Sapporo Beer Museum

Overall a pretty good facility, would recommend. Free tour available but if you want the premium tour it’s 1,000¥ or so. Make sure you buy premium tour tickets in advance as they get sold out quickly. Facility is large and modern with a good collection of historical pieces. Tour is well laid out, and flows from start to finish. There is a beer tasting hall at the end with an exclusive Sapporo Beer Museum brew only available at this location and not sold anywhere else. Shop is also available for souvenirs. Overall, if you have some time I recommend checking out the Beer Museum. The atmosphere and surrounding area is nice and it’s a nice activity to eat up a couple hours.

I’m writing this review based on the free tour, as I didn’t book the premium one. The free tour you can just walk in and make your way to level 3. No need to queue for ticket . Honestly, the free tour is pretty short — it’s mainly about the history of how Sapporo Beer was founded, along with a small exhibit showing what the brewery looked like in the past. You can finish the tour in about 10–15 minutes, depending on how much time you spend reading the panels. The highlight was definitely the beer tasting afterward. Theres a queue to purchase the ticket but it's quite fast like 5-10mins. We tried three different beers for around 1200 yen because we were curious about the different flavors. Our favorite was the “Black Label” — super smooth and easy to drink. The “Classic” had a slightly bitter aftertaste, which wasn’t really to our liking. As for the “Kaitakushi,” we’d rank it last — it was quite bitter, especially at the end, so it might appeal more to those who like stronger, more bitter beers. There are seating areas for tasting, but they can get crowded, so we ended up standing at a table in the back, which was perfectly fine. Right next to the museum, there’s a large shopping mall with stores like Uniqlo, GU, and more — definitely worth stopping by for a quick browse!

Fun museum with information provided in Japanese, English, Chinese and Korean. Perfect for beer enthusiasts and those just looking to learn more about Hokkaido history alike! The entrance was free, and there was also a free guided tour. The museum had a gift shop and the option to do a taste test.

Good place for people who drinks otherwise for me it was a history knowledge visit bout a famous fl rand from the place. Unfortunately the external facade is under renovation and the whole building was covered in dust proof cloth hence can’t take a good shot of the place outside. Inside there are two zones, one can be visited and walked around for free and other one is paid area where you can enjoy tasting their beer. The place is very far and needs to take a bus which is not convenient as no train connection is available. It a bad place to visit and learn more about it.

A great place to learn about Sapporo beer! I did thr beer taster set and it was really juice with English descriptions so you could really understand the taste of the beer. The museum had a paid tour or a free tour. I hadn't booked for thr paid one so just did the free one. The highlight is the beer tasting at the end for sure😆🍻🍻

Interesting story of Sapporo beer! Also enjoyed the beer tasting activity. I thought that the beers will be served in small glass only. Was pleasantly surprised to be served in 3 full glasses. For their restaurants, better to call and reserve a table in advance.

Honestly, the museum itself didn’t have much to see, and most of the explanations were only in Japanese, so it wasn’t very foreigner-friendly. However, the beer tasting on the first floor is a must—super fresh, cold, and delicious. If you come here, definitely give the beer set a try. Low score as a museum, high score for the beer!

Free tour has plenty of interesting history to make it worthwhile, the tasting set of 3 beers is a firm favourite amongst visitors and for good reason! I would recommend booking the restaurants/beer garden early in advance as they did not offer walk ins since it was fully booked. From how lovely the beer was, I can see why!

Had to check out the Sapporo Beer Museum when in Sapporo! Honestly did zero research ahead of time so came in with zero expectations or understanding of the museum. Ordered a Go Taxi both to and from the museum from downtown Sapporo which was reasonably priced and made getting there and back easy. There is a free self tour or a paid formal tour (allows access to exclusive areas) but we opted for the free self guided tour. After walking in, take the stairs, or elevator, up to the second level for the museum. You'll basically learn everything there is to learn about Sapporo, from inception to modern days. I found the section dedicated to Sapporo advertisements throughout the years to be especially interesting. After the museum, you can head downstairs to the taproom to enjoy Sapporo beers - with a selection of a few I'd never had before. The best way to experience this is to get a flight, which we did. There can be a long line and I think we waited about 20 min to order and get a seat. End you museum trip at the gift shop with some pretty cool and unique souvenirs and apparel to take home.

