beer_name: Hitachino Nest Red Rice Ale
text: 11.2 oz. stubby bottle into a wine glass. Had this bottle in the cellar for a while, so I hope it holds up. No freshness date that I can see. Appearance: Pale wheat golden color with nice bubbles and a nice white head that gives some good rings and raindrops room to stick. Smell: Interesting fruit and white wine aromas. Maybe some Sake in the mix too? Definitely some citrus also. There seems to be some sourness somewhere too. Something that I can't put my finger one also, maybe it's the Sake or the fermentation of the rice. Interesting and pretty aromatic overall. Taste: Fruit esters and sourness is what I get mostly, but I'm not sure if there's anything else that I can really describe. Sourness from the red rice and white wine characteristics are here the most. Finish is almost like rock candy sugar with some woody sourness. Still a bit bland in some ways, or should I probably say that I was expecting a bit more overall. Mouthfeel: Fairly good and creamy for a bigger bodied brew. There's a good smoothness and carbonation from the sip to the finish that seems to work really well. Drinkability: Hitachino brews are always so damn expensive, and unfortunately this doesn't cut it for me. It's interesting and easy drinking, but I feel like the complexity is lacking. Again, maybe this isn't meant to be cellared, though it was by accident in some ways. I'd like to try a fresh bottle, but am I going to pay $5 to see what the deal is? I'm not sure.