Happoshu‘s the thing
Given the current economic climate in Japan, it is small wonder that the sales of low-malt beverages have continued to be on the increase. 83% of the respondents to Sapporo’s survey in June 1999 claimed that the price was the main reason for purchasing an happoshu.
Happoshu, as the sparkling malt beverage is called, was launched in 1994 and has since climbed to 19% of the total beer market. This was announced in a presentation by Dr Inoue at the Institute of Brewing‘s Conference in Singapore in March. While a 500 ml can of regular beer retails at ¥300 (US$3), a can of happoshu costs only ¥210. The ten happoshu brands have 5.4% ABV and BU between 17 and 21. Last year, 14 million hl of the beverage were produced by Japan’s brewers, except for Asahi..
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