Ghibli founders Toshio Suzuki and Hayao Miyazaki contribute to Japanese whisky Totoro label design

Okinawa distiller teams up with the anime legend.

Japanese whisky maker Kumesen Shuzo has just released its latest creation. Called Ukiyo, the whisky’s name means “floating world,” the same ethereal geographic descriptor as in ukiyo-e, the “pictures of the floating world” woodblock prints that today serve as a window into life in Japan during the pre-photograph era.

It’s not just Ukiyo’s name that has a connection to Japanese art, however, but its packaging too, as the whisky’s label and box feature artwork from Studio Ghibli producer Toshio Suzuki and anime director Hayao Miyazaki.

Starting with Suzuki’s contribution, the veteran producer has become something of a calligraphy buff in recent years, and those are his brushstrokes serving as the design for the written-in-kanji-charcters Ukiyo (浮世) on the whisky’s packaging.

▼ Suzuki, showing off the design

In the bottom left of the golden sphere, you’ll notice an illustration in red. It’s a little hard to make out in Kumesen Shuzo’s promotional images, but this is actually none other than Ghibli mascot Totoro, drawn by Miyazaki himself.

If you’re wondering why this Totoro looks extra stylized, it’s because it’s also an inei, a seal with the artist’s name that’s stamped onto their work, similar to a signature. Miyazaki designed the inei for Suzuki some time back, and it also showed up, in more of a rusty brown color, when Suzuki’s calligraphy graced the labels of a line of Japanese craft beer.

▼ Suzuki’s inei, as seen on bottles of Echigo Beer, with the kanji for his name written across Totoro’s tummy

Ukiyo is a rice whisky with a 50-percent alcohol content, distilled by Kumesen Shuzo in Okinawa and aged in American white oak casks. The company describes the flavor as smoky and spicy with a hint of banana, giving way to notes of spearmint, cinnamon, and bitter chocolate for a leisurely finish that’s both sweet and tart with a tropical impression. They recommend drinking it straight or cut with soda water, and pairing with salty or sweet accompaniments such as beef jerky, smoked salmon, chocolates, or vanilla ice cream.

Ukiyo is on sale now at Kumesen Shuzo’s Okinawa Blue physical shops in Okinawa and through its online store here. It’s priced at 7,800 yen (US$52) for a 700-mililiter (23.7-ounce) bottle, so it isn’t the cheapest Japanese whisky around, but it’s still a relatively affordable luxury, and coincidentally costs exactly as much as weekend adult admission to Japan’s Ghibli theme park will under its new, more expensive ticket system will.

Source: PR Times
Top image: PR Times
Insert images: Kumesen Shuzo, PR Times, @Press
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Can our gourmet writers tell luxurious wagyu beef jerky from the cheap imported beef stuff?

Time to separate the jerky from the jerks.

Every once in a while, we like to put our writers to the test and ensure that they keep those keen food criticism skills sharpened. After all, you never know when the next fast-food flavor of the month will drop…

…

OK, fine. We do know that they drop every month, but I bet even all you smarty-pantses out there would struggle with this challenge. It’s called Gourmet Writers’ Rating Check and involves a team of our food reviewers tasting two food products that are alike in every way except for price and presumably quality.

▼ This episode’s lineup

In this episode, our crew will put their reputations on the line to see if they can pick out the more finely crafted beef jerky. Beef jerky often isn’t associated with haute cuisine as much as it is a snack with beer or while hiking. But much like anything else from jelly to potatoes, there’s always room to make something exquisite when food is involved.

As proof of that, we have Yamagata Prefecture Kuroge Wagyu Beef Jerky. Crafted from the Japanese Black breed of wagyu in the bountiful nature of Yamagata, a single 30-gram (1-ounce) pack of this jerky will set you back 648 yen ($4.37). It certainly sounds good, but most beef jerky eaters are probably more familiar with the Top Valu (Aeon store brand) 10-gram (0.35 ounce) pack of beef jerky for 100 yen ($0.67) which is made with 100-percent New Zealand beef.

And speaking of “beef jerky eaters,” among our panel of contestants, there’s a fair disparity among those who often eat beef jerky, rarely eat it, or even have never eaten it in their life. It will be interesting to see if experience acts as a boon or a bane in this installment of Gourmet Writers’ Rating Check.

Remember, the writers are NOT being asked to select their favorite of the two when they take a blind tasting of each. Instead, they must draw on their experience with fine dining to determine which one is the more purportedly painstakingly produced product on the plate.

