Nearly 6000 miles separate Fukuoka in Japan and Leeds in the UK. But for Suguru Hayashi, it’s a journey he was willing to make to follow his dream of becoming a brewer. Part of the team at Northern Monk, he’s firmly making his mark on the UK brewing fabric. And with the recent launch of the excellent Tomodachi, a collab with his previous team at Burnt Mill, Suguru is showing his technical prowess, too. Here, he takes us on the journey that led to this point.

Looking back, my dad always had some trad Lagers after coming home from work. Seeing him like that everyday, I might have subconsciously known that the passion for beer was already in my DNA.

I went to a local private university- the smartest one around, studying in its smartest department: French. Today, I remember absolutely nothing. To be honest, since the statute of limitations has run out, there were even days I’d sneak out to grab beer between classes and never come back.

And then, I started working part-time as a service staff member at a brewpub. it was a brand-newer style of F&B in Fukuoka craft at that time. The sight of many taps lovely lined up on the wall, and the fact that what was brewed right next to the restaurant was served directly, was so fresh back then.

My salary was basically pay for having to explain beer to dead fish-eyed salarymen with ties wrapped around their foreheads on a Friday night

Daimyo was the epicenter of young culture, so while it took a lot of fancy by curious people, some also walked right out because they felt the hurdle was too high. Because of that, I immediately got my beer certification at the age of 20ages (kind of the lower-grade version of IBD cause doesn’t exist).

That was the first moment I realized how historical beer is, and how deeply rooted it is in each local culture. Being able to put and share new knowledge and a unique worldview with customers was a fun time.

Like was my hobby. But picture this: looking back, my salary was basically pay for having to explain beer to dead fish-eyed salarymen with ties wrapped around their foreheads on a Friday night. I worked until midnight every single day. I genuinely loved spending my money buying up imported cans/bottles, and along with clothes and my girlfriend at same time, constantly contributing to the economy of local community. I was such a cultured individual lad.

While you can get a beer at a supermarket for about 200 yen (£1) per can, I stepped myself into this culture by buying an import for around 1,300 yen (£6.5)- I don’t remember the exact price. That beer was a Burnt Mill. The label completely mesmerises me.

It had the same drinkability as a Lager, yet the malts stood out and the fruity aroma. Plus, each label art and story is a truly attractive part of its product value.

I started thinking that I wanted to work in the beer industry after graduation. Right around then, the brewpub company was moving beyond just running a restaurant; they were transitioning into expanding their business as a craft beer brand scaling up their brewery.

The fact that the Japanese market, which had been slogging through the mud, finally started embracing craft beer as a mainstream trend. Upon graduating from university, I joined the company as a fresh graduate to help with the launch, and I gained a mountain of experience.

But in time I decided to become what I really wanted to be: a brewer. Deep down, given my personality and since my student days, I always had an ambition in my mind to seriously begin learning somewhere to become a world best brewer in the future.

Actually, just after my university graduation, I had traveled around the UK, Ireland, France, and Belgium. I visited the Guinness Storehouse in Dublin, visited Burnt Mill, drank Faith of Northern monk, and experienced some amazing cask ales.

I was drawn to Charles from Burnt Mill, whom I met back then, and a few months later, we met up again in Japan. (We had until 4 AM, and then I was late for my job at the beer fest.) So, when I thought about what to do to gain experience as a brewer, I thought: Alright, I’m going to the UK.

Leaving Japan

Unlike working holiday visas for other countries, which often have also strict work limits in a way, the YMS (Youth Mobility Scheme) gave me the perfect opportunity to fully bring myself in the UK brewing industry.

To fund this journey, I quit my job and worked day and night doing part-time jobs all day. Funny was started spending some time working as a housekeeper at The Ritz-Carlton- a hotel that used to be a business client in just my previous career. It was a weird experience.

Charles was incredibly supportive. He didn’t just welcome me to his brewery; he helped me find a place to live and guided me through UK life. Thanks to him, my dream became much more reality.

While my friends were progressing in their steady corporate jobs, I was cleaning toilets and dealing with absurd managers. During this time, I started texting to Charles. I asked him how I should progress ahead beneficiary.

He was incredibly supportive. He didn’t just welcome me to his brewery; he helped me find a place to live and guided me through UK life. Thanks to him, my dream became much more reality.

He also suggested that I rotate through different amazing breweries across the UK every few months. Even in Japan, I naturally knew about Northern Monk through imports of Heathen and Eternal.

Right now, the craft beer scene in Japan tends to follow trends from overseas. We import styles and ideas, but we sometimes lack true originality.

