Singha, Hite and Snow. The general picture across Asia is that people shun bitter hop flavours, preferring light, crisp and perhaps gently sweet light lagers. Thick, rich, flavourful craft beers are great, don’t get me wrong. But they won’t usurp the time and place for a cheap, light lager – which many places in Asia produce excellent ones that would give Bud Light a run for its money. The Korean-American chef and restauranteur, David Chang, is said to approach waiters to ask “What is your lightest, crappiest beer?"

Read all about Taipei Brewery, its roots in Imperial Japan and its cultural significance today.

Taiwan Beer (台灣啤酒) is a light lager with 5% ABV brewed at the Taipei Brewery – the first operational brewery in Taiwan. In addition to using malted barley and hops, the brewers also add local Formosa rice (蓬萊米) (similar to Japanese sake rice) that in our opinion adds a certain umami and sake-like note not found in most Asian lagers.

Since its founding – and you could read more about Taipei Brewery’s unusual story here – it’s been the island’s most widely available and popular beer brand. In the intense summers, locals are often found washing down their stinky tofu or fried oyster omelettes with this refreshing lager. Empty bottles are commonplace throughout markets and street food stalls. Despite the growing craft brewery industry in Taiwan, Taiwan Beer clearly remains an icon of the island’s alcohol industry.

Today, we’ll be taking a trip in libation up to Taipei to review the Taiwan Beer.

Taiwan Beer, 5% ABV – Review

Colour: Clear, gold, highly effervescent with light, quickly-dissipating foam.

Nose: Crisp, sweet, lightly herbaceous and somewhat savoury. On the nose, this opens sweet and lightly herbaceous with a dollop of honey and rich dark malty flavours. There’s also an unusual layer of umami adding to the complexity, somewhat reminiscent of ginseng chicken or Brand’s chicken Essence. There are also some grassy hoppiness and slight hints of fresh baked bread typical of a German lager beer.

Palate: Bright, crisp, refreshing and lightly savoury. The mouthfeel is light. This Opens with light fruitiness of lychees with a just-as-present notes of umami and caramel from Brand’s Chicken Essence – immediately adding depth and character to the beer. There is a refreshing minerality that reminds one of Evian water, and an unusual lactic acid tartness that gives the beer a refreshing quality. As the flavours develop, this is followed by very light notes of Chinese herbal soup, steamed rice and a saké-like funkiness on the back.

Finish: The finish is short and slightly bitter, and a continued savouriness from the palate. There’s a light steamed barley quality and fading notes of honey.

My Thoughts

This is refreshing, crisp, and everything people go for in a light Asian lager, but there’s more. I find this one of the most distinctive-tasting light Asian lager of its category. The addition of fermented Formosa rice to the beer gives this an unusual umami and saké-like flavour with hints of lychees even – adding a unique Taiwanese character to the German lager style beer. The tagline printed on its label "DISTINCTIVE FLAVOR LAGER BEER" wasn't marketing puff.

I’m a craft beer lover, and I for sure don’t find this as flavourful or complex as a craft beer. I like the mild saké character but I admit this is also something that doesn’t suit every palate – especially if you consider that this is meant for a mass market. But for what it’s worth, in a category of light Asian lagers – the Tsingtaos, Chang Beer or Snow Beer – that frankly taste similar to an untrained palate, the Taiwan Beer stands out for the fact that you could immediately taste its unique local ingredients and local processes.

According to the Taiwanese themselves, you could even taste a hint of “freedom” in it. Well, let’s ganbei to that, whatever that means!

@CharsiuCharlie