian Ale
Ibaraki, Japan

Deep garnet tinted beer, tin white head. Lightly hazy. Aroma is quite unique. Herbal and very oaky with lots of richness. A strong underlying fruitiness, dried pears, light apple and a bit of earthiness. Flavour is quite woody and oaky with a rich fruity nuttiness and some classic Kiuchi yeasty tartness in here. The tartness helps cut through the sweetness and the rich oakiness. As it warms the beer really comes together. Earthy hopping, with good balance. Fairly tannic on the back, but I like it. Another very unique brew from the folks at Kiuchi.

Bottle. Opaque orange brown pour with a thin film on top. Aroma of sour wood, green grapes, and some sweet malt and earthy malt. The flavor seems to be dominated by wood / alcohol, and there is a little bit of sweet malt / plum underneath. Interesting and a little bit of a challenge to drink.

Bottle; poured a dark amber/copper color with small to medium off white head. Aroma was pretty sour; with fruit, wood, sugar, and yeast. Had some light funkiness that permeated throughout the flavor; a good amount at that. Some sugary fruits, wood and yeast as well. Overall it was a bit surprising in terms of the flavor profiel, but pretty good.

Oh wow, thanks to Guerde from stopping at the Blue Max and picked up a 12-oz bottle of this beer. Pours a semi-hazy copper amber brew with a fast dissolving off-white head that dissipates clean. Aroma of dried sweet and dark fruits, some tart berries, vanilla, figs (without the Newtons), and a slight yeast/barnyard funk. Taste is medium bodied with some carbonation, along with flavors of caramel malt, some yeast, brown sugar and a touch of vanilla. Finish is semi-dry with a slight yeast and caramel malt aftertaste.

Many thanks to Guerde for this one! Murky copper color with no head. Slight aroma of ginger and other spices. Very interesting taste. Brown sugar, rice and ginger dominate for me. The sake is definitely noticeable. It has a bit of barnyard dryness and almost funk to it like a Biere de Garde. I think this is a Japanese Farmhouse Ale.

(Bottle) Pours a cloudy amber-brown body with a creamy medium-sized off-white head. Aroma of dates, brown sugar, wood, caramel, vanilla, and white grapes. Flavor of toffee, vanilla, wood, fig, plum, light acidity, and apple with a semi-dry finish.

Bottle. Pours a dark amber color with a beige colored head. Aroma is oaky, dried fruits, maybe some clove. Flavor is again oaky, light tartness, light malt, dried fruit, citrus. Palate is medium bodied, medium carbonation, finishes lightly sour. This really surprised me in a positive way. Very good stuff.

(bottle) Poured a dark brown with an off-white head. Nice aroma that contrasts between sweet and sour notes, with some nice dark fruits, wood, and a slight dose of barnyard funk. The taste was a nice dose of sweet fruit and light spice, with a subtle sour undertone that added to the complexity. The mouthfeel of this beer was full and the finish was tart.