Okhotsk Beer Factory （オホーツクビアファクトリー）| Microbrewery | Kitami

Would you like to drink micro-brewed beer made of local malt? How about "Okhotsk Beer Factory （オホーツクビアファクトリー）" located in Kitami?

Let's enter it!

Surprisingly (or natually??), we ordered all kinds of beer! Hahaha!

■Pilsener （ピルスナー）
It is the most popular beer type in Japan. One of the features of their Pilsener is to be brewed with lower-fermentation. We really enjoyed its hop aroma and smoothness! This beer got the silver prize at the Japan Beer Grand Prix in 2000!

■Ale （エール）
This beer is brewed from malted barley with top-fermenting yeast, which ferments beer quickly, giving it the sweet, full-bodied and fruity aroma!
It also got the silver prize at the grand prix in 2000!

■Unfiltered Ale （エール濾過前）
Unfiltered beer sounds wonderful! This is available only at this restaurant! Yummy x 2!!! You should try it!!

■Weissbier （ヴァイツェン）
It is fruity and less bitter, and popular especially among women! This got the gold prize at the grand prix in 2000!!!

■Mildstout （マイルドスタウト）
This dark beer is made of roasted malt, barley, hops water and yeast, and selected as one of the 500 delicious beers!

Kitami city reminds me of fried noodles with salt sauce （塩焼きそば）!

Voila!

This is the very local fried noodles! Usually typical fried noodles are topped with pork and some vegetables such as cabbage, while this chow mein is topped with scallops and some vegetables such as onions produced in Kitami!

(* Kitami is proud of the No. 1 market share of onions in Japan.)

Please sprinkle dried salmon and pour special salt sauce before eating it! Yummy x 2!!

We really enjoyed the delicious micro-brewed beers and special local noodles at this restaurant!

■Where is "Okhotsk Beer Factory （オホーツクビアファクトリー）"?

View Larger Map

■Tour guide information■

Do you need a nationally-licensed English-speaking tour guide when you travel to Hokkaido?

I'll guide you! Plz click here!

Okhotsk no Rusk-yasan （オホーツクのラスク屋さん）| Onishi Panten （大西パン店） | Bihoro

I've found a recommendable snack

in JR Engaru （遠軽）.

Beside this Kiosk,

eight kinds of rusk (Melba toast) are displayed! The rusk is made of flour produced in Okhotsk area and sugar beats in Bihoro （美幌）.

Look at the rusk!!!
I'll show you all of the kinds!

■Ruhyo (meaning drift ice) white chocolate: is the most popular rusk in this series!!!
■Kitanoyozora (meaning night sky in the north) milk chocolate: looks very yummy x 2!!!

■Garlic: must go well with beer!

■Onion produced in Kitami: smells very wonderful!!

■Camembert cheese: I love cheese!!!

■Pumpkin produced in Saroma: is naturally sweet and my favorite!
■Sugar produced in Bihoro: can be a parfect snack at three o'clock!
■Maple: makes my mouth water! Hahaha!

After all, I bought the two; white chocolate and garlic flavors↓

The rusk is made by Onishi Panten （大西パン店）, which is a 50-year-old bakery, baking bread for school lunch in this area. They use Hokkaido flour only, which is naturally sweeter than ones produced in other areas. Sounds great♪

I bought it for my family, but actually I ate it up on the train because it is so delicious that I couldn't stop eating it! Let me consider I bought it for myself! Hahaha!

Garlic rusk really goes well with beer, smelling very tempting, and increasing my appetite!
Ops! We had a beer party on the train! The rusk I bought were gone completely!!!

I really recommend this rusk!

■ More information on Lake Saroma area during the winter time <my other posts>

❄General Information→→click here! 

❄Snow Candle Making→→click here!

❄Snowshoeing→→click here!

❄Curling→→click here!

■Where is "Onishi Panten （大西パン店）"?

View Larger Map


■Tour Guide Information■

Do you need a nationally-licensed English-speaking tour guide when you travel to Hokkaido?

I'll guide you! Plz click here!

