Chofu Beer is a 6% English-style pale ale from Hoppy Beverage Co. Yes, the same Hoppy that make the dubious, tax-avoiding izakaya staple of the same name. I used to drink Hoppy all the time. Wonder if my innards can still manage it.
(For the uninitiated, “Hoppy” is a “beer-flavoured beverage” that’s served with a huge glass of shochu spirit and some ice. You mix it to your desired strength, and if you need some more shochu you ask for “naka” and Hoppy, “soto”. The resulting mix tastes nothing like beer, but it’s cheap and gets you drunk, so who cares)
I remember one of my friends once saying that Hoppy Beverage also made a craft beer (edit: that was me, Rob!), and I didn’t believe them. Well, here we are, about 10 years later, and it popped up in my local shop. You know I had to buy it, even though it would probably be terrible.
Chofu Beer Aroma and Taste
Chofu Beer pours out with an off-white head and a slightly opaque, orange-gold colour. It smells… tomatoey? or kinda like baked beans? Metallic, almost? Beer shouldn’t smell like this, should it?
Chofu Beer tastes malty, okay, but also sweet. Sweet. No no no no no. It also tastes tangy. Now, it’s not as awful as I was expecting a beer made by Hoppy Beverage to be, but it still tastes like god damned TOMATOES.
Chofu Beer The Bottom Line
I don’t like it very much. Seriously no point in giving this a second look. I occasionally make fun of English-style pale ales for their earthy, grassy, malty taste, but even I know they shouldn’t taste like actual vegetables.
Where to Buy Chofu Beer
Chofu Beer can be bought online at the following places
1 comment
It Yu like beer, chances are you won’t care for any of the hoppy range. They’ve had craft beer versions out for a while, at low low prices but with low low flavor.