Editor Note: August Beer Club ‘B’ Hiroo has closed down. This review has been kept for posterity’s sake
August Beer Club started off in as the microbrewery August Beer and opened their flagship branch in Roppongi in late 2010. Due to massive popularity, August Beer opened up ‘B’ in Hiroo in June 2013 and has proven to be a hit with the craft beer crowd.
Located less than a five minute walk from Hiroo station, the bar offers five taps of August Beer: August Beer Original, August Beer Maduro, August Beer IPA, August Beer Snow Blanche White Ale, and Kirin Heartland. ‘B’ also has a rotating tap that differs depending on the day of the week, with the selection being a Vienna style beer when we visited. On top of this, August Beer Club ‘B’ have a wide selection of food, from simple appetizers such as the Belgian Fries to a full meal, such as Roma style pizzas and steaks.
The drinks come in three different sizes, and depending on the type of beer, different glasses as well; small (270ml), regular (330-400ml) and large (473-568ml). Prices are decent enough, small is ¥550-¥600, regular ¥650-¥780, and large ¥900-¥1100. Happy hour starts from 5pm until 7pm, and all beers are ¥500 during that time. Well worth the price alone for the IPA and the Maduro.
So glad I don’t have to work the next day. At 7% this is going to be a long evening.
First up was the August beer IPA. I am a particular fine of IPAs, ranging from the high bitterness of Coronado Frog’s breath, to regular English IPAs, such as Greene King, but the August beer IPA was a good choice. A bitter refreshing citrus taste with plenty of hoppiness that keeps you coming back for more. At 7%, it’s the strongest beer on the menu, but very tasty.
This was eaten with some of the August Beer Club Spanish padron peppers, at a mere ¥600. If you know your spicy foods, then you should have come across these. It’s Russian roulette but with chilli peppers. Some are spicy, some are mild, the problem is no-one knows. Dusted with tougarashi powder and a dash of lemon, you are taking your taste buds into your own hands as if you get a spicy one, you will know about it for the next thirty minutes or so. Delicious as they are, avoid if you do not like spicy food.
Lager at export strength. A mere 6%.
These were followed up with the August Beer Original, a nice crisp lager with some slightly earthy tones, but a good crisp aftertaste. At a mere 6%, compared with the IPA, the taste was much lighter but also much more crisper and drier too. An easy drinking beer that could be a session beer if it was not so strong. The maduro was slightly off, with a coal aftertaste but that could have been because of the pizza burning my mouth. This beer will have to be tasted again to make sure that we can be sure of how to rate it.
Where’s the cheese? Oh, we ordered it without cheese.
Finally, we ordered some of the Roma style pizza followed up with the Maduro, the dark ale. The pizza was freshly made and was simple, with a nice amount of anchovies and garlic with a fresh tomato base too, at ¥1000 without mozzarella, or ¥1100 with mozzarella. Fresh tomatoes on top, and it was tasty.
August Beer Club One Paragraph Review
Overall, August Beer Club is a great place to relax and take in some cold craft beers in the hustle and bustle that is Tokyo. If you can afford to make the time to come down here, you’ll enjoy the cold beers, friendly chats, and tasty food.
Location and Details
