Okay, so maybe that’s a bit of a ridiculous question, but with beers as good as the Japanese beer company Sapporo brews, it almost makes you wonder…

On Wednesday, February 14, 2007 (aka Valentines day) I had the pleasure of visiting the Sapporo beer museum. As time was limited, a lot of the other bulidings in the area got regrettably left behind until the next visit. However, the Sapporo Beer Museum did not fail to impress. What follows details both my experience at the museum and a lot of the information found in the pamphlet that accompanied me during my visit.

So just what is this museum? Well, wonder no more:

“Welcome to the Sapporo Beer Museum. Sapporo Beer Museum, the only beer museum in Japan, was opened in July of 1987 to provide visitors with a varied knowledge of beer and brewing. Renovated in 2004, the exhibition allows guests to learn easily about the history of Sapporo Breweries Ltd. And the beer industry in Japan. The building which now houses Sapporo Beer Museum was constructed under the direction of foreign engineers in 1890 as the factory of the Sapporo Sugar Company. It is one of the precious cultural legacies of the Meiji Era, together with the old red brick Hokkaido Government Office. Sapporo Beer Museum has been selected to receive the official Hokkaido Heritage” designation.”

Being around 11:00am on a Wednesday, there were hardly any people present at the museum. I walk in and get greeted by two very cute Japanese receptionists fully decked out in appropriate uniforms. Being a week day, it’s incredibly easy to find an empty locker for my bags. I pick an English pamphlet from the multi-lingual selection and get on with my walkthrough. The museum is laid out in a very linear fashion. It starts off with one of those antique, cage-style elevators which takes you up to the third floor.

The third floor opens to a large room detailing the origins of Sapporo Beer. The atmosphere is very unique from the majority of Japanese interiors as it’s dimly lit and possesses a entirely wooden interior. Large models and posters are used to display what things looked like around the time Sapporo Beer first started being brewed. One wall was entirely dedicated to a photographic timeline depicting a complete history of Sapporo Beer. Also on site were incased original bottles from the late 1800’s displaying vintage Sapporo Beer labels.

Sapporo Beer originates from two people: Mr. Seibei Nakagawa and Mr. Hisanari Murahashi. From the pamphlet:

“Mr. Nakagawa, born in 1848 in Niigata Prefecture, was the first Japanese to learn brewing in Germany. After studying at Berliner Brauerai (the biggest brewery at that time) for more than 2 years, he oversaw the planning and construction of the brewery, the procurement of machinery, the selection of ingredients and packaging materials, and many other important tasks.”

“My Murahashi, born in the family of Shimazu, the governor of Satsuma Clan (now Kagoshima prefecture), was appointed to the Hokkaido Development Commission in 1871 and advanced in time to the position of Chief Project Manager for the construction of the brewery. He opposed construction of a brewery in Tokyo and insisted that the brewery be built instead in Hokkaido. Mr. Murahashi led the brewery construction project to success through his quick and decisive actions.”

The second floor presents the “richness and brightness that is beer”. This floor is all about the many ways in which Sapporo Beer was and is presented as a commercial beverage. From the wide variety of labels Sapporo Beer products have on them to the several posters and signs used to advertise the drinks, this floor has it all.

First up were the signboards that used to decorate the streets.

Following is an exhibit entitled “The memories of people and beer.” This area explains how there was a rapid increase in beer’s popularity after the second World War and the evolution of Sapporo Beer from that point on. Also on show are unique ideas that Sapporo used to increase the popularity of the beer such as portable beer coolers, bamboo and egg shaped beer cans…

Next is a huge wall decorated with the many classic Sapporo Beer poster ads. The most interesting thing about this is how the various ads illustrated the relationship between been and the historical periods in which the ads were created.

There are also several varieties of Sapporo products in between the exhibits on display on this floor.

The last exhibit on the second floor is the actual Wort Kettle that was once used at the original Sapporo Brewery. As described in the pamphlet, “As part of the brewing process, malt juice, or wort, is cooked in the wort kettle. By adding hops in the kettle, the desired bitterness and aroma are created.”

The second floor comes to an end at the Museum Bar, which had variations of Ebisu and Sapporo on draft.

The first floor is entirely reserved for the museum store and drink hall. The store had various Sapporo goods for sale. You can buy the obligatory beer glasses, mugs, t shirts and the like, but what impressed me most were some of the more rare looking items. Especially the huge ceramic beer mugs. These were so intricately detailed it was amazing. I believe the largest were selling for around $1000 USD.

The drinking hall isn’t much unlike the 2nd floor bar, though there is a larger seating area and the atmosphere was very reminiscent of a German beer garden. They were having a Valentines Day special with a couple of mixed beer cocktails (white crème flavored and chocolate) going for a dollar each. A nice touch is the gelati being sold next to the bar (even featuring flavors like ‘black beer’!). On tap was once again Ebisu, Sapporo Classic and Edelpils among a couple others. You can also buy canned versions of the Sapporo varieties at the drinking hall. As you can see from the pictures, the bar was appropriately themed for the day.

As I said, I wish I had more time to venture to all the surrounding buildings near the museum. While I was constantly told by others that if I could only visit one of the buildings, the museum is the way to go, I still felt like there was a lot left to explore. By all means, if you happen to be in the area, the Sapporo Beer Museum comes highly recommended. Providing some of the best beer in the country, the Sapporo Beer Museum is not to be missed.