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Craftheads, Shibuya

14 January 2010
Sal’s owner Koji – or Michael as he sometimes calls himself – is famous in the Japanese Craft Beer community for two things: that he used to import craft beers unofficially before official imports came along, and that, despite speaking fluent English, he has a dislike of foreigners visiting Sal’s. So when news came that Koji was opening a second bar in Shibuya, it raised a few eyebrows – you might be able to keep yourself away from foreigners when your bar is out in Kawasaki, but right in the heart of Tokyo?
Fast forward to January 2010 and Craftheads has been open for just over three months. I decided to make a visit to try some of the Three Floyds on tap, meet Koji, and see how welcome I’d be. As it turns out, I bumped into Koji on the street as I was looking for Craftheads. He saw me looking around and asked where I was looking for. “That’s my bar!” he exclaimed when I said Craftheads, and he continued to be talkative inside the bar. It was a surprisingly warm welcome.
Koji no longer imports his own beer, instead sourcing from Japanese craft beers and the various importers. When I visited there were 16 beers on tap – a mixture of Japanese breweries such as Minoh, North Island, and Shiga Kogen, with international offerings from the likes of Green Flash, Bear Republic, Coronado, and Fuller’s. (Is Fuller’s craft beer?)
There are no pints at Craftheads – most beers are sold in 200ml and 350ml sizes, with some in 300ml sizes. Here’s a photo of three 200ml servings:
At 200ml, that’s less than half a US pint. The beers were poured with no head, but they don’t fill the glass.
The cheapest beer on the menu was Miyama Blonde at 500yen for 200ml, 900yen for 350ml. At those prices, a US pint of 470ml is around 1175yen. Three Floyds Alpha King IPA was one of the more expensive at 800yen for 200ml, 1300yen for 350ml, giving a price of around 1750yen for a US pint, or 1880yen based on the 200ml price – quite possibly grabbing the award for the most expensive pint in Tokyo.
Craftheads definitely ain’t cheap when you compare pint prices. On the other hand, the small sizes do allow you to taste a range of beers.
The Craftheads website, blog, and twitter are mostly Japanese only – especially event details. That’s not uncommon in Japan, but when I asked Koji for an email address so that I could get event information and clarify details when writing Beer in Japan listings, he flatly refused. Given the warm welcome we received when we came to the bar, it was surprising. Koji’s explanation is that he wants to communicate with people one way via his twitter, website, and blog – which means reading Japanese for events. I got the definite impression that foreigners are welcome there, but that they have to “prove themselves worthy” by ploughing through the 日本語. Very Arrogant Bastard, right?
Craftheads is located on a back street just up from the Apple store in Shibuya. The website is here, blog here. Google maps link here. The bar is closed Mondays and closes early on Saturdays, Sundays, and holidays. It’s non-smoking and there’s free WIFI  (it’s hidden but the network name is “craftheads”). There is food but I didn’t try it.
My opinion? Inside Craftheads is a very nice bar – I like the decor a lot. If there were pints available at reasonable price I might go there more often, but given the expense of drinking there in quantity, it’s a place to “dip into” to try a hard to find beer rather than a place to spend all evening. The question is though – are you worthy?

Sal’s owner Koji – or Michael as he sometimes calls himself – is famous in the Japanese Craft Beer community for two things: that he used to import craft beers unofficially before official imports came along, and that, despite speaking fluent English, he has a dislike of foreigners visiting Sal’s. So when news came that Koji was opening a second bar in Shibuya, it raised a few eyebrows – you might be able to keep yourself away from foreigners when your bar is out in Kawasaki, but right in the heart of Tokyo?

Outside Craftheads

Outside Craftheads

Fast forward to January 2010 and Craftheads has been open for just over three months. I decided to make a visit with some friends to try some of the Three Floyds on tap, meet Koji, and see how welcome we’d be. As it turns out, I bumped into Koji on the street as I was looking for Craftheads. He saw me looking around and asked where I was looking for. “That’s my bar!” he exclaimed when I said Craftheads, and he continued to be talkative inside the bar. It was a surprisingly warm welcome.

Koji no longer imports his own beer, instead sourcing from Japanese craft beers and the various importers. When I visited there were 16 beers on tap – a mixture of Japanese breweries such as Minoh, North Island, and Shiga Kogen, with international offerings from the likes of Green Flash, Bear Republic, Coronado, and Fuller’s. (Is Fuller’s craft beer?)

There are no pints at Craftheads – most beers are sold in 200ml and 350ml sizes, with some in 300ml sizes.

200ml servings

200ml servings

At 200ml, that’s less than half a US pint. The beers were poured with no head, but they don’t fill the glass – I’m told that’s deliberate, Koji having precisely measured a 200ml line so that drinkers get exactly 200ml every time and are not short-changed with pours that have lots of head.

The cheapest draught beer on the menu was Miyama Blonde at 500yen for 200ml, 900yen for 350ml. At those prices, a US pint of 470ml is around 1175yen. Three Floyds Alpha King IPA was one of the more expensive at 800yen for 200ml, 1300yen for 350ml, giving a price of around 1750yen for a US pint, or 1880yen based on the 200ml price – quite possibly grabbing the award for the most expensive pint in Tokyo.

Craftheads definitely ain’t cheap when you compare pint prices. On the other hand, the small sizes do allow you to taste a range of beers. Bottles are also available – they can be pretty expensive.

The Craftheads website, blog, and twitter are mostly Japanese only – especially event details. That’s not uncommon in Japan, but when I asked Koji for an email address so that I could get event information and clarify details when writing Beer in Japan listings, he flatly refused. Given the warm welcome we received when we came to the bar, it was surprising. Koji’s explanation is that he wants to communicate with people one way via his twitter, website, and blog – which means reading Japanese for events. I got the definite impression that foreigners are welcome there, but that they have to “prove themselves worthy” by ploughing through the 日本語. Very Arrogant Bastard, right?

Inside Craftheads

Inside Craftheads

Craftheads is located on a back street just up from the Apple store in Shibuya. The website is here, blog here. Google maps link here. The bar is closed Mondays and closes early on Saturdays, Sundays, and holidays. It’s non-smoking and there’s free WIFI  (it’s hidden but the network name is “craftheads”). There is food but I didn’t try it.

My opinion? Inside Craftheads is a very nice bar – I like the decor a lot. If there were pints available at a reasonable price then I might go there more often, but given the expense of drinking there in quantity, it’s a place to “dip into” to try a hard-to-find beer rather than a place to spend all evening. The question is: Are you worthy?