Kiuchi Brewery (Hitachino Nest)
Naka, Ibaraki, Japan · Est. 1823
Also known as Hitachino Nest, Kiuchi
Tally's Take
Why this matters
Arguably Japan's most famous craft export, and it came from a 200-year-old sake house, not a startup. The owl ('Hitachino Nest') now shows up on taps from Tokyo to Brooklyn, yet Kiuchi still makes sake, shochu, and even distills whisky — a single family business fluent in every corner of Japanese fermentation.
The founding thesisThe Kiuchi family had brewed sake in Ibaraki since 1823. When Japan deregulated small-scale brewing in 1994, they added beer — and the little red owl became a global calling card.
The Museum
Timeline
- 1823Sake first
The Kiuchi family founds its sake brewery in Konosu village, Ibaraki.
- 1996The owl hatches
Following the 1994 Ji-Biru deregulation, Kiuchi launches the Hitachino Nest beer line.
- 2000sGlobal cult
The White Ale becomes a fixture of the international craft scene, exported worldwide.
The People
Behind the beer
Eight generations of Ibaraki fermentation — sake, shochu, and beer under one roof.
The Beer Library
Beers
Hitachino Nest White Ale
Year-RoundBelgian-style Witbier
Orange peel, coriander, nutmeg; the flagship owl.
Drank this? Add it to your passport →Hitachino Nest Espresso Stout
Year-RoundImperial Stout
Rich coffee-forward dark ale.
Drank this? Add it to your passport →Hitachino Nest Pale Ale
CURRENT OFFICIAL RANGEPale ale
Official current product page.
Drank this? Add it to your passport →Hitachino Nest Amber Ale
CURRENT OFFICIAL RANGEAmber ale
Released 1996. Original award-winning early product.
Drank this? Add it to your passport →Hitachino Nest Red Rice Ale
CURRENT OFFICIAL RANGERed rice ale
Official current product catalog.
Drank this? Add it to your passport →Hitachino Nest Dai Dai Ale
CURRENT OFFICIAL RANGECitrus IPA / orange ale
Official current product catalog.
Drank this? Add it to your passport →Travel Guide
Plan a visit
- Brewery tours
- Sake tasting
- On-site restaurant
On the record
Awards
- 1997
First place — Dark Ale
International beer contest in Osaka
Only awards we could attribute to a named body and year appear here. An empty section means unresearched, not unawarded.
Drinking Kiuchi Brewery (Hitachino Nest)? Stamp it in your passport.
Discover it here — collect it in the Passport. Track every beer, earn stamps, and build your own beer passport.
Every brewery deserves its full story told.
If you're the owner or team behind Kiuchi Brewery (Hitachino Nest), we'll build out your complete profile — history, the people, every beer — and feature you in a Tally's documentary. No cost, just your story.