Our Kimagure series beers change each season, although from year to year each product's concept stays the same, with Natsu being our sessionable lighter IPA. That said, we also change the beer from year-to-year. This last year we have been tweaking each one slightly with the goal of making them more impactful, while not losing their core flavours and themes. Continuing with this trend, Natsu no Kimagure has gotten its most ambitious upgrade yet. We took some of what we have done with our experimental thiol beers and brought some of that wonderful tropical passion fruit flavour to our seasonal brew! When we think of summer, we think of everything drenched in sunshine, warm weather, fresh fruit, and just generally being outdoors. This beer needed to embody that in its character, and also be thirst-quenching in the heat that Japan brings.
The beer starts with an oat-heavy malt bill, with pilsner and dextrin malt for body. This gives the beer a pale hazy appearance, and a soft and pillowy mouthfeel. We went with a Motueka and Mosaic blend on this one, pairing the passion fruit yeast character with flavours of tropical citrus, berries, lemon-lime, and stone fruit. We boosted the thiols in the beer with the addition of Phantasm in the whirlpool. The combination of thiol character and selected Mosaic and Motueka make this beer burst with tropical fruit flavours, allowing it to have a stronger hop profile than the lower ABV would suggest. This beer is incredibly drinkable, and its juicy hop flavour makes it just right for any summer outing.