Hokkaido Lemon Lager is a 5% fruit beer made by Hokkaido Bakushu Jozo, based in Otaru, Hokkaido. It’s part of their all-year round range of craft beers though rather than using locally sourced lemons, Hokkaido Bakushu Jozo uses lemons from Hiroshima – and you can probably guess where if you’ve read any of our past lemon beers. Yes, Setouchi! Hokkaido Lemon Lager uses a lager base and then has lemon juice added to it rather than having the lemons infuse the beer at all. At the time of writing, it can be found in both bottles and on tap.
Um, lot’s of lemon but did someone really add malts?
Hokkaido Lemon Lager Aroma and Taste
Lemons and lager. A peculiar idea – why not just add hops that impart a citrus flavour to the beer rather than actually add lemon juice to a beer. Unless you’re a “limey” – as I am – I can’t really see anyone voluntarily choosing to put lemons in their beer. Hokkaido Lemon Lager is really a case of “WTF?!”, straight from the get go. Massive lemon aroma pungency coming off of it but no beer aroma whatsoever. It’s pretty much a chuhi “beer” it seems. If someone had used a lager base for this beer, then it was either so bad that they had to douse it with lemons or had ordered too many lemons and as a result, when crazy with the juicing.
Look, I could write lots about the body and how it tastes but really it’s just lemon infused alcohol – a watered down limoncello would be the most accurate description of this “beer”. It’s lemonade mixed in with pure shochu and is overly sweet. On a hot summer’s day, it would be a great thirst quencher but it lacks any beer qualities to it.
Hokkaido Lemon Lager The Bottom Line
If you want a fruit beer that has even the merest semblance of beer, look elsewhere as Hokkaido Lemon Lager is just alcoholic lemonade.
Where to Buy Hokkaido Lemon Lager
Hokkaido Lemon Lager can be bought online at the following places:
