Octone Yamabito Ale is a 5.5% English / American pale ale from Octone Brewing, based in Minakami, in Gunma, Japan. It’s part of their regular lineup and can be found in both bottles and on tap. Octone Yamabito Ale uses only imported US Cascade hops with an English style pale ale for its base.
Octone Yamabito Ale Aroma and Taste
Octone Yamabito Ale was a peculiar one from the moment it poured out of the bottle. It looked like an English pale ale, but was being labelled with using only imported US hops. It had the distinctly looking English pale ale body – slightly hazy dark golden amber colour with a plump white head on top that faded to a thin layer of white bubbles on top. The aroma though was weird – it smelt like an English pale ale with its subtle buttery nose and caramel malt aroma, but then the hops brought a lemon and grapefruit nose to the aroma at the same time. My eyes were saying English pale ale, but my nose was really confused.
The taste was as weird as the nose – I knew it was going to be a mongrel of a beer from the nose, but my taste buds were still not ready for it. The English pale ale base was strong with this one, but then the Cascade hops came in with a bitter lemon kick from the onset of drinking. Octone Yamabito Ale was a weird one to be drinking as my brain went from “it’s an English pale ale” to “nope, it’s American”. The caramel sweetness helped to solidify the English aspect of the beer, with the lemon flavour cutting through in the aftertaste.
Octone Yamabito Ale The Bottom Line
Octone Yamabito Ale is both an English pale ale and an American pale ale. A quandary.
Where to Buy Octone Yamabito Ale
Octone Yamabito Ale can be bought online at the following places:
