Asian Sensations

There’s no surprise to me on the increased interest and sales of Asian beers. Walk down any ‘foodie street’ in Australia and you’ll experience a plethora of Asian take away shops, restaurants, and supermarkets dominating the horizon. The wafts of steam with exotic spices, tandoori ovens on the go, and flamed hot woks tossing fresh fragrant goodies in the air are a far cry from the traditional roast and three veg dinners of the past. We have always embraced ethnic diversification, and with beer it’s no different. The Asian influence in the past decade has created a distinctive palate change with lighter, dryer lagers that blend better with sashimi than salami. A fiery curry or chilli and coriander stir fry require extra hopped pale ales or well bittered pilseners. As a bonus, the lighter lagers also appeal to ladies looking for a pilsener with less of a bitterness punch. Now I’m sure there are a few blokes scratching their heads while they sip their middies and pots wondering where I’m coming from. But the reality is that in a very depressed beer market, imported beers have shown a slight increase of 6% in sales So let’s take a quick tour of the Asian beers on the market that are gaining an undercurrent support at fashionable bars and clubs.

Starting with our closest Asian neighbour, Bintang and Bali holidays at Kuta are as Aussie as a meat pie. Brewed in Jakarta, their umbrellas and roadside advertisements are as Bali as a massage on the beach and we’re starting to see those brollies on fashionable big city streets here in Australia. The Dutch influence on the region goes back to Colonial times and nowhere is it more apparent than in their brewing. Characterised by a hoppy bitterness with a grainy malty aroma, the Dutch pilsener lagers embrace the Asian light dry finish.

For decades Aussies have discovered the Singapore Tiger beer while visiting or waiting for a flight. In fact, it was the RAF pilots stationed at Butterworth AFB that first introduced me to this golden drop with a sweet caramel aroma and clean crisp flavour over twenty years ago. As of January brewery giant Heineken has become the sole importer and distributor in Australia. A comprehensive marketing program will invest over $5 million dollars over the next three years focusing on leading edge bars, fine dining, and traditional targeted areas within the off premise. Other promotions include sponsorship of the Shaolin Monks in March, hosting a design event/conference plus book launch of graphic artists hosted by Diesel of Italy in April, Tsubi at Mercedes Fashion Week in May, plus Tiger Nights in Sydney and Melbourne. According to Market Development Manager Craig Blesson, “With the Australian premium beer market thriving, particularly the imported segment, Australia offers an exciting opportunity for Tiger Beer to emulate its success across Asia.”

The Thai Singha Lager from the Boon Rawd Brewery has been around since 1933 and continues to be popular for its light golden flavour. Now anyone who’s been to Thailand knows that pure drinking water is rarer that 24 carat gold, and their 3 brewery locations are based on quality water sources that are thoroughly checked to make certain of its correct composition and meets brewing standards. The clear water used by Boon Rawd Brewery is pumped from wells deep underground. It is activated carbon filtered, sand filtered and treated to meet Singha standards of brewing water. Quality grains and hops sourced from Europe and Australia help create this delightful drop. Another beer from Southeast Asia proving very popular in Asian cafes around Australia is 333 Premium Export Beer from Vietnam. Its light smooth finish is Perfect for the Asian palate, and works well for younger and female Australians as well.

The history of modern brewing in Japan is as old as Australia. The government set up a brewery back in 1869 on the Northern island of Hokkaido and a decade later were brewing Sapporo Lager. At one time there were several dozen breweries around Japan including the ‘big 4’ Sapporo, Japan, Osaka (Asahi Brewery), and Kirin. The fierce battle for market supremacy in the early 1900’s led to the Japan Brewing Company merging with Sapporo. After the war, the DaiNippon Beer Company divided into two companies Nippon ( Sapporo) and Asahi. The three continue to battle worldwide to be ‘champion Japanese beer’.

If one aspect of brewing can be attributed to Japan it would have to be the ‘Dry’ lager style. To create this drying effect, the mash is brewed at a lower temperature to soak up every drop of residual sugars that become alcohol. The result desired requires an extraction process to get only the first liquid run- off from the sweet wort then a long slow fermentation.

Sapporo Imported Original Draught Beer has a distinctive 650 ml silver can exhibiting their high tech outlook to brewing. Using state of the art technology, including a ceramic filtration process, creates a smoother cleaner lager. The sculptured conical shaped steel can releases a golden maize coloured brew with very subtle grainy sweet aroma and taste with a well balanced malt flavour.

Asahi’s volume share of the Asian beer market isn’t huge; however it is growing at a rapid pace. Ranked in the top 20 Premium Imports, it appeals to urban leading edge consumers. Victoria and New South Wales continue to be the two key Asahi markets constituting over 80% of total volume. Due to significant signs of growth and demand over the last few years, CUB will be launching Asahi Draught in selected venues in Melbourne and Sydney from April. Asahi is a traditionally brewed Japanese dry beer, rich and full flavoured with a refreshing dry after taste. It is the perfect accompaniment to Asia and spicy foods.

The last but not least of Japanese beers is Kirin Ichiban, the only Asian beer to be brewed here in Australia at the Malt Shovel brewery in Sydney. Locally brewed in small batches under the supervision of an expert Japanese brewer assures freshness. The Kirin is an ancient mythical beast which foretells the coming of festive and joyful events. The word “ichiban” means “first” in Japan and Kirin uses a First Press Brewing Method where only the first liquid drawn from the mash is used followed by a long fermentation period. The use of noble saaz hops provide a floral aroma that’s complemented by a delicate fruity flavour. Full bodied with subtle sweetness and mild bittering notes, Kirin Ichiban is quickly gaining local support in trendy nightspots.

No report on Asia would be complete without a glance at the sub continent, and when visiting any Indian restaurant in Australia, I’ll bet my house on the fact you can order a Kingfisher lager to soothe than fiery vindaloo. Thankfully, it’s a great beer and worthy of your indulgence. A nice golden amber colour with white creamy head, Kingfisher is well balanced malt character and good solid back bitterness. As with any Asian beer, serve it icy cold, sit back, and enjoy.