I'm not the biggest beer guy, but what was I gonna do? Not visit the Sapporo Beer Museum when in Sapporo? You crazy for suggesting that. I stumbled in here after a long walk through the snow, and opted to just do the walk through as opposed to the guided tour, as it was only in Japanese lol... and my Chase card was EXHAUSTED from this trip. I walked through, but soon realized all the captions were in Japanese. I mean that's fine, I am in Japan. I just walked through slowly with my hands behind my back, carefully inspecting all the pictures and making up my own stories for what the Japanese captions said. You couldn't last a day in my brain. After my 10 minute walk through I was gonna do the beer tasting, but the line was INSANE. Probably a 40 minute wait. So I just went to the merch stand, bought a baseball T with the original Sapporo logo, a magnet for my fridge, and a bottled beer for the road. Much to my chagrin, I realized I didn't have a bottle opener. Everyone outside the museum watched me struggle for 10 minutes trying to open this beer with my teeth, but in the end we got it done. I felt my mom cringing back home as she hates when I open water bottles with my teeth, which is fair because she did pay for my braces lmao. All in all, I had a good time in here. Incidentally, I'm single handedly bringing baseball Ts back. IG @jnov_ Tiktok @jnov_reviews

My first time at Sapporo Beer Museum and the best part of this is it's free. The inside has a lot of historical information as well as how it came to be the design, logo, and where it all began and started. Cool stuff and I am not a beer drinker at all. At the end of the museum, they have a gift store and also a beer hall I believe where you can buy and try the different Sapporo beer flavors. My friends loved it and said that the black Sapporo beer was their favorite.

There's a free version and a premium version. You need to sign up for the premium tour in advance, but you can show up and do the free tour at any time. For the free tour, you enter the building and immediately take an elevator up to the third floor. You'll work your way between the tiny third floor exhibit, to the huge second floor gallery, to the taproom and gift shop on the first floor. English, Mandarin, and Korean translations are available for the exhibits. Try the flight of three beers and buy some chocolate in the shop. The tour covers the history of Sapporo Beer, not beer making itself.

This was my last city in Japan to visit in 2008 before moving over to South Korea for several months of work. I had an assignment in northern Japan and wanted to visit this city on the way. What can I say good tour and beer. Stop by when you are in town.

FREE BEER....MUSEUM! If traveling to Sapporo for the first time, a visit to the Sapporo Beer Museum is must! It's FREE to go in. There are guided tours for a cost with free beer and snacks at the end. The catch for the free self guided tour is you pay for your own beer. It's a walkable distance from the city, which took about 25-30 minutes if you just walk there without any stops and figuring out shortcuts. We discovered there's a city bus that goes directly here, and stops right in front of our hotel on the way back. Definitely take this next time! When you arrive at the entrance, you'll see the notable Red Star (which always reminds me of China). The museum is on your left. Inside is clean and well maintained. You'll see the usual (yeah, I'm an expert now after visiting here and Qingdao Brewery several months ago lol) brewing machinery, history, exhibits, and etc. The old logos and advertisements are the most interesting. At the end of the tour is the tasting bar. You use self-service machines to place your order. 1000¥ for a beer flight of 3 different beers. All good! Kaitakushi was my favorite. The tasting bar in Qingdao (Tsingtao) was a lot more lively! Of course, after the bar is the gift shop. Not a lot of items, surprisingly. Just grabbed a couple of beers and souvenirs. You can actually skip this particular gift shop as there's another one outside the museum near the restaurants/Beer Garden with even more items. Overall, a nice place to visit when in Sapporo. I found it quite interesting seeing what makes their beer unique, and also the advertisements and old logos. If you're planning to visit the museum and purchase a beer at the end... and also want a guided tour, but don't want to pay. The price of a guided tour (beer included) is 1000¥--same price as a flight of beers. This is a place I wouldn't mind coming again.

