楓吹雪 (Maple Blizzard)

1 bar limited to 1x kegs max

Anyone who loves craft beer in Japan loves Y.Market Brewing in Nagoya, and we here at Kyoto Brewing Co. are no exception. Despite their relatively recent start in 2012, they are an ever popular presence on beer menus and at events throughout the country. While a love of hops is common to both breweries, we are always impressed by the ability of Makoto Kachi and Masakazu Nakanishi to create great beers across a wide variety of styles.

Its been great fun getting to know one another at events over the last few years. Kachi-san has a unique backstory in that he was inspired to be a brewer while doing an unrelated working holiday in Canada, and we also both have a strong friend and adviser in Luc Lafontaine, now of Godspeed Brewing. Nakanishi-san already had a glittering career at Ise Kadoya brewery in Mie before leaving and eventually finding work at Y.Market, creating one of Japan's brewing "dream teams".

We shared a lot of ideas about what to make for the collaboration, but in the end thought it was best to incorporate aspects of what each brewery is known for, but in the recipe brewed at the other person's brewery. For the beer brewed at KBC, we decided to keep the soft yet dry character common to many of our beers, but use a yeast and hop that is quintessentially Y.Market. The result is an American Amber Ale brewed with Northwest Ale yeast and featuring Mosaic hops that is just as inviting to maltheads and hopheads alike.

Naming: 'Kaede' is one of the many words used in Japanese to describe not only the Japanese maple tree but also the brilliant colours it shows during the fall foliage. As the release of the beer coincides with the end of the foliage season in Japan, we felt the colour of the beer accurately described the storm of red maple leaves kicked up by a strong autumn wind, or 'fubuki'.

Style: American Amber Ale

Malt Bill:

Maris Otter, Pilsner, Cara Aroma, Roasted Barley

Hops:

Bittering: Simcoe

Flavour/Aroma: Mosaic, Simcoe

Yeast: Northwest Ale

ABV: 6.0%

IBU: 34

Gas Volumes: 2.3