Sapporo Namashibori

Can. Comes as “Sapporo Hokkaido Namashibori”. Clear yellow, short bubbly white head. Bit malty aroma with somethin grassy. Thin mouthfeel. Mild flavour of some malt, bit of grains and grass. Brewed with Ryofu barley grown in Hokkaido only. Sapporo claims that you get a "sense of nature" with this beer…. Hmmm.

Painful stuff - very light, thin and watery. There is no English on the can, not even the word Sapporo, except for "namashibori.com" in real small text on the side. A typical asian brew, though not as dry as most Sapporos. For tax reasons, Japanese brewers create these "happoshu" (low-malt) beers which are made with rice, I guess, instead of barley. Lots of water flavor.

My rating for Sappopr Namashibori is very similar to my rating for other Asian pala lagers. While not painful to drink, this beer has ever less taste than american light beers.

Can: Clear yellow, light head and lacing. The nose is light, thin, metallic, some subtle malts. The flavor is thin, very little hop, some malt. Bland, blah. Happoshu

a little buttery on the way down, but overall dry, corny taste; little to offer, but if out in the sun and thirsty, this will do the job.

Seriously foamy white head. Bright yellow color. Funky, sour corn aroma. Flavors of corn, rice, and the tiniest bit of hops. Thin and watery palate. Rough stuff. But of course it’s happoshu, not beer...

Can. My first happoshu! Very interesting, worth trying for the experience, at least. It tastes like an extremely watered down beer. So this is what beer tastes like w/o malt! Really, all I can taste is a little alcohol and a little hops. It is thin, watery and very carbonated. I have to grudgingly admit that despite the lack of any defining characteristics it is somewhat thirst quenching. Also, there is some hop flavor, some pronounced bitterness, that seems to give it a shade of flavor. Ironically, this was a special item in the 7-11 I bought it in, but in Japan it is made the way it is so that it is cheaper than "beer".

Can. Yet another in a lengthy list of offerings from Sapporo that taste pretty similar to each other. This one has somewhat higher alcohol than the usual variety, but is actually more bland and tasteless.