Tomato Beer in Japan
By Michelle Fabio
One might think that Spain or Italy might’ve come up with this product first, but apparently Japan is the place you need to go for some tomato beer.
No, this isn’t simply adding tomato juice to a beer at the bar; Tomato Bibere is brewed from tomatoes and hops by Japan’s Echigo Beer Co.
The idea came from Isamu Waki, a pub owner in Tokyo who had been asking brewers for a tomato beer for years. Echigo’s president Hirofumi Koda finally acted on the suggestion a few years ago inspired by Waki’s enthusiasm.
But exotic beers were nothing new to Koda’s company as it had previously produced beers brewed with pears, rice, and green tea.
The process to arrive at a tasty and healthy tomato beer was a difficult one, says Koda, who doesn’t actually like tomatoes. Many adjustments were made during the experimentation, including playing with the amount of tomatoes and sugar, to achieve the final product.
And now the Japanese can enjoy their tomatoes and beer together.
Source: Tomato Beer
March 18th, 2008 at 8:38 am
Okay, somebody finally went too far.
March 19th, 2008 at 9:07 am
Hey don’t knock it till you try it Deb…although *I* won’t be trying it anytime soon
March 19th, 2008 at 8:17 pm
I love tomatoe juice and I like beer, but together, I don’t think so. I did see that a national U.S. brewery has mixed their beer with Clamato and packaged it to sell.
March 20th, 2008 at 10:26 am
Ooh I hadn’t seen that Deb, but you had me curious.
Budweiser Chelada
Didn’t get very high reviews I’m afraid. One reviewer actually wrote, “Faintly reminiscent of vomit.”
Yes, some things are definitely better off individually
March 25th, 2008 at 5:04 pm
[...] І вуалÑ! Томатне пиво:) [...]
August 28th, 2009 at 11:34 am
[...] of Japan. They were the first Japanese craft brewery (founded in 1995) and are known for making a tomato beer. We also have their Echigo Stout in stock at [...]
January 3rd, 2010 at 5:04 am
did anyone taste this limited edition Japanese Space beer? wonder how it tastes
http://www.japansugoi.com/wordpress/space-barley-beer-from-sapporo-japan/