Koshihikari Echigo Beer - Uehara Shuzou Co. Ltd. / Echigo Beer Pub

JMiculka

Texas

4.55/5  rDev +40%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 5 | overall: 5

Very smooth and drinkable beer with a slight taste of hops. I have taste tested with friends and they found it to be very good. While somewhat light in body it had a very smooth mouth feel. It would be a beer that I would use to celebrate special occasions. Wish it were more widely available. Great with sashimi or sushi.

Serving type: bottle

10-12-2009 00:30:44 | More by JMiculka

DogFood11

California

4.13/5  rDev +27.1%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 5

Poured into a pils glass it formed a solid white head. Ring lacing was sparce but evident. Yellow bodied brew with massive amounts of racing carbonation. So much carbonation that this has to be up there with the most visible bubbling I've seen in a brew.

Like most beers in this style there are faint hints of grain but overall its fairly clean. The malt bill is sturdy but lacking much flavor. Hops crispen it up lightly towards the end. This is quite the dry finishing brew and is completely void of anything offensive or that would detract from this being a nearly perfect example of the style. Very well done.

Wow!! this baby is sooo clean and crisp and refreshing that I'd love to see this enter the country in a case of cans. The oversized bottle will work for now.

Serving type: bottle

06-14-2007 00:31:34 | More by DogFood11

watchnerd

California

4/5  rDev +23.1%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

500 ml oversized bottle, picked it up from Nijiya Market in San Francisco.

Okay, I'm going to lay my cards on the table right now: this is one of the best Japanese macro / rice lagers to be had. It trumps most of the big names (Asahi, Sapporo, Kirin), Yebisu being the only other one that is a stand-out.

It pours clean and clear, but not too pale. A nice golden color. A light foam, but not too much, nor much lace. A slight bit of grain and hops in the aroma.

But the taste is perfect for this style: crisp, a bit dry, and edging much closer to being a pils than is typical for this style. You can actually taste hops in this one!

Amazingly drinkable, and perfect for paring with the more subtle nature of Japanese food, the one your West Coast Double IPA will overpower. Try it!

Serving type: bottle

02-19-2008 02:52:58 | More by watchnerd

RblWthACoz

Pennsylvania

3.93/5  rDev +20.9%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

Nice label. Pours a clear straw with almost no head. Nose is slightly grainy. Flavor is pretty subdued. Overall smooth with a slight grain influence. Feel has a nice bubble on the tongue and a well balanced liquid feel. Very drinkable, but keep the style in mind.

Serving type: bottle

12-31-2007 04:19:45 | More by RblWthACoz

SacoDeToro

California

3.9/5  rDev +20%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Poured a super pale straw yellow with a small head that quickly vanished.

The aroma of the beer was of faint malt with some notes of corn.

The flavor of the beer started out with a light sweet maltiness, but finished very clean and dry. The hops provided a soft floral bitterness. There were some light phenolics that gave a nice tingle in the finish.

The mouthfeel on this beer was light, but in no way thin. The carbonation was lively and bright.

This was what I'd call a very good version of Asahi Superdry. Say what you want about light lagers, there are good versions that exist that are crips, refreshing, and full of flavor. This is one of them.

Serving type: bottle

06-04-2007 02:13:12 | More by SacoDeToro

BerkeleyBeerMan

California

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

Appearance: light yellow golden color with no head. Medium-carbonation.

Smell: Grainy sweet rice smell. Slight citric fruitiness. It smells very fresh. Mild hoppiness. I smell hints of grass.

Taste: very mild carbonated sweet and malty. A little bit more kick from the hops than the usual Japanese rice lager. Very smooth and refreshing. Pale characters. Good balance. Light grape taste. Finishes well but slightly pale.

Mouthfeel: Light but well balances. Perfect for washing down a meal. Compliments Sushi very well and is especially good pair with pickled dishes.

Drinkability: very good with food. Slightly sweet. Very satisfying. One is enough.

Serving type: bottle

03-08-2011 04:31:58 | More by BerkeleyBeerMan

dpool

Arizona

3.83/5  rDev +17.8%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

A: Light staw color very light head.

S: Reminds me of the smell of sake with a touch of hops

T: Refreshingly light, and dry hint of rice and maybe a little lemon

M: Very light, little carbonation, but overal pleasant

D: Nice beer to drink with sushi and I can see myself drinking it again.

Serving type: bottle

01-24-2007 05:09:05 | More by dpool

bkilpatr

Oregon

3.78/5  rDev +16.3%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Poured from a 500 ml bottle into an imperial pint glass. 02/26/09.

