Answers.Body: <p>What is the evolution of brewing beer in Japan?</p>
  
  <p>Beer in Japan seems to have had its start in the 17th century during the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edo_period" rel="nofollow noreferrer">Edo period</a> when Dutch traders stationed at Dejima in Nagasaki opened a beer hall for sailors working the trade route between Japan and the Dutch Empire.</p>
  
  <blockquote>
    <p>The Dutch started brewing beer for their own use in Nagasaki during the Edo Period. The first brewery to serve the Japanese market was founded in 1869 in the international port town of Yokohama by a foreign businessman. After changes in ownership, it started producing Kirin-branded beer in 1888. Meanwhile in Sapporo, the government built a beer brewery and established the Sapporo Beer brand in 1876 as part of its efforts to develop the island of Hokkaido. Accordingly, Yokohama and Sapporo vie for the title of birthplace of Japanese beer.</p>
    
    <p>The popularity of beer increased sharply in the second half of the 20th century, and beer has long since overtaken sake as the nation's favorite tipple. In recent decades, some Japanese beers have also gained popularity overseas.</p>
    
    <p><strong>Variations of beer</strong></p>
    
    <p>Because the alcohol laws in Japan dictate that beer be taxed according to its malt content, other beer-like drinks have been created by the Japanese brewers that contain less malt and thus are cheaper to sell. The current three ranks of beer are as follows:</p>
    
    <p><strong>Beer</strong></p>
    
    <p>Regular beer with regular malt content. Because of higher taxation, it costs more than the two ranks below. </p>
    
    <p><strong>Happoshu</strong></p>
    
    <p>Happoshu (lit. "sparkling alcohol", also known as low-malt beer) is a relatively recent invention by Japanese brewing companies. It has a similar flavor and alcohol content as beer, but it is made with less malt, which gives it a different, lighter taste. Due to the lower malt content, happoshu is taxed differently than beer and costs less. </p>
    
    <p><strong>New Genre (Shin Janru)</strong></p>
    
    <p>New genre beer (also known as "third beer" or "daisan no bīru") is the most recent development in the Japanese beer industry. In order to counter tax changes that reclassified the malt content of beer and subsequently raised the price of happoshu, this beer-like beverage contains no malt, instead using pea, soy or wheat spirits. As a result, it can be sold at an even lower price. </p>
    
    <p>Over the coming years, the alcohol tax rate will be incrementally adjusted to be unified into a single one for all beer and beer-like beverages by 2026. This means that the price difference between beer and its less-malt-containing alternatives will narrow.</p>
    
    <p><strong>Craft beer</strong></p>
    
    <p>The craft beer (地ビール, ji-bīru, literally "local beer") scene emerged in the mid-1990s. Up until then, stringent brewing laws granted licenses only to large-scale brewers. This all changed in 1994 when the government drastically relaxed the law, enabling small-scale breweries to thrive. Since then, craft beer has become increasingly popular, with hundreds of microbreweries around the country now selling high-quality regional beer domestically and abroad.</p>
    
    <p>There is a particularly vibrant craft beer scene in the big cities like Tokyo and Osaka, where various dedicated bars sell beer from a particular brewery they are linked to, if not from a selection of breweries. There are also an increasing number of brewpubs that brew and sell their own beer on premises. Many onsen towns also contribute to the national craft beer presence with celebrated local breweries that take advantage of local pure waters. - <a href="https://www.japan-guide.com/e/e2037_beer.html" rel="nofollow noreferrer">Beer in Japan</a></p>
  </blockquote>
  
  <p>Other informative sources: </p>
  
  <p><a href="http://www.brewers.or.jp/english/09-history.html" rel="nofollow noreferrer">History of the Japanese Beer Industry</a></p>
  
  <p><a href="https://www.japantimes.co.jp/culture/2014/08/02/books/book-reviews/brewed-japan-evolution-japanese-beer-industry/#.W57eZPbn8dU" rel="nofollow noreferrer">Brewed in Japan: The Evolution of the Japanese Beer Industry</a></p>
  
