Konnichi Watou

For some reason there's a bar in Tokyo themed around the St Bernardus brewery in west Flanders. As good a theme as any, I suppose. In 2012 the brewery produced a special witbier for it, and again I'm not sure why: St Bernardus already has a perfectly serviceable wit. It was meant as a one-off but was revived earlier this year with an updated recipe and distribution which included my local off licences.

The website describes Tokyo (for such is its name) as somewhere between a saison and a witbier. It's half a percent stronger than St Bernardus Wit at 6% ABV but looks ordinarily witty: yellow with a faint haze and a frothy white head. The aroma too, of sweet oranges and gentle peppery spices, says witbier to me. There's something different in the flavour, though. I get green tea and aniseed, bringing a kind of oriental feel to proceedings. The official blurb says I should be tasting chamomile, clove, banana, vanilla and red apple. The first of these, yes, but it's not complex enough for the rest.

This is no radical re-imagining of witbier. Pierre Celis would still recognise it, and maybe even enjoy it. If you fancy a mild twist on standard witbier, but still well-constructed and not too outré, look no further.