Falling in Love Again: Numazu Lager
Starting in 2017, we are running a “Falling in Love Again” series where each month we will feature one beer from our year-round lineup to re-introduce each beer with some new background info that you might not know. Our Taprooms will also feature special promotions connected with the monthly beer.
For June we’re going to get friendly with the first lager beer to make it into Baird Beer’s year-round lineup: Numazu Lager.
Numazu Lager
We first brewed Numazu Lager in March of 2008. After establishing Baird Brewing back in 2000 with only a 30 liter system, we upgraded twice to 250 and 1000 liter systems and feel that we have a lot of experience under our brewer belts. Since diversity is once of our core values, we thought that adding a lager to our ale-dominated lineup would be good for balance. The lager that we used for inspiration at the time was the Brooklyn Lager. It is a richly tasteful lager that is very smooth despite having a robust body. Wanting to pay our respects to the beautiful port city where our beer got its start, we decided to name our beer “Numazu Lager.”
Even though we selected Numazu as our home base by chance, looking back I can easily recount so many great things from the city. For one, the water was splendid. Numazu uses water that is runoff fro the melting snow on Mt Fuji so it is soft, clean and delicious. To use in brewing, processing is minimal and easy. All that is required is to dechlorinate the water. We believe that this delicious local water is the reason that Baird Beers have a soft and round character to them.
Crystal clear water and it’s source
Numazu Lager is marked by a unique rounded aroma from the lager yeast, a pleasing bitterness from the whole flower hops, and a dry finish. We fell a beer like this lends itself to being enjoyed not in small taster glasses, but in a proper pint size.
Lastly, a bit about the label. We knew from the beginning that we wanted to build our Taproom close to the fish market. This is because the fish market is the “face” of Numazu, so to speak. It is the most active area in town. Next, the view from the second floor of the Taproom is perfect to gaze at when enjoying a beer, especially when the setting sun creates a gorgeous red sky. This label artwork represents this view of the Taproom as seen from the harbor. The way the sunset reflects in the water is beautiful. Come on down to Numazu and see if you can find the real world version of this label.
The setting sun over Suruga Bay
Like Numazu Lager, every Baird Beer has a back story. Personal tales, historical tales, tales of beer styles, these beers are steeped in stories. We hope that you, those who enjoy these beers, do so in a way that compliments and becomes a part of your lifestyle and experiences.
Sayuri Baird