Citrus overwhelmed by resinous hop

Beer Surprise Shifuku no Kaori

Brand: Sapporo

Price: 204 yen

Place of purchase: FamilyMart

Rating:

Sapporo's Beer Surprise lineup has its first IPA-style brew. The intention is to evoke an IPA by combining hops with a citrus-like aroma and hops with a tropical scent. The Sapporo website indicates that the beer is brewed with Nelson Sauvin, Hallertau Tradition, and Herkules hops. It certainly has a citrusy scent and floral notes that fade quite quickly. It finishes with an adequate hop bitterness. It was released in March 2024. Note that this is a Sapporo product sold exclusively at FamilyMart convenience stores.

I've tried Sapporo's Beer Surprise brews off and on since they were first released in 2016. Some are pleasant surprises and others leave me scratching my head at the odd combinations of flavors. This one, Shifuku no Kaori is not my favorite so far. The three varieties of hops - Nelson, Hallertau, and Herkules - don't play well together. Cracking the can and pouring released some lovely aromas as promised on the label - citrus and resinous. However, I found the flavor is heavy on pine notes which made me think of furniture cleaner. Good news is that Beer Surprise turns out new brews all the time.