Pours a bright and clear straw yellow color with a finger and a half of whitish head. The head quickly disappeared leaving slight lacing. Aroma is floral with a rice-like quality.

Taste is somewhat malty and has noticeable rice character. The rice is mostly subtle and creates a softly pleasant flavor. Slight herbal hop presence in the finish. Feel is light-medium bodied and grainy with plenty of carbonation. Very crisp, clean, and dry finish. Drinkability is very good - it's very refreshing. The flavor and feel are both very good.

Serving type: bottle

02-28-2009 21:43:17 | More by bkilpatr

adamatari

Florida

3.75/5  rDev +15.4%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3 | overall: 4

I bought it out of curiousity. As has been mentioned in other reviews, the rice "Koshihikari" is considered to be a particularly good strain of rice.

The color is very light and the head is very flimsy, which is a bad sign for the most part. Suprisingly, though, the beer is very drinkable. I think the intent was to make a super dry lager or pilsner (like Asahi) but strangely it comes out tasting kinda like a kolsch. As it is it's a easy to drink but plain beer that beats out something like Bud mostly due to a very clean aftertaste, but I feel as a kolsch it could be something special. It's a shame it follows the usual super dry style.

It's drinkable but not special in any way. More could have been done with the ingredients, but as is it's just mediocre.

Serving type: bottle

04-02-2006 06:25:17 | More by adamatari

womencantsail

California

3.75/5  rDev +15.4%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

A: The beer pours a clear straw color with a finger or so of white head that dissipates somewhat rapidly.

S: You definitely get the rice on the nose and it provides a nice lightness to the beer. Some mild malt aroma and maybe faint notes of floral hops. Certainly some lager yeast to the nose. Overall, it sort of smells like a decent Helles.

T: Sweet grain and bread to begin with. There is quite a bit of rice and perhaps some corn flavor as well. A light fruitiness to the palate and a light floral and grass hop contribution. The lager yeast is again present.

M: The body is light to medium with a high level of carbonation.

D: I thought this was actually pretty good. A really clean and easy to drink lager.

Serving type: bottle

01-28-2011 23:56:52 | More by womencantsail

broken22

California

3.75/5  rDev +15.4%
look: 3 | smell: 3 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Nothing washes down sushi like a good old Japanese Rice Lager.

Pouring this beer out it springs to life. A decent head forms and dies away fairly fast. The color of the beer is a very light yellow. The smell of the beer is that mix of malt and rice with a slight bitterness to it. These beers usually taste like they smell and this one is no different. The flavor is light with a mix of malt and rice with a slight bitterness to it. The carbonation is medium to heavy and the beer continues to release co2 like champagne. The overall body is very light and the mouth feel is the same.

Overall this beer is satisfying. It pairs perfectly with foods that have very subtle flavors.

Serving type: bottle

05-07-2011 02:53:54 | More by broken22

dsa7783

New Jersey

3.73/5  rDev +14.8%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Single bottle copped from Super Saver in Somerville for $3.50...
Pours a pale, straw-colored, lucid hue... Minimal head, with substantial lacing around the edge of the serving glass...
Aroma: Rice adjuncts, lager smell, honey, and vanilla...
Taste: Strongly complements the aroma, bursting with candied sugars, vanilla, honey, snowcones...
Richer mouthfeel than expected...
Easily downable...
Good stuff and a great depiction of the style,,,
Recommended...

Serving type: bottle

03-23-2009 00:23:28 | More by dsa7783

1759Girl

California

3.73/5  rDev +14.8%
look: 3 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 1.5 | overall: 3

Hmmm... methinks that some of the reviews might just be people venting about their dislike for the style. I for one am not a fan of Japanese rice lagers, but what can you do? I have to be fair and appreciate them or their style, right? And I have to have SOMETHING to wash down the sushi when a restaurant fails to have a good nigori sake on their menu.

Let's get to the nitty gritty>

Appearance>yellow, huge bubbles, no head, clear very lively. Pretty average for it's style though usually there is a bit more head and lacing.

Smell>great. rice, grain,.. no metallic aroma.. extra bonus

Taste> super grainy, like a bowl of cereal or hippie bread. not complex. Crisp refreshing. Perfect for it's style

Mouf- a little too carbonated.

Drinkability> I guess.

Serving type: bottle

05-10-2010 04:03:05 | More by 1759Girl

drabmuh

Maryland

3.68/5  rDev +13.2%
look: 3 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Bottle received in the most difficult (Fedex wise) trade ever conducted between womencantsail and I. Beer poured into a stein.