  <p><a href="https://hitachino.cc/en/brewery/history.html" rel="nofollow noreferrer">Hitachino Nest Beer Brewery</a>    </p>
  
Answers.ContentLicense: CC BY-SA 4.0
Answers.CreationDate: 2018-09-16T23:01:25.093Z
Answers.LastActivityDate: 2018-09-16T23:01:25.093Z
Answers.UserDisplayName: Ken Graham
Body: <p>I read yet <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beer_in_Japan" rel="noreferrer">this</a> on Wikipedia and some small articles.</p>
  
  <p>The articles didn't satisfy my curiosity.</p>
  
  <p>My question is:</p>
  
  <blockquote>
    <p><strong>What is the history of brewing in Japan?</strong></p>
  </blockquote>
  
  <p>Please, take in mind following sub-related-questions:</p>
  
  <blockquote>
    <p>• Since the brewing techniques were imported, how did the brewing techniques evolve?</p>
    
    <p>• Have the Japanese maintained traditional techniques or invented some new
    ones?</p>
    
    <p>• There have been cases where they have combined European
    techniques with ancient Japanese fermentation techniques - was this before the arrival of Europeans?</p>
  </blockquote>
  
Comments.ContentLicense: CC BY-SA 3.0
Comments.CreationDate: 2017-02-15T18:38:19.567Z
Comments.Text: Hi, not quite sure what you are asking.  Great queation (s) though.
Comments.UserDisplayName: dougal 5.0.0
Comments.ContentLicense: CC BY-SA 3.0
Comments.CreationDate: 2017-02-15T21:57:32.000Z
Comments.Text: Hi! What is not clear? Please, help me to improve this question.
Comments.UserDisplayName: kitsune
Comments.ContentLicense: CC BY-SA 3.0
Comments.CreationDate: 2017-02-16T06:00:05.547Z
Comments.Text: Hi, I did a little bit of editing which will be looked at by others first.  I don't like doing this as I believe it is your question not mine, but you did ask me so I hope that what I have done is OK.  I found your wikipedia article very  interesting.
Comments.UserDisplayName: dougal 5.0.0
Comments.ContentLicense: CC BY-SA 3.0
Comments.CreationDate: 2017-02-17T08:23:54.363Z
Comments.Text: Thank you very much instead! You did the right thing, I haven't a perfect knowledge of English unfortunately. I need more exercise. ;)
Comments.UserDisplayName: kitsune
Comments.ContentLicense: CC BY-SA 3.0
Comments.CreationDate: 2017-02-17T08:57:41.007Z
Comments.Text: Your English is fantastic - keeping the questions and answers coming will help as well.
Comments.UserDisplayName: dougal 5.0.0
Tags: <brewing><history>
Title: Japanese beers historic evolution
UserDisplayName: kitsune
ThreadText: # Japanese beers historic evolution
  
  (Asked by: username_0 on 2017-02-15)
  
  I read yet [this](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beer_in_Japan) on Wikipedia and some small articles.
  
  The articles didn't satisfy my curiosity.
  
  My question is:
  
  > **What is the history of brewing in Japan?**
  
  Please, take in mind following sub-related-questions:
  
  > • Since the brewing techniques were imported, how did the brewing techniques evolve?
  >
  > • Have the Japanese maintained traditional techniques or invented some new
  > ones?
  >
  > • There have been cases where they have combined European
  > techniques with ancient Japanese fermentation techniques - was this before the arrival of Europeans?
  
  **Tags:** brewing, history
  
  > **Comments:**
  > **username_1**: Hi, not quite sure what you are asking.  Great queation (s) though.  
  > **username_0**: Hi! What is not clear? Please, help me to improve this question.  
  > **username_1**: Hi, I did a little bit of editing which will be looked at by others first.  I don't like doing this as I believe it is your question not mine, but you did ask me so I hope that what I have done is OK.  I found your wikipedia article very  interesting.  
  > **username_0**: Thank you very much instead! You did the right thing, I haven't a perfect knowledge of English unfortunately. I need more exercise. ;)  
  > **username_1**: Your English is fantastic - keeping the questions and answers coming will help as well.  
  
