Yokosuka beer is a fairly recently opened new brewery out in Yokosuka. So far, totally as expected from the name I guess! What is surprising is the fact that in spite of being new, they seem to know what they’re doing. Quite a lot of breweries in Japan seem to start slowly but Yokosuka are making some nice beers already. Apologies to the person who tipped me off about this place last year for not getting in touch. My friend invited me to visit with him at very short notice so I wasn’t able to take you up on your kind offer. Next time! Here is what you need to know about the place.
– Situated in a fairly large building not far from both Yokosuka JR station and the Keikyu line stations. First floor houses the brewery, a standing bar and an interesting camping themed room where you can sit down and pretend to enjoy the outdoor life with your beer. The second floor is a restaurant with seats for 90 apparently. I didn’t go up there though, so everything on this post relates to the ground floor.
– Eight taps, five of which were their own beers and the other three were guests from Yokohama breweries. The Yokosuka beers which were available were a pale ale, weizen, black IPA, beetroot Belgian style strong ale and a ginger beer (not a soft drink, a real beer!) Pricing was pretty good! Their own beers cost ¥500 for the half (probably around 300ml) and ¥680 for a US pint. Guests were a little more expensive, but still cheap (¥700 and ¥880). Some of the more unusual beers are made with locally sourced ingredients and there seems to be an eco kind of feel to the place, if you know what I mean.
– No cover charge, tax is included in the prices and it’s no smoking. The staff were very nice and friendly and I had a thoroughly pleasant time. Oh, one other thing, they will soon apparently have the first Crowler machine at a brewery in Japan, so they are definitely a forward looking place.
I have to say, this place was really a pleasant surprise. Not only have they managed to open a brewery and actually start brewing (still waiting for many of the ‘brewpubs’ in Tokyo to start…), but they also are making some nice tasting beers and also trying some interesting new ideas. I certainly have never had a Belgian strong ale with local beetroot in it before. They are open during the daytime every day, which is good too. I’m not sure how often I will be visiting, as it’s a bit of a trek from Tokyo, but it would be a nice double header with Yorocco, or could be done first thing, with a stop in Yokohama on the way back. It was my first trip to Yokosuka and that was quite an experience too. It had a very different feel from other places in Japan. Please check one of my other blogs japantownvisitor to find my thoughts on the locality.
Japanese breweries recently seen on tap:
Yokosuka
Bay Brewing
Yokohama
Opening Hours:
Daily, 10:00-22:00
Location/map:
大滝町1-23, Yokosuka-shi, Kanagawa
Telephone:
046-874-8588
Hey, glad you finally made it down, though sorry to miss you. I really need to go back to Yokosuka Beer (no excuses, I live on the same block) as their initial beers were not the best. We wanted to give them some time to get up to speed.
The food there is actually quite good. We were able to go for dinner with some friends early on when they opened. Again, lots of local ingredients.
Yeah, I'm sorry too! It just came out of the blue though.
I was surprised how well they had started as I guess it still hasn't been very long. Hope you enjoy them next time!
"Please check one of my other blogs japantownvisitor to find my thoughts on the locality."
Link?
Sorry Alex, just a stupid joke. I don't write such a blog. I know, my jokes are bad…