Furano Ohmugi is a 5% barley-based pilsner made by Taisetsu Ji-Beer.
I found Furano Ohmugi alongside two other of its weird-ass Arctic-themed ji-beer motherfuckers in my local Queens Isetan and had no idea where they were from, so I opened up Untappd to find out. And what should I find? A 2013 check-in from a fresh-faced, pre-BeerTengoku Rob Bright, giving it 4/5 and proclaiming it “One of the best happoshus I’ve ever had”. Bless! We were young and impressionable back then, hunting down cans of Suntory Royal Bitter and buying cases of Akiaji like it was nectar from the gods. Indeed, we were one of the horde back then. But now, four years later, we are older, wiser, and with significantly lighter wallets. Is this indeed “the best happoshu”? Let’s see!
Taisetsu Furano Ohmugi Aroma and Taste
Speaking of light, Furano Ohmugi is the palest beer I’ve ever seen. It makes Asahi Super Dry looks like a barrel-aged barley wine. This might be the world’s first homeopathic beer. Only one molecule of beer per million litres of water. I thought I missed my glass when I poured it in. The head decided not to stick around either. Half a centimetre that fizzles out to nothing.
I really had to get in there to get any aroma from this beer- after I’d been released from hospital for aspirating beer, I remembered that just before I collapsed from fluid in the lungs I got the vague sense of wheat, and some condensed milk-like sweetness.
Tasting it, there’s a bready chewiness, and a dry and crisp lagery aftertaste. There is also the sweetness, which wasn’t great.
Man, there’s a lot of dodgy bad beers for old Joe recently.
Taisetsu Ji-Beer Furano Ohmugi The Bottom Line
It’s not as preposterously thin as it looks, but it’s still pretty weak. There are definitely better pilsners out there. I’d like to hear Rob’s updated view on the best happoshu as well. 😉
Where to Buy Taisetsu Ji-Beer Furano Ohmugi
Taisetsu Ji-Beer Furano Ohmugi can be bought online at the following places