So cool to go to the museum and learn about the history of the company. They have displays listed in mostly Japanese, but if you speak English, they have laminated cards in English in the pocket of each display. That helped so much! I loved seeing the progression of the logo over the years and the various ads over time.

My beer drinking days are long gone, but I tagged along for this group activity anyway at the Sapporo Beer Museum. EXPERIENCE: It's a beautiful brick building with free entry. Exhibits were written in Japanese with English pamphlets to the side. Guided tours are available but need to be booked in advance. You can get through the museum part in about 30 minutes. At the end of the line was their spacious tasting room where you can order brewskis to your heart's content. The gift shop is here as well. OVERALL: Had it been more interactive or better yet a working factory, it would've been more enjoyable.

This is a place you must visit if you are in Sapporo and also have dinner at one of their dining halls for the Genghis Khan. Food is delicious and unlimited beers, why not?

If you visit Sapporo, you should consider visiting the Sapporo Beer Museum. It's this beer that is synonymous to the city. I went in the self guided tour and was amazed at how large the beer vat is the brewed the beer. You will get to stroll around the grounds and read or view the history of the beer. At the end, you have the opportunity to try the selection of beer they offer. I tasted to sample the beer as I do not drink beer now. But I saw tons of people chugging down many glasses at 11am. You can take the subway, bus, or walk there depending where you are located in the city. Cost. $0. Beer sampling $4 per glass.

For someone who doesn't like the taste of beer, my experience here was actually better than I expected! The museum itself is free to enter with an optional paid tour. My husband and I decided to just look around the museum ourselves and there were english translations provided at each exhibit! At the end of the museum, you can order beers to try - we ordered one flight to share. I definitely liked the black label best! There's plenty of seating inside but it was pretty busy anyway - I'd recommend sending one person to order and having the rest of the group securing a table. After we finished our flight, we checked out their small gift shop and purchased a few desserts! The only inconvenience I experienced here was probably the bus to take us to and back - they don't come very often (one every 30ish minutes?) and we unfortunately missed our bus back to the city center by a minute lol. If this also happens to you, you can walk around outside and there's another souvenir shop next to the garden that you can check out to pass the time!

- Avoid weekend visits or be okay to not try any beer - Premium tours were all booked out in advance and it's recommended to book it online. We basically didn't come prepared and walked around freely. It's Saturday, so there were a ton of people. They didn't translate anything directly on the display, but you gotta grab a plastic sheet to read the translations. We were too lazy to read anything in detail and the free exhibit was basically done in 5 minutes. Then I saw the crazy line to pay to try the beer. It's insane, we skipped it since we aren't super big fans of beer. I'd recommend not to come to this popular tourist attraction on a weekend for a better experience. [ This is based on my visit in December 2023]

Cool museum to go check out. If you're in Sapporo it's a must. Lots of cool history to learn about and the grounds are big. The line at the end for beer tasting was incredibly long. Was there in the late afternoon. The gift shop had some nice items. Many restaurants to enjoy bbq Genghis khan and beer.

I am not a huge fan of Sapporo beer, but definitely wanted to check this place out while I was in the area. The Sapporo beer museum is free (I believe there is a guided tour, but you need to make a reservation). I wanted a little bit of freedom to look around so opted to not do the tour. I arrived about an hour before closing time. The beer museum is super cool to see. There is a lot of interesting facts to learn and tons of cool exhibits. I was able to finish looking around in about 30 minutes (but could definitely spend more time if there is interest). Then, I went down to the tasting hall. There is a vending machine to order a tasting a few snacks. They had a cheese that I ordered, which was just a small cheese block. It was decent cheese, but not sure if it was worth it. The tasting pours were pretty generous. If you are not a big beer drinker like me, I would suggest sharing with someone. Lastly, I would go over to the gift shop. I bought some butter scallop Pringles. Surprisingly, super delicious!!

