{"id":478255,"date":"2026-02-13T22:52:19","date_gmt":"2026-02-13T22:52:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/478255\/"},"modified":"2026-02-13T22:52:19","modified_gmt":"2026-02-13T22:52:19","slug":"japanese-lagers-thrive-as-kirin-and-asahi-loom-over-australias-beer-market","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/478255\/","title":{"rendered":"Japanese lagers thrive as Kirin and Asahi loom over Australia’s beer market"},"content":{"rendered":"

It was the depths of the COVID pandemic when Sydney beer maker Yulli’s was approached by the Japanese hi-fi brand Audio-Technica about a collaboration.<\/p>\n

Time on the couch meant drinkers had more time to try something new and different, said Yulli’s head brewer James Harvey.<\/p>\n

“We thought we’d just have a little stab at one batch as a limited release and see how it goes,” he said.<\/p>\n

The beer was a hit.<\/p>\n

\"A<\/p>\n

The appeal of Japanese lager is that it makes for “clean and easy drinking”, James Harvey says. (Supplied)<\/p>\n

Yulli’s Karaoke Kingu Rice Lager soon became a staple of the craft brewer’s offering and is now distributed to Japanese restaurants.<\/p>\n

It’s a microcosm of a broader trend.<\/p>\n

Beer brewer Asahi told the ABC that sales of its Super Dry variety in Australia had increased 40 per cent since 2020.<\/p>\n

Australians, who have flocked to Japan over the past two decades, are falling in love with the country’s dining culture and along with it \u2014 Japanese beer.<\/p>\n

\"A<\/p>\n

Beer remains popular with older Japanese but young people are less interested. (ABC News: Yumi Asada, file)<\/p>\n

While only 101,000 Australians travelled to Japan during<\/a> the whole of 1997, more than 121,000 Australians visited in the month of December 2025 alone.<\/p>\n

The Japan National Tourism Organization reported a record 1 million Australian visitors last calendar year.<\/p>\n

IBISWorld market analyst Michael Doyle said it was likely travel was having “quite a big impact” on consumer preferences.<\/p>\n

“It has coincided with these two Japanese giants pretty much taking over our beer industry,” he said.Kirin and Asahi buy up Australian beer<\/p>\n

Japanese young people aren’t drinking beer like their parents did.<\/p>\n

A survey by restaurant information site Gurunavi last year found that 42 per cent of Japanese people over 60 said they liked beer.<\/p>\n

But only around one in 10 aged 20 to 29 reported to enjoy it.<\/p>\n

\"Plastic<\/p>\n

Japanese beverage manufacturer Kirin owns Lion, which produces many of Australia’s most popular beers. (Reuters: Issei Kato, file)<\/p>\n

As drinking habits change in Japan, beverage giants Kirin and Asahi have looked elsewhere for growth.<\/p>\n

By some estimates, the two companies now account for up to 85 per cent of all beer produced in Australia.<\/p>\n

Asahi defied concerns over decreased competition<\/a> and completed its takeover of Carlton & United Breweries in 2020.<\/p>\n

The company told the ABC it employs almost 4,000 Australians across 17 manufacturing sites.<\/p>\n

Kirin had entered the Australian beer market earlier, purchasing Lion Nathan in 2009<\/a>, which it rebranded as Lion.<\/p>\n

“Lion is always looking to offer consumers new products that are relevant for our market, whether through our own innovation or borrowing from international markets,” a company spokesperson told the ABC.<\/p>\n

At the same time, travel by Australians to Japan has surged.<\/p>\n

“This sustained outbound travel boom is now translating into stronger domestic demand,” said Andrew Gerrard, a senior consultant on liquor and tobacco at market research firm Circana.<\/p>\n

Consumers were looking to “recreate those overseas experiences at home”, he said.<\/p>\n

The Lion spokesperson said the Japanese beer segment was “now the #1 country of origin beer segment in Australia, in terms of both value and volume, overtaking Mexico”.<\/p>\n

Truman Ng has seen these trends play out at his boutique bottle shop, Sessions at Arden, in Melbourne’s inner north.<\/p>\n

They stock between 200 and 300 different beers at any given time, with around 15 per cent coming from Japan.<\/p>\n

\"A<\/p>\n

Truman Ng says many consumers are moving away from heavy, craft-style beers towards easy drinking lagers. (ABC News: Lachlan Bennett)<\/p>\n

“More and more people are demanding imported stuff or Japanese beer and sake,” he said.<\/p>\n

“That’s why we bring in a lot of interesting beer from overseas.”<\/p>\n

Japanese beer still only represents 4 per cent of beer imports into Australia.<\/p>\n