I was lucky enough to have dinner with Dr. Wolfgang Tosch, former Global Director of Product Innovation at AB InBev in London. and he agreed and told me that Japanese beer scene is delayed as long as Japan is just trying catch-up, we cannot fully stand equal with Europe or the US.

He said: “Your mission shouldn’t just be to bring British traditions back to Japan, but to create a new, unique Japanese style that can rival IPAs and Lagers globally.” I knew that to become a top brewer, I had to leave our level.

Landing in the UK, I felt like life was so fragile and fleeting that I seriously considered just going back to Japan to regroup. So yeah, I’ve really shocked at how difference it is to start a life in naive place even where to turn. Back and forth, I managed to get an attic in a terraced house- it was tiny space like can’t even open the suitcase there.

And my then kind landlord tried tying me up with unreasonable rules. Even shower, kitchen, laundry and curfew everything on her mood. To recover the money, I was running around all day to hand CVs out for evening work at pubs and cafes.

But no one would take them, some threw them away in front of me, or just ignored me because I lacked the English skills and communication ability, but at the time, I was truly struggling and deeply depressed.

Burnt Mill

While my personal life in the UK was initially a bit challenging, Burnt Mill was a brilliant experience. My day starts with slipping out of the house so as not to wake my landlord (Ninja on a mission) and catching a Greater Anglia train every morning. (I ain’t talking about commuting, this was my route back home.)

As this was essentially my first workplace overseas, I was nervous- even about how to perform CIP in that specific facility.

However, the environment was wonderfully open, allowing me the freedom to shadow on various responsibilities. It was then that Charles gave me a 2014 IBD textbook. I studied it with bloodshot eyes, then finishing it within a month. I precisely wrote down Japanese translations for every unfamiliar technical term, and even now it’s functioning as my brewing dictionary to remember back at it.

From learning about Gluten-tox Pro to slamming a mallet the bung onto a cask, these experiences made me truly realise, more than anything else, “wow I’m literally now working in the UK industry” (cause no cask in Japan)

Northern Monk

I chose packed up all my belongings and headed north. If I hadn’t managed to become a “Monk”, I would be homeless again. This is exactly why they call me the prodigal son. I still hold a very special place in my heart for the team at Burnt Mill, who gave me such a warm send-off and continue to look out for me even after I moved up north I remember clearly my try-out day I first stepped into here first time.

I was just overwhelmed by the massive scale of the organisation as craft beer brewery. I couldn’t help but think, I’ve came truly crazy place. I joined and rotated various position, but since there were no instructions, so I started to scrub the FV cones one by one in the end spontaneously. I had a strong feeling that I might never get to come back here again, I just wanted to do whatever can done to help.

Honestly, I was even thinking, I don’t care about the money, and I’ll sort out my own life by myself, so please God let me work here for even free. (such a Japanese toxic DNA) A few days later, I was officially reborn from a Samurai into a Monk.

This was one of the pivotal moments of my life. The brewer number 247, which has been given to me, holds a deeply special meaning. It connects the year 2024 when I first arrived in the UK – with ‘7’, the lucky number I gave to my little cute sister cat, Nana-chan!

The brewers, quality control, and packaging teams come from all sorts of different countries, but everyone takes immense pride in their work and work their responsibilities to the fullest.

The brewers, quality control, and packaging teams come from all sorts of different countries, but everyone takes immense pride in their work and work their responsibilities to the fullest. I am proud to be a part of this. The management class in production is daily trying to build operations that minimise risk and mistakes.

Compared to Japan tends to rely more on individuals, there is a high priority here on maintaining daily job quality through team building. This not only covered my language barrier when I start but was also a fantastic system that allowed me to accelerate my experience by observing the whole flow alongside QC on a daily basis.

It brings us the finest environment that you can find out the reason based on the answer right from the start. Professionals with careers from various different breweries gather here. Being here keeps me humble, and I am blessed with connections from these encounters that I can rely on forever. Especially Jack, the quality technician, is a year or two younger than me, but I am truly glad to have met him.

In Japan, there is no one younger than me who can do as much as he can, so he is a massive source of motivation for me. All monk in every department is so friendly, both professionally and personally. It’s really nice to see how we all celebrate each other’s achievements and support one another whenever anything comes up. Our corporate culture has such a wonderfully positive atmosphere

Northern Life

I absolutely love my life in Leeds. I love the atmosphere of the city centre, and if needed I can pretty much buy any Japanese ingredient it is painfully expensive though.

Once I survive my 4-day shift, a 4-day weekend is waiting for me. This rotation has allowed me to live my life to the fullest. Sometimes I spend all four days on the bed with exhaustion; other times, I search something like a man possessed or just wander out wherever on a whim.