Beer is yellow and clear with a white head that disappears immediately. Carbonation is large bubbles, steady, moderate. Looks OK but headless.

Aroma is sweet and pilsnery with a mild vegetal sense but not off putting.

Beer is sweeter than expected, mildly grainy at the finish, light in body, mildly carbonated on the palate, overall nice in feel and flavor. Not offensive, overall weak in body and flavor, everything tastes muted on this beer. I'll drink the whole 500 ml but nothing too special here. This used to be the #1 Japanese rice lager, which is why I wanted to review it, but it is currently the #2 and I don't think I can recommend it enough to bump it up to #1, looks like I'm off to Canada!

Serving type: bottle

03-30-2011 02:51:18 | More by drabmuh

atigerlife

Hawaii

3.6/5  rDev +10.8%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Pours a lcear golden color with lots of active, small, bubbles seen rising. Slightly chunky one finger white head that dissipated rather quickly. Spotty lacing.

Aroma is grainy, adjuncts.

Taste is crisp. Clean. Adjuncts. Some malts and light hops come through. Definitely on the sweet side.

Mouthfeel is cleansing and slightly dry.

Overall, quite drinkable. Good session beer or drink with light food. One of the better beers of the style.

Serving type: bottle

08-19-2007 20:29:21 | More by atigerlife

Florida9

Illinois

3.58/5  rDev +10.2%
look: 3 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

A: Clear golden yellow in color. Pours with an extra fizzy, big bubbled head that fizzes itself out of existence, leaving not even the slightest bit of surface coating. Visible carbonation.

S: Corn. Grain. Rice. with a little bit of grassy hops.

T: Mildly sweet toasty grains. Delicate and simplistic. Finishes with a very light hop bitterness.

M: Lighter bodied with heavier carbonation.

D: A slightly better version of the standard Japanese beer, but at $6 for a 500ml bottle, the price isn't justified. However, it pairs well with Japanese food and managed to cut the saltiness of my miso ramen soup. Personally, not my favorite style (basically just an adjunct lager), but this beer is what it is supposed to be.

Serving type: bottle

05-12-2010 02:42:12 | More by Florida9

Gobzilla

California

3.58/5  rDev +10.2%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

A: poured a golden yellow with almost no head and no lacing what so ever.

S: wheat and malt aromas and not much else to speak on.

T: slight skunky wheat with nothing much as to talk about.
Pretty crispy beer though.

M: light body with good carbonation and a crsip finish

D: great session beer but not much else. Have had this beer numerous times and always drink lots of it.

Serving type: bottle

05-29-2010 06:08:10 | More by Gobzilla

puboflyons

New Hampshire

3.53/5  rDev +8.6%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

From the 500 ml. bottle. Sampled on April 23, 2011. The pour is a golden-yellow tone with a lot of carbonation building up to a two inch fizzy white head that diminishes in short order. There are malts in the aroma along with rice and cane sugar. The medium mouthfeel has a slick, creamy texture to it. Lots of sugar and malts in the taste as well with a slight hop bite at the end. It reminds me of a sweeter Becks.

Serving type: bottle

04-23-2011 23:32:11 | More by puboflyons

Dukeofearl

California

3.5/5  rDev +7.7%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

500 ml bottle purchased at Hi Time Wine in Costa Mesa, Ca. in January 2007; it's been sitting at the back of my fridge since then (It's October now- Oops!).

Pours a bright, clean, clear yellow with a decent carbonation, which allows a thin cover to last quite a long time. Aroma of light biscuity malt- no real hop presence.

Flavor takes the malts along, but adds in a real hop presence. Not an American hop bomb presence, it's quite subtle, but most certainly there. Overall, a nicely balanced, clean refreshing lager.

Mouth and drinkability- very crisp, clean, and like the appearance- clear. Easily drinkable, and would obviously go well with sushi or tempura.

Serving type: bottle

10-22-2007 23:18:39 | More by Dukeofearl

soulgrowl

United Kingdom (England)

3.5/5  rDev +7.7%
look: 1.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

Appearance: Very, very pale yellow, like the color of chicks' down, with a thin, quivering, audibly volatile layer of frothy white spittle on top.

Smell: Sweet, bready malts with a sake-like clarity and vague apple-and-strawberry fruitiness. Hops are quite light and grassy, somewhat reminiscent of chrysanthemum greens.

