St. Bernardus Brewery, well known for the St Bernardus beers, has launched a new beer St. Bernardus Tokyo. The beer sits somewhere in the middle between a Belgian white beer and a saison, what makes it really stand out is that it is the only beer from the brewery that is canned rather than bottled.
St. Bernardus Tokyo was first launched in 2012 to celebrate to opening of the St. Bernardus brasserie in the Tokyo Kanda district. People from all over Tokyo flock to the St. Bernardus brasserie to try the Belgian gastronomy as well as the Belgian beers with St. Bernardus being the main beer. St. Bernardus Tokyo has now been re-released with a new recipe and available for the general public to enjoy.
The taste of St. Bernardus Tokyo
St. Bernardus Tokyo is an unfiltered blonde beer with 6% alcohol. The beer combines fresh citrus flavours, wild chamomile flavours and has a bouquet of red apple and banana. Tasting experts and St. Bernards drinkings might also recognise the scent of cloves, typical for the St. Bernardus yeast. The beer is brewed with a good amount of wheat and situates somewhere between a wheat beer and a saison. The St. Bernardus Tokyo is a refreshing beer with a spiced bouquet, lightly sour taste and bitter aftertaste, great for any Belgian beer lover.
St. Bernardus Tokyo label
The label designed by Belgian illustrator Jonas Devacht is an impression of the Japanese nightlife in the iconic streets of Kanda, the neighborhood where Brasserie St. Bernardard is located, with its typical narrow streets and overload of neon signs.
Jonas has previously soaked up the atmosphere in well-known studios in Brighton and New York, among others. This metropolitan context can also be felt in his own designs.
The brewery
While the St. Bernardus beer is currently well known for the St. Bernardus beers, the brewery was previously brewing beer for the St Sixtus abbey which produces the famous Westvleteren trappist beers. Since 1992, the brewing contract finished, but St. Bernardus continued brewing and releasing their own beers under the St. Bernardus name. With St. Bernardus Tokyo, the brewery now produces 9 different beers, with St. Bernardus Tokyo being the only one which is sold in can.