Beer posters

I’m sure that many countries have beer posters and advertisements that feature pretty women.

I remember the Budweiser Beer “Bud Girls” ads in America.

I remember this "Bud Girls" poster from the '80s in America

Budweiser Beer has "Bud Girls" in Japan, too.

It’s interesting to see how advertising changes and evolves over time in a particular culture.
Pre-World War II beer posters are quite fun to look at. They’re so different from more modern advertisements. Sometimes Japanese 居酒屋 (pubs) and restaurants will have some of these old, retro beer posters on their walls. I like it when I go to a place that has them.

Old "Kirin Beer" poster

Another old 「キリンビール」 ("Kirin Beer") poster

Old 「エビスビール」 ("Ebisu Beer") poster

This one says 「サッポロビール」 ("Sapporo Beer") written from right to left.

When I first came to Japan, it was very common to see beer posters in Japan that showed girls in bikinis holding a mug of beer.

Nowadays beer posters with girls in bikinis can still be seen…but it seems to be more of the trend to have the models in the beer posters be more “conservatively dressed”.

Beer poster for 「サッポロ生ビール」 (Sapporo Draft Beer).

Beer posters are interesting, especially how they’ve changed over time…but what really matters is that the beer is cold!

Near beer…no thanks

Suntory Beer has a new beer in Japan.
It’s called 「絹の贅沢」 (literally: “Luxurious Silk“).

Embarrassing name for a beer and a generic-looking can design…but it was on sale so I bought half-a-case.

It’s tastes good.

But don’t confuse it with Suntory‘s other new offering in a similar can…

I'd never buy this!

This is Suntory “All Free”. Non-alcoholic beer.
Non-alcoholic beer—none for me, thanks.

Do you like beer? What do you think of “non-alcoholic” beer?

Winter beer

I just got a case of Kirin Beer’s latest beer*.
(*Actually, it’s a 発泡酒 (Happoshu) which is a low-malt beer. These are popular because they avoid the high beer tax in Japan and therefore are cheaper. They taste quite the same as “regular” beer, so I like them.)

This new beer is called 「冬麒麟」 (“Winter Kirin“).

It tastes very good. It has a “mild taste” just as it says in the ad.
This is a temporary beer offered by Kirin Beer for this winter season, so if you’re in Japan, I recommend trying a can or two.

(The Kirin Beer Company is named after a mythological dragon-like creature called 「麒麟」 (Kirin)…not a “giraffe” which is also called “kirin” in Japanese but written 「キリン」.)

Autumn beer

In Japan most of the major beer brewers offer “seasonal” beers ever year. Special beers in specially designed cans of spring, summer, autumn and winter.

It’s just a gimmick to help sell beer, of course. But I don’t mind, I usually like to try them when they come out with a new one every year.

On August 25th, Kirin Beer began selling 「秋味」 ビール (“Autumn Flavor” beer).

As I mentioned in a post last year, Suntory Beer sold their autumn beer (called 「秋生」 (“Autumn Draft”)) on that same date last year (2009 August 25).

The design of the Kirin and Suntory beer cans look quite similar.

Do beer brewers in your country offer seasonal beers like this? Are they popular?

March 23 and 31

If the world famous Japanese movie director Akira Kurosawa were still alive, yesterday would’ve been his 100th birthday.

Akira Kurosawa (1910 March 23 - 1998 Sept 6), R.I.P.

I wrote a post last summer about Hollywood remakes of Japanese movies…and of course it includes some of Kurosawa’s classics (such as “Yojinbou” and “The Seven Samurai“).
(Click here to read that post.)

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It has been announced that all homes in Japan must have a 煙感知器 (smoke detector) in every room by 2010 March 31.

A smoke alarm needs to be in every room.

If you live in Japan, and your house doesn’t have smoke alarms, you can buy them at department stores or electronics stores for about ¥2,500 – ¥3,000 each.
(Even if you don’t live in Japan you should have smoke detectors and a 消火器 (fire extinguisher) in your house.)

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What size beer cans are commonly sold in stores in your country?
What types of places sell beer where you live?
In Japan, beer can be purchased 24 hours a day from convenience stores. It’s also sold in most restaurants (including some fast-food places), supermarkets, etc.

There are even beer vending machines in Japan.

Restaurants usually sell beer in mugs or glasses. Or else they’ll give a 瓶ビール (bottled beer), which is usually 633ml.

Canned beer is usually sold in 350ml or 500ml cans. But other sizes are available too.
Japan has very small 135 ml and 250ml cans, the “regular” 350ml can, the “tall boy” 500ml, and a very big 1,000ml can.

135ml, 250ml, 350ml and 500ml cans of Kirin Beer.

New drinks

Coca-Cola Japan is offering a couple new drinks now.

One is 「ファンタ　もぉ～もぉ～ ホワイト」 (“Fanta Moo Moo White“)…which is a white soft-drink “with calcium”.
It went on sale all over Japan beginning yesterday.

The other new drink that Coca-Cola Japan is selling now is a ginger tea for women called 「ラブボディ」 (“Love Body“).

Also, Starbucks Coffee, Japan has recently begun their annual spring time “Sakura” campaign.
I wrote about it last year…(click here to read that post).

During Starbucks Japan‘s “Sakura” campaign, they sell pink “Sakura coffee”, pink “Sakura desserts” and pink coffee mugs with Sakura flower designs.
They also have gift cards with the Sakura design.

As I’ve mentioned on my blog before, I don’t have much of a sweet tooth….so none of these drinks appeal me (I like beer!).
How about you? Would you try these?

ショコラブルワリー

As I mentioned in my previous post, I got Valentines chocolate from a few people, as is common in Japan…but the best ones were the chocolates that my daughters made me.
And also, the gift from my wife.

This year’s Valentine’s Day, my wife bought 「サッポロ ショコラブルワリー」 (“Sapporo Chocolat Brewery”) chocolate beer for me.

I love beer and I don’t have much of a sweet tooth…so this was perfect for me. It was a slightly dark beer with a hint of bitter chocolate.

A Canadian who’s living in Tokyo also wrote a post about this beer on is blog…click here to see his post.

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Also, Japan got it’s first two medals in the 2010 Olympics yesterday.
Both were in the Men’s 500 meter Speed Skating competition.

Keiichiro Nagashima won the silver and Joji Kato got bronze.

Space Beer

Sapporo Beer stored barley seeds on board the International Space Station for five months.

With those barley seeds they made some beer that they intend to use for experiments of some kind (maybe how beer made with ingredients grown in zero-gravity tastes 😉 ).

But they’ve bottled some of the beer for consumer consumption.
They’re calling the beer brewed with barley that was in outer space “Space Barley“.

The amount of beer that Sapporo Beer is offering the public is a very limited supply, and, as you might imagine, expensive.

Only 250 six-packs of the 330ml bottles will be sold. The price is ¥10,000 (about US$113) for a six-pack.

I’d like to try the “Space Barley” beer and I’d definitely add the bottle to my collection, if I had one…but ¥10,000 for a six-pack is pretty pricey. If they sold individual bottles for 1/6 the price, at ¥1667 (US$18.83), I’d probably get one then.

If you want to buy a six-pack of the very limited-edition Sapporo “Space Barley” beer, you have to order it online by 2009 December 24.

There is another way to try this beer, though.
Sapporo Beer is offering free tours and tasting of the “Space Barley” beer to 30 couples.
To enter the drawing for the beer tasting, you have to send a postcard to Sapporo Beer by December 15th. I’d enter this contest if the date of the tour / beer tasting was on a holiday rather than a weekday afternoon.

Kirin Beer’s 120th

Kirin Beer is 120 years old.

To commemorate, they are selling beer in retro cans in all of their past designs.
The blue can from the 「明治時代」 (Meiji Period), white can from the 「大正時代」 (Taisho Period), gold can from the 「昭和時代」 (Showa Period), and the current silver can from the current 「平成時代」 (Heisei Period).

Of course, I have bought many of the current silver cans. I don’t save those once they’re empty…but I like to save special edition unique beer cans.

I already have the gold 「昭和時代」 (Showa Period) special Kirin Beer can.

I want the other two.

Re-issue special edition "Meiji Period" Kirin Beer can

Re-issue special edition "Taisho Period" Kirin Beer can

How about you? Do you save special-edition or unusual beer cans?

Blue roses and strong beer

Suntory, the Japanese beverage company, has announced that they have developed the world’s first 青いバラ (blue roses).

These flowers will begin going on sale in parts of Japan on November 3 for about ¥3000 (US $32.50) per flower.

I’m not really so interested in a special flower…even a “world’s first”.

What does sound appealing to me is Suntory‘s new beer.
The 「ショッキ生エイト」 (“Jyokki-nama Eight“) with 8% alcohol!