Perspectives Archives - Page 3 of 39

Drink

Awamori in 30 Seconds: Understanding Okinawan Brewing Through Thai Rice

Explain awamori through Thai rice, black koji, all-koji preparation and distillation. Distinguish the history of rice imports from the arrival of distillation techniques, and read the three-year kusu labeling standard.

Food

Where Thailand’s Premiumization Takes Root｜Immersive Dining and Everyday Indulgences

Thailand’s premiumization appears in both immersive dining and small everyday treats. Explore how ingredients, texture and the time available for explanation shape what guests understand as special.

Getting Started

Introducing Bacchus Journal｜Exploring Japanese Sake and Traditional Spirits Through Ingredients, Culture, and People

Introducing Bacchus Journal: stories of Japanese brewing and distilling through ingredients, culture, and people. Learn what the journal covers, its planned twice-monthly English features, and how to explore the archive.

Bar

When Soy Sauce and Mirin Become Cocktail Ingredients: A Case Study from Tokyo International BarShow 2026

At Tokyo International BarShow 2026, one cocktail paired charred soy sauce and brown rice mirin with barley shochu. A look at what each seasoning contributes and how both trace back to koji.

Drink

Fermented Shrimp Paste in Dessert｜How an Ingredient’s Role Redefines Flavor

Fermented shrimp paste in dessert and miso in cocoa cake reveal how an ingredient’s role shapes finished flavor. Consider umami, sweetness, saltiness and the characteristics of sake and shochu.

Drink

Crafting Cocktails with Sake: A Delicate Shift in Balance

Using sake as a cocktail’s main ingredient and replacing another beverage at equal volume are different design choices. Explore final ABV, liquid volume and flavor roles, with examples from Shichiken.

Drink

Umeshu Starts in the Orchard: Three Decisions Shaping the Bottle at Kishu Honjo Umeyoshi

Kishu Honjo Umeyoshi grows its own ume and makes umeshu. Three decisions shape the result: when to pick, when to steep, and how to filter by hand without processing aids.

Drink

Mugishiru Wins the President’s Prize at Kura Master 2026｜Grain and Toasted Bread Aromas

Mugishiru received the Kura Master 2026 President’s Prize in Honkaku Shochu & Awamori. Explore the jury chair’s grain and toasted bread descriptions, barley koji, atmospheric distillation and unfiltered finishing.

Drink

Does Maewari Make Shochu Mellow? Understanding the Role of Water and Time

What does mellowness mean in maewari? Explore dilution, assessments of resting time, the roles of water at Nakamura Shuzojo, and the kuro-joka tradition in Kagoshima.

Drink

Taming the Bubble: The Technical Evolution of Champagne

How Champagne makers learned to control fermentation, bottle pressure and sediment. Bruno Paillard Dosage Zero illustrates the distinction between sugar for bubbles and sugar at finishing.

Drink

Shichiken “Hoshi no Kagayaki” Honored with the President’s Prize at Kura Master 2026｜Sparkling Sake Born of Hakushu

Shichiken Hoshi no Kagayaki received the sake competition’s President’s Prize at Kura Master 2026. Trace Hakushu’s water, local rice farming and secondary fermentation in the bottle.

Drink

Does Sake Deteriorate After One Year? Time, Temperature, and −5°C Storage

A bottling date alone cannot determine sake quality. Explore storage temperature, the differences between namazake and pasteurized sake, and producers who age sake below zero.

Age Verification