If you're a beer lover in Kansai then
you must've heard about Yamaoka in Kyoto, if you haven't then I'm
gonna tell you about it! This is one of those shops that could only
exist in Japan. It's located in northern Kyoto near Kitano Tenmangu
and from the outside looks like any other little mom & pop
vegetable store. In actuality, this little shop has probably the best
selection of bottled Japanese microbrews in Kansai! The first time I
went there I wasn't sure I was in the right place but after going in
past all the bins of fruits & veggies out front I found a few
large fridges full of Japanese beers.
To give you an idea of the selection
available there you should know that Yamaoka is the shop that helped
start up the Kyoto Craft Beer Festival so they have a great
relationship with the breweries. When I went to a few festivals in
Kansai and asked breweries “Where can I get your beer in Kyoto?”
the answer was always “Yamaoka”.
So as is typical in Japan, almost all
beers are kept refrigerated and they have all the regulars and many
seasonals that change often. A nice thing is that they don't seem to
favor any one style so you'll find whatever kind of beer you're
looking for: IPAs, barleywines, weizens, stouts, porters, etc. Their
prices are reasonable and the staff are friendly. They also organize
events at their shop from time to time.
The only real negatives I can think of is the location. It isn't so easy to get there using public transportation. You have to take a bus from Kyoto Station or Hanku Omiya, get off at Senbon-Imadegawa, and walk North about 100m (Yamaoka's on the left). Otherwise, you have to grab a subway to Imadegawa and walk west quite far(or hop on a bus) to Senbondori Street.
Probably your best bet is to make a day of it, visit Kitano Tenmangu on the 25th of the month when they have a huge flea market and then pop on over to Yamaoka to grab some beers. Or you can grab some beers to enjoy while wandering around the flea market!
All in all, it's a great little shop if
you want to explore Japanese microbrews and one of the few places in
Kyoto with a good selection of Japanese craft beer including local
seasonals & rarities you probably can't find anywhere else in
town.
Yamaoka Saketen
Senbon Imadegawa Agaru,
Botan-hoko-cho 555
Kyoto, Japan
telephone: 075-461-4772
homepage (Japanese only):
http://yamaokasaketen.blog.shinobi.jp/
ratebeer:
http://www.ratebeer.com/p/yamaoka-sake-shop-kyoto/10865/
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