If my day off is on Sunday, I have to spent it is eating a Sunday Roast. I am addicted into gravy

Honestly, just walking around the streets of this city brings me joy. Moving from an omattic room into a studio of Leeds landmark building feels like a dream. (Though every month as my money disappears quickly, wishing it was just a dream) I’m loving moments spent looking out at Holbeck of sunset skyline from window then letting my thoughts wander. It’s an everyday view, but I strongly desire never to take it for granted, it’s something that doesn’t exist in Japan.

Going out to see the Yorkshire landscapes, taking little trips to distant towns, or casually diving into unknown pubs at unknown place- No adventure, No life. I am genuinely falling love northern life still. If my day off is on Sunday, I have to spent it is eating a Sunday Roast. I am addicted into gravy, and also it’s very wonderful to see the traditional culture of gathering around a massive plate on Sunday.

Whenever I go out, Brian (Dickson) always sends me a recommended pub list and introduces me to his colleagues. The same goes for Russell (Bissett). It still humbles me that these guys the founders of here that leading the UK and European beer scenes today – always treat me friendly and kindly looking after me.

They are the exact role models who I truly aspire to be. Starting a perfect day off means sitting in places like The Banker’s Cat, Whitelock’s, The Grove, or The Victoria Hotel from midday in a half-awake daze, staring into space. So well, I’m good at letting that transition into ruining my entire day. Leeds is a privileged pub city, but I have to mention a few extraordinary pubs I encountered elsewhere.

First is the Free Trade Inn in Newcastle here is the best pub in the world. The mystical tranquil and location of that place provide a healing effect that words cannot describe. Also, the Corn Dolly (Bradford), The Guildford Arms (Edinburgh), The Bow Bar (Edinburgh), The Coopers Tavern (Burton), St Peter’s Tavern, and the Philharmonic (Liverpool) even the toilets there were stunning.

Tomodachi

Let me tell you about story on Tomodachi (Friends in Japanese). It is a 4.6% Modern British Pale Ale. I actually tried to twist both Brian and Charles’s arms to make this dream idea happen.

For me, the starting point was simply that I wanted to see a collaboration between these two heroes who mean so much to me. To tell the truth, I never expected it would turn out to be a beer to celebrate my journey. Before meeting with them Bury St Edmunds, I stopped by Norwich. It was a nostalgic time looking back at my previous life before I became a monk and reflecting on how much I have truly grown since then.

The memory of Brian traveling down to back Burnt Mill to brew as a monk is the greatest highlight of my entire career in the UK 100%. Was like an event that symbolizes my whole challenge so far. Who on earth could have imagined a reality like this two years ago?

By boldly labelling this as a “Modern British Pale Ale,” what I really want to see was how British people- especially the industry veterans and older generations -would react on it.

Since I am brewer who came to see British brewing, being blessed with the opportunity to use local ingredients alongside best brewers was the perfect chance to see how much deeply and how precisely my sensibilities lean toward the British style. I wanted people to feel a sense of comforting, familiar malt and hops, with an IPA-like fizzy carbonation, while enjoying an outstanding bright vibrance derived entirely from British hops.


The future

As for my personal dream, I want to set up my own brewery in my hometown of Fukuoka someday. Not to mention, I will workout to operate beer engines in the taproom and make it a real for British beer culture.

There are chains in Japan that call themselves “British Pubs,” but honestly, they are not British at all. It would be cool if I could create an authentic space like the ones that mesmerised me here. Of course, I also need to show a high level of sensitivity to trends, like in New York. The ideas are infinite.

When Brian was the same age as I am now, he and Russell started a journey to make world-class beer.

When Brian was the same age as I am now, he and Russell started a journey to make world-class beer. In the past 10 years, they grew it up to top-brewery in Europe with remarkable speed. They share Northern Monk- a brand deeply rooted in history and its local. through amazing beer experiences.

This has given me truly massive inspiration. There are countless jobs in this world. However, I know how deep craft beer is, how difficult it is to achieve, and how profoundly it can influence people’s lives. I am truly happy to stay deeply immerse in this culture right now, and to achieve that goal and to become a great brewer, I will remain diligent.

These have been some of the greatest experiences ever and ever. It’s a feeling I wish every single living person could experience at least once. These two years, where I have kept my soul burning bright, were lived with all faith everything.

Every single thing- the good times, the things I achieved, the sadness, and the things I had to sacrifice- was the best thing that ever happened to me. By now, Boading a airplane back to the UK feels about as casual mind as walking down to the local convenience store to grab a can of beer. We belong to brewing and my journey will continue.