Season of the Witch: Hiyaoroshi (ひやおろし) Chiyonosono Brewery (千代の園酒蔵), Kumamoto Prefecture

Readers of a certain age might remember Donovan’s wonderfully paranoid song “Season of the Witch.” For the younger cohort it is highly recommended, as it describes an era not unlike our own. That being said, it is also, of course, the month in which Halloween falls, our favorite holiday here at drinkingjapan.org, and the season … Continue reading Season of the Witch: Hiyaoroshi (ひやおろし) Chiyonosono Brewery (千代の園酒蔵), Kumamoto Prefecture →

Sweet Pairing: The Sake That Goes with Cocoa Cigarettes (ココアシガレットに合うお酒) from Chiyonosono Sake Brewery (千代の園酒蔵), Kumamoto Prefecture

Here’s a cigarette that even the defunct Tobacco Institute could plug with the confidence that their argument would remain unassailable—a smoke sans tobacco! No, no, no, you’ve got it all wrong. We’re not talking about vaping here: we are referencing those ever-so-retro confectionaries known as chocolate cigarettes. Sometimes these cylindrical pieces of chocolate come wrapped … Continue reading Sweet Pairing: The Sake That Goes with Cocoa Cigarettes (ココアシガレットに合うお酒) from Chiyonosono Sake Brewery (千代の園酒蔵), Kumamoto Prefecture →

Trilateral Rendition: The Wine Known as “The Amur Grape” : Amur Grape 2018 by Hitomi Winery

The Amur River and Its Tributaries Attribution: Kmusser; https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Amurrivermap.png The Amur River forms part of the vast border that Russia shares with China. It, along with the Amur Valley that straddles that river, lends its name to a species of grape known as Vitis amurensis. The grape is actually a survivor from pre-glacial days. As … Continue reading Trilateral Rendition: The Wine Known as “The Amur Grape” : Amur Grape 2018 by Hitomi Winery →

(Maybe) Just What the Doctor Ordered

Do you feel fatigued, have weak digestion or poor appetite? Do you suffer chilliness in your extremities, such as fingers and toes? Yomeishu is intended for people who suffer such symptoms. Based on oriental medicine, it is intended to address Mibyou, which is a pre-symptomatic state or as the Yomeishu website puts it, “…a physical … Continue reading (Maybe) Just What the Doctor Ordered →

Authenticity

Readers of this blog will need no introduction to Yamanashi Prefecture, its major winemakers and their output. In addition to the international varieties produced therein, there are the “native” ones, like Koshu, whose provenance, strictly speaking, is not Japan. There seems to be an ongoing debate in certain quarters as to whether Japanese producers should … Continue reading Authenticity →

Port and Something Else

Symington Family Estates, a name closely associated with such prestigious ports as Graham’s, Cockburn’s, and Dow’s, recently launched its School of Port, an online program designed to educate “wine professionals and wine lovers about port and the Douro,” the valley whence the wide array of grapes permitted in port production come. The first module covered … Continue reading Port and Something Else →