Taste: Sweet and solid, much more substantive than I expected from the look and the smell of it; German Pilsener-like in its balance and robust hop character. However, except from the lack of off-flavors and a slightly zippier hop presence, nothing really distinguishes this from a standard Japanese lager. Finish is very dry and leafy.

Mouthfeel: Very light and airy, with ample carbonation. Lively without being fizzy.

Drinkability: Meh. In my opinion this is kind of a waste of koshihikari rice. It's great to eat and it lends a very nice, delicate character to sakes, but gets lost here among the malts and hops. This is a good lager, but it's a good lager that could have been made from pretty much any other cultivar of rice. After tasting it, the koshihikari seems a bit gimmicky to me.

Serving type: can

02-03-2008 14:09:14 | More by soulgrowl

theboozecruise

Louisiana

3.5/5  rDev +7.7%
look: 4.5 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Picked this one up at a sale... sad to see a store closing, but so it goes. Anyway, figured I'd try some new stuff while I could get them cheap!

Poured from a 500 ml bottle into a pilsner glass... hazy golden color, lots of carbonation, bubbly white head... looks really nice.

Smells like a typical lager... grassy, a little skunk despite the brown bottle, nothing all that special here.

The taste is a little better, but still very grassy, very minimal hops, crisp yes, but not enough so to make me think it's a great beer. It's a step above big American macros but still not anything spectacular.

I do like the mouthfeel to this one, though... just the right amount of carbonation to it, which is good to see. And easily drinkable if you like the style.

Serving type: bottle

12-22-2009 00:21:44 | More by theboozecruise

Offa

California

3.48/5  rDev +7.1%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 4

This is a very light, but good rice lager.

Slightly pale yellow, it has a small white head that slowly shrinks and leaves no real lace.

The aroma is slightly funky but not bad, with light grain, a little grass, and hints of herbs and sulphur.

The taste is light with grain barely dominated by grassy, faintly herbal bitter hops, giving a faint German quality to the character. It's clean, crisp, with brief aftertaste. It's somewhat watery and thin, but decent, like a more bitter-grassy watered-down Moosehead lager.

Serving type: bottle

12-03-2008 21:44:25 | More by Offa

HeabyMetawHunta

California

3.48/5  rDev +7.1%
look: 3 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 4.5

A - light gold / almost on the total yellow side - white head which quickly disappears with no lace

S- Very little of anything coming through - couldn't pick up much of anything beside that malt -

T- Crisp - once again not much coming through, not explosion of flavor besides very little malt, dry finish ; very easy to enjoy with sushi - doesn't stand out but enjoyable

m- light and thin- carbonated- tasted very good in between bites (i had lobster and enjoyed them together very much)

D- overall, a good beer with food- wouldn't drink it on its own, but i will be drinking this next time i head to the same sushi bar

Serving type: bottle

07-23-2010 22:07:42 | More by HeabyMetawHunta

davidchollar

Washington

3.43/5  rDev +5.5%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

Note: this may not be the freshest can, it says 060624. i assume that's the best before date, and that it's june 24th, which is only 10 days away. so i may try to get a fresher can and revisit this beer in the future.

appearance is standard pale lager, clear, straw colored with a nice fine-bubbled head. this echigo beer has a definite smell to it. it's not so different from other rice lagers, but stronger than most. not bad, but loses points for reminding me of every other japanese beer.

tastes like a japanese rice lager, and a fine one. smooth and thirst-quenching after a hot day. the amazing thing about this beer, and i will probably remember it for this reason, there are no off flavors. as i said, it's probably an old can. but it is still tasty and lacks the tap water taste i get from so many macros. worth a try.

Serving type: can

06-14-2006 10:04:54 | More by davidchollar

riversidetravlr

Massachusetts

3.43/5  rDev +5.5%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Had this at Fugakyu in Boston from a 500ml bottle poured into a pilsner style glass.

A: The beer is clear and golden in color. It pours with a light head with dissipates almost immediately.

S: The predominating scent was of apple juice.

T: The apple scent carries over into the taste. At some point during the middle of the swallow the beer just seemed to disappear. The finish was somewhat bitter.

M: A lot of nice bubbles but not much else.

D: The beer accompanied my sushi and in that regard it was good at not getting in the way of my enjoyment of the fish. I can think of other beers I'd rather drink with sushi however. I don't think this beer stands on its own as something you'd drink outside of the context of a meal.

serving type: bottle

Serving type: bottle

02-09-2010 01:34:49 | More by riversidetravlr