ビール

Pattern visualization

Examples

1. ビールを一本ください。▶ —
   One beer, please.
2. 生ビールが美味しいです。▶ —
   Draft beer is delicious.

Collocations

Mnemonic

ビール biiru — borrowed from Dutch bier in pre-Meiji Nagasaki trade (not from English "beer"). Centerpiece of Japanese izakaya (居酒屋) culture. The ritual phrase 「とりあえずビール」(toriaezu biiru) = "beer for now" is the default first order at gatherings — "whatever else we decide, beer first". Not just an order, a social lubricant ritual. Menu hierarchy: 生 (nama, draft) > 瓶 (bin, bottled) > 缶 (kan, canned) by freshness and formality. Japan's big four brewers (Asahi, Kirin, Sapporo, Suntory) anchor a major industry — one word compresses social ritual and industrial structure.

Quick check

1. Role of "toriaezu biiru" in Japanese drinking culture?

   • Default first order at gatherings — "beer to start" ritual
   • A beer ad
   • Bottled-beer-only phrase
   • For non-drinkers