San Jose Beerwalk

Its nice to visit some shops I usually would not have. The $ 40 day of ticket is far from worth it. You get half glass pours out of beer cans into an already small glass. All told you get about three beers for your money once you’re able to get in past the lines. Money better spent at a restaurant in Japantown.

I have been to this event twice and I had a more fun last year just because it was not as crowded. The beer was also very similar to last years but still good! It is a very well organized event and a great time with friends. I am not sure if I would do it again next year but I would recommend it if you have never tried it before.

First, I would like to thank Unilocal for the free tickets this year!
This event was a lot of fun and much different than I thought it would be. I thought that they would section off the streets in Japantown and there would be tons of booths and drunken happiness would ensue. Don’t get me wrong, drunken happiness did ensue, it was just in a different fashion.
We checked in at Jacks to pick up our tickets and were given a map. On the map was the different locations where beer was being served. When you got to a location, they would check off their spot on the map. The idea being that once you had been at a location you could not come back. It was a cool way for us to see the many different locations. It was almost like a beer treasure hunt. The locations were interesting, pet shop, Japanese dishware shop, clothing stores, etc. All with the idea that the drunk people would become customers of their wares. This clearly works as my girlfriend bought 30 dollars worth of chicken hearts for her dog. As the name of this event would indicate, there was a lot of walking from location to location and I’m convinced that whoever put this event on must have paid off the police, because there was plenty of drinking on the streets. Not us though, perish the thought.
This event was tons of fun and I would definitely come again. The only reason I did not give it 5 stars was because they did not list which breweries were at which locations.
Thanks again for the tickets Unilocal

What a fun, well put on event. My only wish that it was in March so I could wear shorts and a tank top while I was enjoying my ice cold beer! Still a nice day though.
Like Jacks, but last year the pouring was done outside and much less cramped, my only suggestion would be to alter that.

I had seen this on the calendar and forwarded it to a few friends. To be honest, I had completely forgotten about it until one of the aforementioned homies asked me if we were going a few days prior to the event. I love beer, and I love Japan Town… why not?
We bought our tickets on line. I know the web site said that there were tickets available day of, and from the sounds of other Unilocaler experiences, some weren’t able to get any. All I can say is that we showed up at 2:00 (when the event started) and our group was two tickets short. By 2:02, we all had tickets.
I really wasn’t expecting a lot from the event, but it turned out to be a lot of fun. We got a chance to walk to 20 different establishments throughout Japan Town — all of which served us beer. The art gallery, the bar, the auto repair shop were all «natural» places to stop and drink… EHEM… «sample» beer. But I have to be honest, a couple of spots were a little awkward to be drinking in. I felt a sense of guilt while our crew was in the jewelry store drinking beer while some young couple was 5 feet away from up at a desk pricing and sizing engagement rings. Oh, then there was the lady getting her hair cut — how can I forget about that place. I kept thinking that had to be awkward for her.
In any case, the walk did introduce me to several local establishments that I never would have wandered into otherwise, so I have to be grateful for that.
If there were any reasons for me to take a star, I could deal with the awkwardness of some of the stops, but I found myself «holding it» due to the fact that not all of the stops had facilities for us to use. I mean c’mon here… we’re drinking beer. The periodic porta-​potties were appreciated, just not frequent enough.
Definitely an event we’ll do again. Seriously, look at the pictures I posted… we obviously had a great time!

Man, I havent seen my homie in forever!!! And he goes and invites me and mine to this event that Im sort of familiar with. As it turns out that he has free tickets to attend. Who am I to say no to such a friendly gesture of good will?
So we pack up and wait for him to pick us up and head over. Unfortunately we were hungry and ate as soon as we arrived in japantown, which ate into our precious time. The event was only from 2 to 5 or something and we had lost an hour to our lunch break. We didnt think anything of it till we started the surprisingly daunting task of sampling all 18 odd beers.
fml
Perish the thought that I would not be able to finish such a holy quest, but alas I was ill prepared in body and of mind for the hoppy task. I mean, honestly, that’s like 5 odd large beersin only 2 hours, mix in a lot of walking, tasty snacks and not enough accessible bathrooms… I’d like to see you do better. As you could imagine there was a bit of movement going on with nowhere for it to go, if you know what I mean? hahahaha
One particular beer stuck out in my mind… and oddly enough its made in nepal. Yes, I said nepal, as in that far away country that most people dont consider to be a country. Nepalibeer’s very own Mustang lager was great!
Brewed with refreshing Himalayan water.
Perfect blend of the worlds finest malts, hops and barley.
Lightly hopped for a Smooth flavor, pairs well with diverse cuisine.
Crisp and Refreshing beer with good bitter and aroma.
First Himalayan beer in the US market.
5.5% alcohol by volume.
;D

Tickets on sale on the day of? NOPE.
This was just Sake San Jose Festival, except with beer. Warm beer in pitchers. Forcing you to visit stores that you probably wouldn’t to begin with.

When a friend asked me about attending the San Jose Beerwalk, I was like what is that? I love beer, I can definitely use the exercise, sure… I’ll go.
Just to give you a brief description of the event: «Fifteen local breweries will participate in the debut of San Jose’s Japantown Beer Walk, a showcase of seasonal brews and classic Japanese beers».
Basically we started at Jack’s Bar where we picked up our tickets, a glass and a map of all the various locations where the beers were being served. Everyone at Jack’s and during the check in was extremely helpful and we were able to get in and out quickly so we can start drinking.
Overall it was 18 stops with a different variety of beer at each stop (some places even offering 2 different tastings).
I think one of the best parts of the event was the ability for me to check out all these neighborhood gems that were so close to me yet I never knew existed, like Chloe’s Closet, or a number of different salons in Japantown. My second favorite part of course, was the beer. We tried all kinds of beer including a Nepalese beer called Mustang which was delicious.
If you finish all the tastings and it’s marked off on the passport, you have the chance to enter a raffle. Unfortunately we ran short of time and didn’t get to finish, but hopefully next time.
Great event and I am looking forward to next years!