Sapporo Beer... the beer that made Sapporo famous. We took the self guided tour. Basically, you walk around and read about the history. There are laminated cards in English. The most interesting part to me was the past beer ads. There is a paid tour, but it was sold out and it's in Japanese. Beer tastings are available at the Star Hall. There is a ticket machine where you select what you want and pay. Then you hand the ticket to a bartender. We got the tasting set- Sapporo Classic, Sapporo Draft Kuro Label, and Kaitakushi Beer. Next to the museum are three different restaurants. Genghis Khan Hall is popular as it's all you can drink beer and all you can eat mutton. There's also Garden Grill and Lilac. We went with Garden Grill (separate review) as the wait time was shorter. Reservations are made at the beer hall reception area. We were given a call when our table was ready. We returned to the reception area to get a ticket before heading to the restaurant. Overall, we had a nice afternoon here.

On our adventure to Japan, we were really looking forward to visiting this museum actually hoping it would be one of the highlights of our trip. The Sapporo Beer Museum feels very touristy, over hyped in my opinion. From the hoards of people inside, to the incredibly long line that wraps quite literally through the perimeter of the museum for the tasting room, it's easy to feel like you're inside a tourist trap. To preface, I am more than willing to wait in a line for something worth while but this just wasn't it. The museum itself is quite bland, with no interactive qualities. The museum features some brief history about the makers of the popular beer, as well as shows you the evolution of the marketing of the brand. Other than that, I didn't find the museum that interesting. Most of the text was in Japanese and the information that was available in English wasn't impressive. Luckily there is a gift shop that sells their 3 famous beers that you can only find in the Sapporo museum. We came for the beers and some nice beer glasses and left. This museum was very average and wasn't worth going out of our way for. The museum is quite small although the campus is large filled with a grill, cafe and restaurant (requiring reservations).

Sapporo Beer Museum: Your appetite for absorbing the details of Sapporo's brewing history will depend on whether you've already had your beer or if you're still anticipating wetting your whistle. You will learn more about beer than you realize you wanted to know. It's all on the second floor of this historic building that was originally built as a sugar factory in 1890. It didn't become a beer museum until a century later. There are plenty of panels and miniaturizations that describe the beer-making process and quite a display of Japanese celebrity endorsements of Sapporo Beer. When you're done, go downstairs immediately for the beer. Admit it, that's why you came here anyway. RELATED - Traveling in Japan? Here's a collection of places I've visited and reviewed: http://bit.ly/2qrUBZo

Pretty fun place to visit. From Sapporo Station, you take the Toho Subway line two stops to Station #05. From there, take exit #4 and walk around 10 minutes. There's no signage so you will need Google Maps or will need to map it out in advance: walk about 5 blocks, turn left and walk two blocks. The free tour is very quick. Nothing all that interesting but it's kind of neat looking at the earliest Sapporo bottles from the 1880s. Other than ads, bottles, photos and a 3D diagram of the factory, there wasn't really much here. The bottom level is really where all the fun is: the beer drinking. For (3) 8 oz glasses of three different Sapporo brews and a little snack rice crackers and dried peas, it'll cost ¥800. Pretty fair price. The tour is free. If you wanna be first class, pay extra for the premium tour. Make sure you learn how to speak Japanese if take that option. All and all, no regrets. Had fun here.

I personally really like going to breweries because I like beer! So when we're in Sapporo, we gotta go to their famous Sapporo Beer Museum! The museum is a bit further away from the center of the city but we actually decided to walk there rather than taking public transportation. I don't think there's an easy way to get there. Plus with how small the city was, it wasn't that hard to walk on over. When you two options when you get to the museum: you could do a guided tour or you could do the free route. Our group decided to take the free route, which began on the third floor. It's just a tiny museum that goes over the history of Sapporo Beer, which I thought was very interesting. Afterwards, you could try their beer on draft! They have the Black Label, which is the one we all know. They also have the classic and an unfiltered version. If you get the tasting flight, it'll run you about 800Y, which isn't so bad. We also got some of their cheese to try as well as the Napolin soda that is only available in Hokkaido. Unfortunately, I'm not a fan of Sapporo beer. It's a little too dry and hoppy for me. It was a fun experience and I would say that if you enjoy beer, you should pay a visit. The history itself was worth it but I think once would be enough. It wouldn't be a place that I would go back to if I were in Sapporo.

When in Sapporo, first thing anyone thinks of is Sapporo Beer ! So have to make a visit to the Sapporo Beer Museum ! We had came here on a Sunday early evening, making our walk from a bit south from Sapporo Station, through Sapporo Factory, across the train tracks, around and to the Museum. Sapporo itself isn't large so walking isn't bad. Total walk per Google Maps is about 30 minutes, but since it has just snowed the night before and again that day, the sidewalks were iced and slippery, probably increasing the time by 50% at least. The beer museum is fairly small. I'm not sure what the "paid" portion takes you to but the "free" one takes you upstairs to see a huge copper drum, then down a ramp to an area showing the history of Sapporo Beer, which translated pamphlets to the side. You do find out a quite a lot of the history and some interesting facts. After the self guided tour, you go down to the "Beer Garden" to try the beers. Apparently the "classic" is only available in Hokkaido, with the known "black label", and an "unlabeled" version. I think it was about 800 yen for the flight. Theres also a cheese sampler thingy too that we also got. Originally i was gonna try my friend's flight then get whichever beer i liked, but ended up not getting anything because we didn't really like any of them. I mean they weren't bad, but it wasn't good enough for me to get a whole pint of it Lol. Fun little experience. The beer tasting was a GREAT opportunity to rest the feet. LOL We ended up taking a taxi back into town which are available right outside. They also have a restaurant side for AYCE genghis khan lamb which we didn't end up trying, but smelled REALLY GOOD ! LOL

First off, I am not a beer drinker... but this was a fun experience. The night before visiting the museum, my friend who is a Sapporo local (born and raised) and who loves beer, mentions this as a must-visit. My husband who enjoys beer requested we do this. I agree, what the heck, I may just try a Sapporo beer while we're there too! We were staying next to Odori Park and we decided, we were going to walk it... in the cold... in the snow. We are down for an adventure, that's for sure #adventuresofthechuns! If you don't want to take that 30-45 minute walk (normally probably only 30 minutes) (cause we took side streets and got distracted taking photos), take the rail (23-25 mins) or a taxi (10 mins). Upon arriving into the Sapporo Biergarten Museum there is a queue that you can stand in to make reservations for restaurants. While my husband spoke to the lady she suggested we eat first as the museum closes at 7pm, so no need to rush, besides we were hungry after walking that long! Outside of the museum area there are 5 different restaurants in the Biergarten (3 are in one building). A couple of them being All-You-Can-Eat type restaurants. Most serving up crab, sushi, lamb, and very famous Hokkaido Genghis Khan. We chose Garden Grill, which served King crab, snow crab, tender lamb, and other seasonal seafoods and vegetables. There is a gift shop, where they also sell Hokkaido Cream (a must-have, so good). You can pick up Hokkaido Beer Cake, t-shirts, beer jelly chocolates, and other gifts. The museum offers tours that offers beer tasting at the end of the tour. It is about 500 Yen per person and it is guided. However, it is all in Japanese! No English tours. So I suggest, do the free tour that you can take yourself. There is a little open theatre that shares the Sapporo beer information as you head downstairs to the museum. It's just a quick movie, a snapshot of what you can dig deeper in with the boards. You can read the information in the museum. There are also pamphlets in English next to each board. Just please put them back for others to use. It's very neat to see how the company evolved. You can see past labels and advertisements. Very interesting. At the end of the tour you will find stairs that leads you to the beer hall. This is where you can try different Sapporo beers. There is a queue for you to purchase the tickets and then you enter another line to present your ticket to the bartenders. My husband got a tasting set: Black Label, Classic (only available in Hokkaido), and Kaitakushi Beer. I opted for a Ribbon Napolin fizzy drink (popular drink and also sold only in Hokkaido). I know I mentioned I would drink a beer while I was here... I did!! I had my Sapporo beer at the Garden Grill. I drank a Sapporo Chocolate Stout. It was delicious!! It's a clean and nice museum. They have a clean restroom area, offering western style toilets! There are lockers for you to use. We put our heavy jackets and bags in here. It is a 100 Yen for deposit, which you'll get back when you get your things out. Yaay free!! If you have a chance to check this place out and you enjoy beer, I recommend it! It won't take your whole day, since it's a small museum. So squeeze it in the morning. They open at 1130am and close at 7pm. The restaurants stay open later. Although, you may want to confirm it before going. Tanoshinde!

When in Sapporo... how can you not stop by the Sapporo Beer Museum? Set up: You walk in and either you partake in the guided tour (which we were not interested in, and I don't think there is an English version) or you can just wander around yourself in the museum section and the tasting room. The tasting room is pretty big with tables, and you get 3 Sapporo beer tastings with a purchase of a ticket that is about $6 from a vending machine. You present it to the ladies at the counter, and they will give you the 3 tastings and a little snack that you can take to one of the tables. If you want a refill of a particular beer, you can go back and purchase it. There are other smaller buildings adjacent to the main museum, such as the restaurant and a little gift shop. I was happy we went, but I feel like it could've been a little better. The museum section was very small, and the tastings that were available weren't very unique or different. In general, Sapporo beer in Japan is way better than Sapporo beer in the States (not sure why?) but the tastings were of beers that you can easily find in Sapporo convenience stores. My favorite was the Black. I also feel like they could've had some people at the counter that could explain things a little bit (kind of like a winery in the States) rather than just people that were pouring the tastings without any fanfare. It's probably hard since they get so many tourists, but I feel like it would be a win-win situation. Nice activity to do in 1-2 hours, tops. Interestingly, the place has a very western architecture, and I learned that Sapporo beer has been around since the late 1800's. Impressive.

Totally worth it! Well, it's free, but still a lot of interesting stats and history behind how this beer became such an icon for Japan and especially Hokkaido! We came when it wasn't too busy, though based on the stanchions, there are long waits especially at the tasting room. Line up for the vending machines in one line, then present your order in another line. (You might end up lining up twice at the top of the stairs when it's busy, I imagine) There are non alcoholic beverages for those not 20 years of age or older, or for those not partaking. I recommend the sampler of the company's 3 most popular offerings. I also recommend the Napoli soda, it's sweet and reminds me of an orange creamsicle. Take your time going through the gift shop and don't forget to take a photo "inside" the large glass of Sapporo beer on the way out!

Interesting. SAPPORO GALLERY supposedly has English sheets for explanations that I didn't see or notice. MINI THEATER has nicely produced 3 min videos in a comfortable seating: (1) Beer Production by Kaitakushi, and (2) Sapporo Beer Museum.

There are a *lot* of different Sapporo beers, and quite a few of them are very *very* good. Mind you, even the "generic" sapporo beer is excellent here (thought that may have to do with being in Hokkaido :-) ) Anyhow, museum is fun, but, at all costs, avoid the restaurants - there is much *much* better food available elsewhere

I walked all the way from Sapporo JR Station to Sapporo Beer Museum. Free Admission which is always good! But Damn it was not open!! I double checked the website before and it never mention anything about it closed for that day! We were not the only one that was disappointed as quite a few people looking at the locked doors not being that happy at all. We ended up walking around the outside courtyard which some of the brewing equipment were on display including a huge Copper Beer Kettle.

First things first, let's talk about access. Google maps does not have the proper bus information for this place. There is a bus - the number 88 - and it stops at all the main tourist locations in Sapporo. The three main stops are: in front of the Tokyu Hands building a block from the Sapporo Station South Exit; in front of the Clock Tower; and Odori Park (the same street as the clock tower). The bus runs all the way until almost 11 PM every ~20 minutes (the frequency changes toward the beginning and the end). The fare is, as of this post, 210 yen and I can't find a timetable online, only the route. As for the museum itself, it's pretty bare and just gives out a simple history lesson of the brewery. It's only spread out over two floors and terminates with a paid beer tasting and a small museum shop. Even though the museum opens until 8 PM with last entry at 7:30 PM, the paid tastings close about an hour early. So unless you're planning on making an already short museum tour even shorter, then you should probably head here earlier. The only reason for the 3 star rating and not anything lower is because Sapporo makes a ton of money and the whole "beer campus" is well manicured and wouldn't look out of place in a theme park. But if you're not planning on eating here, then it's really not worth visiting. The reception where the museum tour takes place is effectively the restaurants' front of house. I wandered around like a lost tourist entering into all the dining halls before realizing I had to check in. At that point, it was already 8 PM and the line on a random Wednesday was supposedly an hour long. With a 100 minute allowance and the last order at 9:30 PM, the math didn't work out. So instead of eating here, I'm writing this Yelp review. It's now 9 PM and I haven't eaten dinner yet, but you're welcome.

Sapporo beer museum is one of the spots that we wanted to go to during our stay in Hokkaido. We went here as they opened - they are in the bus route so it's easy to get there. Inside you have two options - one is a guided tour for a fee, and another where you just go around (for free). The museum has the history of this classic beer - from how it was founded and production throughout the years. It's amazing to learn how beer was brought from Germany and became embedded in Japanese culture. Hokkaido was picked as a location due to the colder weather which was used in brewing. Try the hokkaido beer only (sapporo classic) and you won't regret it.

Not only a museum but also a restaurant. The museum has a beer tasting room and has some great food. If your in Sapporo this is a must stop. Fast and friendly service and very tasty. That's the reason why me and my daughter love JAPAN.

If you have time in Sapporo then you have to visit the Sapporo Beer Museum. They offer a free tour and it's interesting to learn about the start of beer in Japan. They were clever entrepreneurs. At the end of the tour, you must have a glass of beer! I ordered the flight and tried the three varieties- all were great! Of course, in Japanese style, you order and pay at a machine and then pick up your beer. Kanpai!

Museum gives you an overview of Sapporo beer company history. As most of the text is in Japanese it's quite quick walk through to the main destination I.e. beer tasting... But it's still value for money as the basic self tour is free. At the bar use machine to get tickets 600 Yen for a taster set of three beers, they were very fresh but at the end of the day between three lagers there's not that big difference... Attending an actual paid tour would of course be another kind of experience but unfortunately didn't have time to do that. Museum shop was quite small, bit surprised to see many Yebisu themed items which is IMHO quite strange as we are in Sapporo! Would I return? Well it's nice and clean but likely wouldn't go there again, at least for the free tour, as there's not that much to see actually...

This is the best "brewery" tour I've been on. It has big, laminated cards in English that teach of the company's history. There is a tour you can purchase, but it is in Japanese Only. The museum is beautifully lit and laid out. It takes as long as you like to get through it. I loved seeing the adverts from over the years. The brick building is wonderfully manicured with fall colors. Don't be shy taking a picture with it. The tour completes with a delicious beer tasting (¥600) of three Sapporo beers. My favorite was the Kaitakushi which doesn't seem to be as available in public. It comes with a little dry wasabi snack. I sprung for some cheese (¥100) as well. Have a great time!

If you're visiting Sapporo you definitely have to visit the Sapporo Beer Museum*pun. If you're planning to get there from Sapporo Station, there is a bus that can take you directly to the sapporo beer museum for around 410¥ per person (I think depending on the time of day),10-15 minutes ride. About the museum tour, it took me about 40 minutes to get thru all 3 floors (starting from 3rd floor going down) and it's Free admission if you do the tour by yourself, just follow the map provided to you near the elevator. The self-guided tour was just "o-k", like all other tours, it feels like going to history class and all I had on my mind was the beer sampling at the main hall! the overall experience was good, this attraction was better than a lot of other attractions and I would highly recommend you to drop by this Sapporo Beer Museum when you visit Sapporo!

I love their beer tasting set! You get to choose 3 different kinds of beer for around 500 yen. If you just want one type of beer, it's about 200 yen, but I wanted to try the set to compare the tastes. Although the location is a bit far from the station, it's still at a walkable distance from Sapporo station (about 25 minutes walk). You can also can take train/ subway/ taxi. It was fun to look at the old Sapporo beer ads and look at how Sapporo beer is made. They also have a free tour at certain times. I'll be joining the tour the next time I visit. テイスティングサロンの500円の3種飲み比べセットが美味しかったです。入場料が無料な上に、大人も子供も楽しめる博物館だと思います。普通に頼むと一杯200円で3種飲み比べセットよりも大きい器です。3種飲み比べセットは3種類のビールが試せて、一杯ずつ頼むよりも一つ一つが小さいため、飲みきりやすかったです。 博物館は札幌駅から近くはありませんが、歩けない距離でもありません(25分くらい)。駅から電車や地下鉄やタクシーを使うのも良いかもしれません。札幌ビールの昔の広告を見たり、ビールづくりについてなど学べて面白かったです。 次は無料のツアーに参加してみようと思います。

I love love love the beer tasting museum!!! :D The beer tasted crisp and fresher than outside. As explained by the rest, this place is quite far from JR. Just take the cab if you have 3 or 4 pax to go. I also enjoyed the museum, and the one star is deducted because they don't have an english talk tour. I think that would add much value to the visitor who actually wants to know more of the history of the place. However, the place compensated with the beer ticket vending machine and those beer cheese that comes with each purchase of the beer were divine!! If you go for the first time, try the beer tasting set, that was awesome and pick what type of beer you like afterwards. :D Another plus is that the compound actually looks very much like a school campus :)

Stopped here for a brief visit. As others have said, the museum itself is not super impressive - our whole visit lasted around 15 minutes and that's because we read every piece of English we could find! Too bad we don't speak Japanese because I understand there is a premium tour in Japanese language only that I'm sure is more fulsome. After the museum, you can go to the beer hall and order a tasting flight of 3 beers for around $6 USD, decent pours and 2 of the 3 cannot be bought in the US. They also sell Hokkaido cheese (two small pieces for around $1 USD). We didn't try the restaurants but understand they do a good all you can eat genghis khan (lamb stir fry) buffet!

We took a taxi there from Sapporo JR Station: Cost us about 1,000 yen. We arrived there around 6:00 p.m - the Taxi dropped us off right in front of the main building. We walked in and realized that in order to eat dinner there, we need to make a reservation at the front desk in the main building. So, we made our reservation (they told us that it would be a 100 minute wait!!!) and went to the beer area which was closing in 2 minutes! So we quickly bought our beer tickets and sat down for 30 minutes to enjoy the beer as they close at 7:00. Since we still had to wait for dinner, we went up to the museum on the 2nd floor. I really enjoyed this museum. It's set up well, and very well organized. Free Admission!!! Luckily, we were called at 7:30 for our dinner reservation and hurried off to the restaurant for dinner. Lastly, Dinner was delicious. I definitely recommend that you try to spend the evening here.

It's not a brewery, so you don't get to actually see anything being brewed. You can read exhibits about the history of Sapporo. Then there is a tasting room where you can buy & enjoy beer. There's also a gift shop. Honestly, I wouldn't go out of my way to go here. It was an activity for a rainy day.

Great historic buildings and information on one of my favorite beers. And tasting wasn't too shabby either. Awesome! Mahalo!!!

I am not sure we quite did this right but it was free and fun. If you don't speak or read Japanese you might want to pay for a tour