  ---
  
  ## 1 answers
  
  ### Answer by username_2 on 2018-09-16. Score: 4 | Accepted answer
  
  What is the evolution of brewing beer in Japan?
  
  Beer in Japan seems to have had its start in the 17th century during the [Edo period](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edo_period) when Dutch traders stationed at Dejima in Nagasaki opened a beer hall for sailors working the trade route between Japan and the Dutch Empire.
  
  > The Dutch started brewing beer for their own use in Nagasaki during the Edo Period. The first brewery to serve the Japanese market was founded in 1869 in the international port town of Yokohama by a foreign businessman. After changes in ownership, it started producing Kirin-branded beer in 1888. Meanwhile in Sapporo, the government built a beer brewery and established the Sapporo Beer brand in 1876 as part of its efforts to develop the island of Hokkaido. Accordingly, Yokohama and Sapporo vie for the title of birthplace of Japanese beer.
  >
  > The popularity of beer increased sharply in the second half of the 20th century, and beer has long since overtaken sake as the nation's favorite tipple. In recent decades, some Japanese beers have also gained popularity overseas.
  >
  > **Variations of beer**
  >
  > Because the alcohol laws in Japan dictate that beer be taxed according to its malt content, other beer-like drinks have been created by the Japanese brewers that contain less malt and thus are cheaper to sell. The current three ranks of beer are as follows:
  >
  > **Beer**
  >
  > Regular beer with regular malt content. Because of higher taxation, it costs more than the two ranks below.
  >
  > **Happoshu**
  >
  > Happoshu (lit. "sparkling alcohol", also known as low-malt beer) is a relatively recent invention by Japanese brewing companies. It has a similar flavor and alcohol content as beer, but it is made with less malt, which gives it a different, lighter taste. Due to the lower malt content, happoshu is taxed differently than beer and costs less.
  >
  > **New Genre (Shin Janru)**
  >
  > New genre beer (also known as "third beer" or "daisan no bīru") is the most recent development in the Japanese beer industry. In order to counter tax changes that reclassified the malt content of beer and subsequently raised the price of happoshu, this beer-like beverage contains no malt, instead using pea, soy or wheat spirits. As a result, it can be sold at an even lower price.
  >
  > Over the coming years, the alcohol tax rate will be incrementally adjusted to be unified into a single one for all beer and beer-like beverages by 2026. This means that the price difference between beer and its less-malt-containing alternatives will narrow.
  >
  > **Craft beer**
  >
  > The craft beer (地ビール, ji-bīru, literally "local beer") scene emerged in the mid-1990s. Up until then, stringent brewing laws granted licenses only to large-scale brewers. This all changed in 1994 when the government drastically relaxed the law, enabling small-scale breweries to thrive. Since then, craft beer has become increasingly popular, with hundreds of microbreweries around the country now selling high-quality regional beer domestically and abroad.
  >
  > There is a particularly vibrant craft beer scene in the big cities like Tokyo and Osaka, where various dedicated bars sell beer from a particular brewery they are linked to, if not from a selection of breweries. There are also an increasing number of brewpubs that brew and sell their own beer on premises. Many onsen towns also contribute to the national craft beer presence with celebrated local breweries that take advantage of local pure waters. - [Beer in Japan](https://www.japan-guide.com/e/e2037_beer.html)
  
  Other informative sources:
  
  [History of the Japanese Beer Industry](http://www.brewers.or.jp/english/09-history.html)
  
  [Brewed in Japan: The Evolution of the Japanese Beer Industry](https://www.japantimes.co.jp/culture/2014/08/02/books/book-reviews/brewed-japan-evolution-japanese-beer-industry/#.W57eZPbn8dU)
  
  [Hitachino Nest Beer Brewery](https://hitachino.cc/en/brewery/history.html)
  
  
  ---
  
  