By Megan Waters for EURObiZ japan

Frustrated by what he felt was a limited beer-drinking culture and the lack of good-quality craft beer in Japan, James Williams decided to brew and sell his own.

Williams’ interest in beer — and not just the consumption of it — started with home brewing at university in his native UK. After one year teaching English on the JET programme and another three at a Tokyo-based consultancy, the 33-year-old put into motion his desire to see more craft beers in the Japan market.

“The big beer makers in Japan push the very light lager drinks — ice cold, easy to drink, very fizzy, and marketed as a summer beverage. Most people are not even aware that anything else exists,” says Williams.

And so he enrolled in an intensive three-month brewing course at Sunderland’s Brewlab to learn more about the craft — in the hope of changing people’s perceptions about the drink. After a series of theoretical lessons, brewing practicals, recipe making, and visits to nearby breweries, bottling plants and maltsters, Williams was armed with the know-how to open his own British-style brewpub. He was ready to introduce British-style ales to his adopted country.

Campion Ale — the only Tokyo-based brewpub run by a foreigner — opened in December last year on a quiet backstreet in Asakusa. “Brewing in Tokyo is really a crazy idea because you need a lot of space,” he admits. However, Williams manages to brew one beer per week in the tiny area behind the bar. The fresh beer, made using English hops and malt, is transferred to the serving tanks where it is poured out to thirsty beer lovers. In addition, customers can get their fill of classic British food in a traditional pub setting — the furniture was even imported from the UK.

Williams has made 12 beers to date at his pub since opening, including a variety of light and dark beers, but he experiments within the chosen style and constantly tweaks his recipes. With five beers on tap, the Bitter and Porter are Campion Ale’s regulars. Relatively easy drinking with an alcohol content of 4–5%, they have proven a hit with customers.

“British-style beers have a hop and malt balance. The Bitter, a very traditional English beer, is within the class of a pale ale. It has a little bit of bitterness from the hops,” he explains. Meanwhile, the Porter — a classic beer originally from London — uses lots of chocolate malt to give a “bitter chocolate and roasted, slightly coffee-like flavour”. To create a completely new beer, Williams references one he has previously made, or works out what would fit the particular style.

Although the craft beer scene in Japan is growing, Williams believes it is mostly based around specialist beer bars in the busy salaryman areas, or in hangouts of the younger set, such as Shibuya and Shinjuku. Another issue is price. With an alcohol tax of ¥220 per litre, craft beer can be expensive and thus appeals more to those in their thirties and forties, who have a greater disposable income.

“Ji-biru [regional beer] was introduced to Japan in the 1990s as craft beer, when the amount required to brew to get a license dropped to something that was more feasible for start-up companies,” he explains. “But there was more focus on the novelty of a local product than making great beers.”

According to Williams, there is now more emphasis on making an interesting range of good-quality products that are influenced by US-style craft beers, as well as the German and Belgian styles.

“Craft beer drinkers here like experimenting and trying all the different styles. A lot of people love IPA, which usually has quite a strong bitter and hop flavour, but it stands out because it is so different to what people have been drinking,” he says.

Although a limited range of craft beer is starting to appear in supermarkets and restaurants across the country, the education process has been slow.

“To change the beer scene here, people need to be aware that a range of beers do exist. Most izakaya only serve one type of beer, but I want people to have a choice. If people keep asking for a different beer, restaurants will hopefully start stocking it,” he emphasises.

“My mission is to let people know that beer is a much wider category than what is available in your supermarket.”

© Japan Today