Kirin Brewery Co. announced Tuesday it will release a malt-free beerlike alcoholic beverage on April 6, joining its biggest rival Asahi Breweries Ltd. in the so-called third-beer market pioneered by Sapporo Breweries Ltd. and Suntory Ltd.
The new suds have been growing in popularity thanks to prices that are lower than beer and its low-malt cousin "happoshu," which are taxed differently according to their malt levels.
"We have determined that there is a solid consumer need" for such beerlike beverages, Kirin President Koichiro Aramaki told a news conference in Tokyo.