Repubrew Yofukashi is a 10% pastry / imperial stout from Repubrew, based in Numazu, in Shizuoka, Japan. It’s part of their canned and draught lineup, though its availability at the time of writing is unknown. Repubrew Yofukashi is brewed using pale ale, Maris Otter, crystal 150, crystal 240, chocolate, roasted barley, and rolled oats, with also a healthy dosing of lactose. Repubrew Yofukashi takes its name from the Japanese word “yofukashi (夜更かし), which means “to stay up late” with the implication that you’ll be drinking this beer late into the evening. Now that’s a challenge I am willing to take.
Repubrew Yofukashi Aroma and Taste
Repubrew Yofukashi poured out a pitch black colour with a large amount of frothy tan-coloured head on top that left streaky brown marks down the side of the glass as the beer went down. The marks were so thick, that you could see the amount of sips / gulps that it took to drink the beer, almost like the rings of a tree. Repubrew Yofukashi had, unsurprisingly, a big aroma to it – a thick chocolate and toffee aroma with a milky creaminess to it that also had a subtle nuttiness to it in the background. Of course, I had let Repubrew Yofukashi warm up to a decent temperature, though even when it was chilled and fresh into the glass, this beer wasn’t coy about keeping the aroma to itself.
The body was as thick as the nose too. There was a healthy dosing of roasted malts, bringing the chocolate and coffee flavours first and foremost to the palate, with the nuttiness coming through a close second. With the addition of lactose, the body was silky smooth and had a creaminess to it that helped support the darker flavours going on. One thing that was strange, and I only noticed once Repubrew Yofukashi was about halfway done, was there being a subtle coconut essence to the beer – and that was apparently not due to some coconut addition, but instead the Talus hops that had been used. I am not too familiar with this strain of hops, but it worked well to bring something different to a beer. In the end, Repubrew Yofukashi was a bit heavy on the palate to be drunk by one person, as it did become a touch too cloying.
Repubrew Yofukashi The Bottom Line
Repubrew Yofukashi is a sipper of a beer, but a sipper for sharing and dragging someone else late into the night.
Where to Buy Repubrew Yofukashi
Repubrew Yofukashi can be bought online at the following places:
