Domestic shipments of beer and its low-malt cousin, "happoshu," logged a 12 percent year-on-year drop in July, according to data released Tuesday by five major brewers.

A recent tax hike and unusually cool weather appear to have dampened the thirst of beer consumers.

Combined shipments of beer and happoshu by the firms -- Kirin Brewery Co., Asahi Breweries Ltd., Sapporo Holdings Ltd., Suntory Ltd. and Orion Breweries Ltd. -- dropped to 626,428 kiloliters, the lowest July figure on record. The industry has been compiling such data since 1992.