Nomcraft Taproom Juso

Nomcraft Taproom Juso is the Osaka outpost of Nomcraft Brewing, a microbrewery in Aridagawa-cho, Wakayama, and it saves Osaka drinkers the trip south. The brewery was founded by Ben Emrich from Portland, Adam Baran from Chicago and Takumi Kaneko from Aichi, and has been brewing since May 2019 in a renovated former nursery school that is now a community complex. Its Octopus King IPA won the IPA category at the Japan Brewers Cup 2024.

The bar has 12 rotating taps. The list runs through the brewery's core and seasonal beers, with a strong American accent: hoppy New England and West Coast IPAs, double IPAs and session IPAs, crisp German-influenced lagers, wheat beers and golden ales, plus limited releases and a few guest taps. Most pours run ¥550 to ¥880 for 250ml to 400ml, and since 2023 the brewery has also been canning its beer, so look out for cans to take home.

It is a genuinely local, unpretentious spot in Juso Honmachi, Yodogawa-ku, about three minutes' walk from Hankyu Juso Station, the junction one stop from Umeda. Food is bring-your-own, so pick up takoyaki or gyoza in the neighbourhood's shopping streets on the way.

Weekend evenings are the busiest, and travel guides point to it as a good place to meet locals and other travellers. It suits hop lovers in particular, as well as anyone who wants to try an award-winning Wakayama IPA without leaving the city, and it is friendly to regulars and first-timers alike.