Originally published on metropolis.co.jp on February 2013

How much does image constitute people’s taste in beer? No doubt there are many who unknowingly pick up a happoshu (low-malt sparkling spirit resembling beer) at the conbini thinking it’s real beer and are satisfied in the taste and feel triumphant at their economical selection. But to the true beer connoisseur the happoshu can taste bland and watery.

Happoshu was born out of a market opportunity to profit from lower tax rates—less than 50 percent lower—for low-malt content alcohol. Happoshu is classified as a spirit alcohol using effervescence with malt being one ingredient, or when the ratio of malt is less than 67 percent. In our blind Japanese beer tasting experiment, the near-beer ranked third out of six, above Asahi Super Dry (Japan’s number-one selling beer) and Yebisu All Malt Beer. A result showing that perhaps we drink with our eyes more than we realize.