Curling | TOKORO Curling Hall （常呂カーリングホール）| Kitami

I experienced curling for the first time the other day in Tokoro. Do you know that almost all athletes in Japan Olympic team for curling are from this town?

This is "TOKORO Curling Hall"↓

Let's enter it!

Wow! Wow! Wow! A lot of trophies are displayed on the shelves, which made me reaffirm that Tokoro is a town of curling! We were so excited!

Me: "I really want to curl!! I cannot wait!"! Hahaha!

Curling fee is not more expensive than I thought. Actually, I came here on business and didn't have to pay the fee. How lucky I am!

First, buy a ticket,

rent the equipment such as a "curling broom" and

a "slider", which looks like a slipper, but it isn't! Hahaha! If you are right-handed, please wear it on the left foot.

This is a curling stone, which weighs about 20 kg . Do you know how much it is?
↓
↓
↓
↓
A. It is about 100,000 yen!! How expensive it is!! The stones are made of granite found on Ailsa Craig, an island off the Ayrshire coast in Scotland! I didn't know that!

This is our instructor!
All: "Hello! Nice to meet you!!"

Look at the Olympic five interlocked rings! Japan finished fifth in Nagano Olympic Games! Great job♪

First, we learned the delivery with the bar.

And then practiced how to slide stones across a sheet of ice toward a target area called "house", and to sweep the ice surface.

It is difficult to slide the stone, but we were able to enjoy mini-games finally. I guess curling is like a chess on ice! We have to think how to slide or hit the stone each time. How interesting it is!

You know what?
While we were enjoying games, Olympic athletes were coming to the next sheet and began to practice curling!!!! We were so excited to encounter such celebrities!!

Super stars including Ms. Suzuki and Ms. Motohashi nicknamed Marilyn were in the same facility! We cannot believe it!

They are so cool!

We were impressed with their perfect delivery!!

How beautiful Ms. Motohashi is!! Actually she is much more beautiful and attractive than I had imagined!

I'm sure this was one of the unforgettable memories during this trip!

Just for reference,

look at the licence plates↓ 

The license plates in this town are designed to look like curling stones! I really want to move to this town to get this cute license plate!!!

■ More information on Lake Saroma area during the winter time <my other posts>

❄General Information→→click here! 

❄Snow Candle Making→→click here!

❄Snowshoeing→→click here!

❄Okhotsk no Rusk-yasan (Melva toast)→→click here!

■Where is "TOKORO Curling Hall （常呂カーリングホール）"?

View Larger Map


■Tour Guide Information■

Do you need a nationally-licensed English-speaking tour guide when you travel to Hokkaido?

I'll guide you! Plz click here!

❄ Snowshoeing in Hokkaido ❄

Have you ever tried snowshoeing? It is very fun!
I really enjoyed it in Tokoro in Lake Saroma area this time♪

These are snowshoes↓

They have several strips and we can wear them like this↓ No spacial shoes are needed!

Me: "Are you ready?"
Everybody: "Ready!"
All: "Let's go!"

We can climb gentle hills without getting stuck! Looks fun, doesn't it?

Hiking in the snow world is wonderful!

We feel great especially when we walk on fresh powder!!! Without snowshoes, we cannot walk like this!!!

See!! We were having a very special time!!!

From the hill, Lake Saroma can be seen and we were excited!

Beautiful, isn't it?
I really love snowshoeing!

If you want to try snowshoeing in Sapporo, I recommend "Takino Snow World （滝野スノーワールド）". The admission and rental fee of snowshoes are FREE OF CHARGE during the winter time!

Need more information on "Takino Snow World" ? Please refer to my previsous post→click here!  We can also enjoy tube sleds in the park!

■ More information on Lake Saroma area during the winter time <my other posts>

❄General Information→→click here! 

❄Snow Candle Making→→click here!

❄Curling→→click here!

❄Okhotsk no Rusk-yasan (Melva toast)→→click here!

View Larger Map


■Tour Guide Information■

Do you need a nationally-licensed English-speaking tour guide when you travel to Hokkaido?

I'll guide you! Plz click here!