Trends in Japan - CScout Japan Blog

Edelpils - Sapporo Premium Beer

Written by: Michael Keferl on July 25, 2008 at 10:14 am | In MARKETING IDEAS | 1 Comment

Now that the fallout from the happoshu invasion is settling, there are two distinct trends in the beer market: “zero calorie” and “premium“.

Sapporo’s latest brew is the most expensive we’ve seen thus far (about $2.40 per can), and is taking a distinctly German approach in both form and branding. Edelpils is a hop-crazy pilsener that is so complex that it requires visual instructions just to know how to pour it!

edelpils beer japan

Of course, the infographic on the can does more than just demonstrate proper pouring. Even though most Japanese have never even held a pilsener glass (much less own one), it’s a sign that Edelpils isn’t just a regular beer. It deserves care and attention, and even provides supplementary information for those who scan its QR code.

Is Japan is entering its Golden Age of Beer? It’s true, Japanese beer hasn’t exactly been known around the world for being for ale connoisseurs, but thanks to a ridiculous tax system that hikes prices based on the percentage of hops, brewers have made a concerted effort to improve the product or face annihilation at the hands of hop-free beer substitutes.

Tags: beer, FMCG, QR Codes, Sapporo
Category: MARKETING IDEAS
Other categories: DIGITAL LIFE, LIFESTYLE / FASHION, PRODUCT INNOVATIONS

Licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution No Derivatives license

No sugar beer from Kirin and Suntory

Written by: Rebecca Milner on February 25, 2008 at 6:17 pm | In LIFESTYLE / FASHION, MARKETING IDEAS | 2 Comments

With the debut of Kirin’s Zero this week and Suntory’s Zero Nama (draft) scheduled for the first week of March, the diet beer market has reached a new competitive peak, just in time to shed some of that post-Valentine’s Day chocolate weight.

The “zero” in both names refers to zero sugar, which is big news for beer-guzzling would-be dieters. Both also come in close to nil in the calorie department, Kirin Zero with 67 calories for a standard 350ml can and Suntory Zero Nama with 81 calories. Though it should be noted that both of these are happoshus, and thus not technically beer.

Sapporo, meanwhile, has a 50% reduced calorie actual beer planned for release on February 27, which weighs in at 119 calories and 4.6g sugar. Sapporo already has a low calorie happoshu, Sapporo Slims, which has 74k calories and 1.4-3.15g sugar (no, we’re not sure why it varies).

Magazine Tokyo Walker gave readers a sneak peak at the new beers and rated them in terms of “refreshing-ness” and “bitterness,” with Suntory Zero Nama coming out on top with 4 (out of 5) stars for refreshing-ness and 3 for bitterness.

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