But IBISWorld’s Mr Doyle said imports of beer from Japan had doubled over the past decade.<\/p>\n

Australia’s thirst for sake surges as imports and local brewing boom<\/a><\/p>\n

Over the last decade, Australia has emerged as one of the most promising international markets for Japanese sake.<\/p>\n

Import numbers don’t accurately capture how popular they are because most Japanese beer brands are now made in Australia.<\/p>\n

And Mr Gerrard of Circana said while beer consumption in Australia had decreased year-on-year in terms of litres sold, the Japanese beer category was instead growing.<\/p>\n

“Two of the fastest-growing brands by value growth over the past year are Japanese,” he said.<\/p>\n

\"Condensation<\/p>\n

Sales of Asahi Super Dry in Australia have increased 40 per cent since 2020. (Reuters: Tim Wimborne, file)<\/p>\n

Mr Ng said many Australian drinkers were “getting sick of the super heavy, craft style IPAs” that had dominated trends in recent years.<\/p>\n

They were now seeking the “crisper, lighter, more refreshing” taste of Japanese beer, he said.<\/p>\n

An Asahi spokesperson said their range was expanding as Australian consumers grew more familiar, including a lemon yuzu variety that was “enormously popular in Japan”.<\/p>\n

Its also launched new mid-strength and zero alcohol varieties “as Australian drinkers increasingly embrace moderation”, they said.<\/p>\n

Is ‘Japanese beer’ actually Japanese beer?<\/p>\n

In the aisles of your local, not all Japanese beers are equal.<\/p>\n

While some are brewed in Japan and shipped to Australia, many well-known brands such as Asahi Super Dry, Kirin Ichiban and Sapporo are manufactured Down Under.<\/p>\n

Mr Ng said discerning drinkers can tell the difference \u2014 and not just because imported beers tend to be more expensive and have a much shorter shelf life.<\/p>\n

\"Deep<\/p>\n

Australian appreciation of Japanese dining culture and beer has grown. (Reuters: Kaori Kaneko)<\/p>\n

A key factor is the differing mineral content in local water supplies, with Japan known for its “soft” water.<\/p>\n

“Minerality in Japanese water is much less, so the flavour is more attached to the water,” Mr Ng said.<\/p>\n

“And the texture, the flavour, the bubbles are just all more refined.”<\/p>\n

Sydney water was “particularly soft and clean and easy to work with”, Mr Harvey from Yulli’s said.<\/p>\n

Australia’s largest independent brewery, Coopers, produces Sapporo under licence and distributes Yebisu.<\/p>\n

\"A<\/p>\n

Sapporo has seen strong sales growth for Coopers over the past two years. (ABC News)<\/p>\n

“We saw an opportunity back in 2011 to partner with Sapporo to grow their sales across Australia and diversify our international portfolio,” Coopers managing director Michael Shearer told the ABC.<\/p>\n

Sales growth in Sapporo and Yebisu had been particularly strong over the previous two years, he said.<\/p>\n

It’s a trend seen across the industry.<\/p>\n

Monsuta Okinawa Supreme is brewed on the Japanese island of Okinawa, yet owned by Endeavour \u2014 the parent company of BWS and Dan Murphy’s.<\/p>\n

Enthusiast blog Beer Rankings Australia describes Monsuta Okinawa Supreme as “perfect for when you want a beer that tastes like a holiday in a can (without the airfare)”.<\/p>\n

\"People<\/p>\n

Japan is known for “soft” water, which shapes the taste of its beer. (AFP: Ryoichiro Kida \/ The Yomiuri Shimbun)<\/p>\n

Mr Harvey said it was the care that went into Japanese products that made the difference.<\/p>\n

“There’s such beautiful detail put into everything they do,” he said.<\/p>\n

“As a Japanese lager, something that again is such a clean and easy drinking product but done with such precision.\u00a0<\/p>\n

“It’s just so damn appealing.”<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"It was the depths of the COVID pandemic when Sydney beer maker Yulli’s was approached by the Japanese…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":478256,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[243228,64,63,33773,99,243230,243231,38853,941,243229,20232,4694,220089,143827,243227,243232,3792],"class_list":{"0":"post-478255","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-business","8":"tag-asahi","9":"tag-au","10":"tag-australia","11":"tag-beer","12":"tag-business","13":"tag-coopers","14":"tag-craft-beer","15":"tag-dominance","16":"tag-japan","17":"tag-kirin","18":"tag-lion","19":"tag-market","20":"tag-okinawa","21":"tag-orion","22":"tag-sapporo","23":"tag-suntory","24":"tag-travel"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/478255","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=478255"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/478255\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/478256"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=478255"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=478255"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=478255"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}