Mimasaka Blonde is a 5% blonde ale from Mimasaka Beer Works, based in Maniwa, in Okayama, Japan. It’s part of their all-year round lineup and can be found in both bottles and on tap in some places. There’s not much information out about Mimasaka Blonde, though it does use locally grown yuzu as an adjunct.
Mimasaka Blonde Aroma and Taste
Mimasaka Blonde poured out a hazy yellow-orange honey colour and was very lively. As the beer was poured, it generated a huge amount of frothy white head that lasted for ages and left sticky white residue on the side of the glass. However, Mimasaka Blonde did have a peculiar, funky, bad homebrew-like aroma to it – almost as if someone had forgotten to let the yeast clean up the beer. It was a phenolic quality that was not pleasant in the slightest. Thankfully, the yuzu did kick in once the beer had warmed up, but the phenolic quality still lingered on – not something you really want in a blonde beer in large quantities.
The beer did have a slight sour twang to it – not overpowering nor dominating but just enough to let you know it is there. The yuzu didn’t come through enough in the body to overcome that same peculiar phenolic flavour which, as the beer got warmer, made it more and more undrinkable. The malts did come through with an underlying honey-like quality to them but it wasn’t enough to get through the off-flavours.
Mimasaka Blonde The Bottom Line
Give Mimasaka Blonde some more time in the fermenter to clean up and it could be a drinkable beer. Right now, I wouldn’t try again though.
Where to Buy Mimasaka Blonde
Mimasaka Blonde can be bought online at the following places:
