Lately, you may have noticed the craft brew renaissance has started to sweep into your local pub, restaurants and supermarkets. More and more people are embracing these unique styles of brews that the normal macro beers can’t hold a candle to. More recently, older craft brands that have been around since the late '80s and early '90s have started to regain popularity and the notoriety they deserve. One company from Japan has been brewing beer since 1996 and in the past few years has been slowly making its way into the mainstream craft market. Hitachino Nest, by Kiuchi Brewing, has started to raise some eyebrows and tantalize people's palates.
Kiuchi Brewing Company, who is manly known for making world-class sakes, founded Hitachino Nest Beer in early 1996. They started incorporating different styles of beers with their own unique cultural heritage. Because of the lack of locally grown ingredients that one would normally use for brewing (malts, hops etc.), most are imported. They also use red rice, native spices and, of course, sake in some of their brews. A few of their unique brews are the Red Rice Ale and Japanese Classic Cedar Cask Ale.
