Episode Notes

Episode 75: Bottle Logic Brewing’s Hanamachi Rice Lager

It’s the Two Minute Beer Review!

I’m Andrew Burkum and it’s that time again where we take on that massive craft brew aisle to find the hidden treasures waiting for us there.

This week we’re taking a look at Hanamachi Rice Lager by Bottle Logic Brewing in Anaheim, CA. Will this one be naughty or rice? Let’s find out!

Hanamachi pours pale and lagery—just as advertised—into my glass. It’s such a pale gold color there’s almost no color at all. Giving it a sniff, the rice is very apparent in the scent If you’ve ever had a whiff of a bottle of sake, you know exactly what I’m talking about here. It’s just a little cidery with some crisp green apple notes. Fresh and clean.

But what about the taste? It’s almost completely like a traditional light lager in this department. There’s no bitterness to speak of and everything is clean and crisp. But there’s also that little bit of rice wine flavor as it appeared in the scent with its trademark just slightly sour notes. It’s just enough to color this beer as something different from your average pale lager and it definitely makes it a standout in the pale lager category as far as I’m concerned. It feels good and crisp in the mouth, without anything at all to weigh it down. This sentiment is furthered by its nice prickly carbonation that helps keep the whole thing lifted into a very light direction.

This is a neat little spin on the pale lager. It’s got plenty of flavor and character from that rice and there’s a lot of cereal goodness in there from the other grains as well. Interestingly, I believe this beer would pair as well with a good hamburger as it does with sushi—and make no mistake I think this would be an amazing sushi beer! Hanamachi Rice Lager is 5% alcohol by volume and is available in cans as well as on tap at their Anaheim location. Get out and grab some and let me know what you think!

That’s all for this week, but I hope you’ll join me next week as we take a look at Pliny the Elder Double IPA by Russian River Brewing in Santa Rosa, CA. Is this legendary brew really worth lining up around the block? We’ll find out next week.

Look for links to this week’s beer and brewery in the show notes, and don’t forget to let us know what you’re drinking and what you’re thinking about the show. You can find us on Facebook or tweet us @2minutebeer, using the number two.

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That’s all for now but I’ll see you next week as we continue on our quest to taste all the beer!

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