Yebisu Kohaku - Sapporo Breweries Ltd.

soju6

Missouri

2.9/5  rDev -10.8%
look: 3 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

A: Pours a clear amber color with a creamy off-white head that fades to bits of lacing.

S: Mild aroma of fruit and some malt sweetness. Not a lot here.

T: Taste starts with a bit of a hops nip, then some caramel sweetness. Mild bitterness and a clean finish.

F: Fairly light body, quite smooth and a bit creamy.

Decent drinker, good for a couple. Fairly average run of the mill for the style.

Serving type: can

06-25-2012 22:08:32 | More by soju6

Norseman

Illinois

3/5  rDev -7.7%

04-18-2013 01:04:34 | More by Norseman

warpedrevolution

Washington

3.25/5  rDev 0%

03-27-2013 08:28:32 | More by warpedrevolution

weerezboy

Washington

3/5  rDev -7.7%

03-06-2013 21:50:17 | More by weerezboy

YamagamiTravis

Japan

3.5/5  rDev +7.7%

01-06-2013 13:43:07 | More by YamagamiTravis

gsr

3.5/5  rDev +7.7%

11-07-2012 14:31:36 | More by gsr

shigg85

Japan

3.85/5  rDev +18.5%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Had this on tap at the Yebisu Museum in Ebisu, Tokyo. Poured into a half-pint glass. Beautiful clear bronze-red brew with a thick creamy white head that retains. Roasted malt flavor with a bitter Chinese tea flavor. Smell a bit flat, even lacking the roasted notes. Bitter smell comes out a bit later in its life. Very thin spotted lacing around the glass. A bit gassy, but a pleasant slightly bitter aftertaste. Overall, a great red ale especially if served on tap.

Serving type: on-tap

07-11-2012 04:25:19 | More by shigg85

JohnQVD

New York

3/5  rDev -7.7%

06-03-2012 16:32:42 | More by JohnQVD

GuidedByVoices

Japan

3.25/5  rDev 0%

03-25-2012 08:52:50 | More by GuidedByVoices

TheDr

Alberta (Canada)

4.5/5  rDev +38.5%

12-25-2011 11:56:03 | More by TheDr

OsakaRedbeard

Japan

4/5  rDev +23.1%

12-10-2011 14:37:03 | More by OsakaRedbeard

eye2

Texas

4/5  rDev +23.1%

12-05-2011 23:23:50 | More by eye2

shivtim

Georgia

2.17/5  rDev -33.2%
look: 2.5 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 2 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 2

Found this in Kyoto and I'd never seen it before, so I bought it.
The newer version of the can clearly says "kohaku" in English, and looks a bit different from the one pictured but is still red and gold.

Clear amber color, very little white head that fades quickly.

Nose is corn, a bit of malt, and tin.
Taste is not very good - grainy, corn, metallic, some lingering funky hops. Tastes more like a bad lager.

Mouthfeel is just OK.

This one is a miss!

Serving type: can

11-22-2011 13:42:48 | More by shivtim

Raven3464

Japan

2.85/5  rDev -12.3%
look: 4 | smell: 2 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

Appearance: As the name of beer states, it pours a light amber body with a slight creamy head.

Smell: The same sour smell found in many happoshu (low malt beer) sold in Japan is present. Other than that, there isn't much to note.

Taste: There is a hint of hops upfront but then nothing. The beer finishes with the same slight sourness found in many macro lagers.

Mouthfeel: Smooth and creamy - no complaints here

Overall: It's not bad but it's not good either. If it's trying to be a Red Ale, it fails miserably. Thankfully, I don't think that's what they were going for. The beer can be summarized as a normal Sapporo lager but with a slight hop kiss up front. It's a good change of pace from most Japanese macro brews but at 320 yen plus a can, it sort of falls into no man's land. For a little more yen you can buy a premium Belgian brew; a little less will get you almost the same thing.

Serving type: can

10-28-2011 12:54:21 | More by Raven3464

pettis

Japan

3.35/5  rDev +3.1%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

A: Pours really nicely with a foaming white head atop a beautifully amber-hued beer (Kohaku 琥珀 is Japanese for "amber"). Medium carbonation with a steady stream of sparse bubbles rising from the bottom. Would score this higher if it weren't for the poor head retention.

S: Fairly sweet...some caramel-like malt in there with a bit of grass/straw and some faint Saaz-like hop spice.

T: The malt dominates here, though not quite as much as I'd like. Then again this is a mass-produced Japanese ale (lager?). Even less hop presence than the nose (which is to say very little), and a bit thin in mouthfeel.

Not quite what I was hoping for, but a refreshing change among the usual supermarket selection of Japanese lagers. Ebisu Kohaku is categorized as an American Amber/Red Ale but it seems to be a lager and perhaps should classified as an Amber/Red Lager instead.

According to a blurb on Sapporo's Japanese webiste: "This is an 'Amber beer'-type Ebisu that has realized the taste of amber color by adding crystal malt to the original Ebisu beer and increasing the total amount of malt used." (http://www.sapporobeer.jp/yebisu/kohaku/index.html)

In other words, it sounds like an Ebisu, a lager, brewed with more malt and including crystal malt in the mash bill.

Serving type: can

10-14-2011 08:29:13 | More by pettis

JeremyBrews

Japan

3.15/5  rDev -3.1%
look: 3.5 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

A- 1 finger of head, slight retention, minimal lacing. Light amber color.

S- Light, simple hop aroma.
Hop; 'The Hop'?
Singular Japanese crop?

T- Lasting Hop Flavor, initial to mid- to after- taste. No yeast flavor, not much maltiness worthy of mention.

M- Light-medium body, above average carbonation balances The Hop Zing bitterness nicely.

D- While not memorable or particularly pronounced, The Enjoyable Hop (The One Hop refered to in The Prophecy?) flavor is the theme of this beer. A good beer to assist a BBQ, but not complex enough to merit drinking it alone.

Serving type: can

10-27-2009 09:23:55 | More by JeremyBrews

jeranbrews

New York

2.73/5  rDev -16%
look: 3.5 | smell: 2 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 2.5

A - Comes in a plain red yebisu style can. There is one finger of head, and only the tiniest amount of lacing. Good carbonation that lingers even after a few min. Kohaku means 'amber' but the color of this beer is less amber-like and more like strong apple juice.

S - A bit of linseed oil. The hoppy sourness that you find in almost every single beer Sapporo makes. I'm seriously beginning to think that Sapporo only buys one type of hop for everything. The smell is mild, not really inviting, not really foretelling. No noticeable yeast smells.

T - The smell is mild which leaves you unprepared for the strong initial hop smack in the face you get on the first sip. The contrast is huge. No transition. There is a mild lingering hoppy aftertaste with a bit of pool water in it that sticks around for about 2 min. Very basic. Hop at the beginning; hop at the end. No yeast flavor at all.

M - Fizzy low viscosity, however there is a nice smooth creaminess that penetrates despite the hoppyness.

D - This is overall boring. There is no smell and a strong single hop flavor. This to me tastes less like an ale and more like a dry lager. It's not a complex flavor at all. This would not be a good beer to drink by itself. Pair this with some kind of food. Anything.

Serving type: can

10-26-2009 15:17:40 | More by jeranbrews

SargeC

Japan

3.23/5  rDev -0.6%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

Appearance: Light amber brew with a thick golden head. Rustic appearance.

Smell: Clean with hints of hops. Slight malt aroma.

Taste: Very subdued flavor. Hints of smoky malt. This is less flavorful than regular all-malt Yebisu.

Mouthfeel: Light-medium body. Semi dry.

Drinkablity: Tasty, but a bit of a disappointment. I expected more from the Yebisu line and was excited to see an amber in the lineup. It was not as good as the other Yebisu varieties I have had, but it was still a serviceable brew.

Serving type: can

12-13-2008 03:50:55 | More by SargeC

bobsy

Ontario (Canada)

2.48/5  rDev -23.7%
look: 2.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 2 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 3

Light amber colour with a thin off-white head. Mild fruity aroma is a touch on the bland side. A bit of nut, some fruit and a light dose of hops are encompassed in a bit of a boring flavour profile. Thin body and over-carbonated. Just as bad as any other macro amber / red ale I've ever had.

Serving type: on-tap

10-12-2008 18:46:14 | More by bobsy