So, without further ado, let’s hear from our writers, who had to pick which of the two jerkies they were served, A or B, was the premium one.

▼ P.K. Sanjun: “B”

P.K.: “I’m totally confused, but I wonder if it’s A? When comparing the two, B definitely has less salt and flavor. I wasn’t so impressed with A, but it had a kind of foreign taste that I’ve known for a while. So… Could that mean? If B is from Yamagata Prefecture, then it must be the expensive one? Uhhhhhhhhhhhh, yes. I’m going with B. Honestly, I like A better, but B felt like something I’ve never eaten before. B doesn’t feel like a foreign taste!”

▼ Go Hatori: “A”

Go: “I really don’t like beef jerky all that much, and I almost never eat it…but wait a second, this is pretty delicious. It’s kind of like corned beef… Anyway, my answer is A. A was more delicious. It had a strong taste of beef and was delicious, but B’s flavor felt kind of off. At least, it didn’t remind me of corned beef. This is a bit of an exaggeration but B is like an instant ramen ingredient and A is like corned beef.”

▼ Seiji Nakazawa: “A”

Seiji: “I don’t think I’ve eaten beef jerky once in my life. Boy, this is hard. This is a long shot, but I think A? The more I chewed on A, the more the flavor came out and it was a beefy flavor. B was hard to chew at first and there wasn’t much flavor. The taste of the seasonings wasn’t very good. On the other hand, the taste of A changed as I chewed and with more of the meat flavor coming out. I don’t know anything about this stuff, but I think it’s A.”

▼ Ahiruneko: “A”

Ahiruneko: “I’m not trying to make excuses, but I think I have a bit of a cold. I don’t eat beef jerky much either. Hahhhhhh… The tastes are different, but which one is more expensive? Could it be A? B has a weaker taste and feels like a derivative of A. This might just be my stuffy nose talking, but B tasted a bit like that old squid candy. A was delicious, so I’ll go with A.”

▼ Masanuki Sunakoma: “A”

Masanuki: “I always used to eat the beef jerky with a Tengu on the package. At first, I thought A was the cheaper one because it didn’t taste as good. But then I had B, and it was even weaker tasting. I don’t think A was especially good beef jerky, but it was still better than B in terms of taste and aroma. B was so bad that I was a little disappointed in it. Whoever made B should try harder.”

▼ Mr. Sato: “A”

Mr. Sato: “I don’t eat beef jerky all that much. Hmmm, I can’t tell by only eating A. Oh, B is totally different. Ohhhhhhhhhkay, I think I got it… I think it’s probably A. A had a prominent meaty feeling but B had almost no flavor, even when I chewed it. Even after eating A, the drop in quality is really steep. A is the one I’d pay for. B just felt like sluppin sluppin. I could be wrong though…”

*Editors Note: We have no idea what Mr. Sato means by “sluppin sluppin” and we are sorry.

▼ Yoshio: “B”

Yoshio: “I always get beef jerky from Costco and eat it up. Whelp, the expensive one is B. In B, the flavor of the meat really came out and lingered in my mouth. On that same note, the flavor of the meat in A doesn’t last. I’m exaggerating a bit, but A is more like something you get from a candy store. B had a stronger taste and for about a tenth of a second longer. Yeah, this was a really good one!”

Yoshio’s certainty supported by experience with beef jerky is hard to deny. On the other hand, it should be noted that he has been this year’s worst performer at Gourmet Writers’ Rating Check and the only writer with sub-50-percent accuracy. However, on a third mutant hand, he also has the backing of this year’s leading writer in P.K. who boasts an 80-percent hit rate.

Together the best and the worst of Gourmet Writers’ Rating Check are up against everyone else as they gather in the officer to hear that the more expensive beef jerky is, in fact…

▼ “B!!!”

It looks like when it comes to distinguishing quality, experience really is the best teacher. Our less-jerky-inclined writers seem to have been taken in by the flavorful seasonings of the Top Valu brand while our winners realized that it’s all about the meat itself. As a result, Yoshio has managed to claw himself back up to 50 percent.

Let’s see how everyone else landed!

▼ P.K. Sanjun (correct): 33 wins, 8 losses (80.4 percent accuracy): “B didn’t have a foreign taste.”

▼ Seiji Nakazawa (incorrect): 27 wins, 8 losses (77.1 percent accuracy): “The taste came out while I was chewing A.”

▼ Ahiruneko (incorrect): 23 wins, 13 losses (63.8 percent accuracy): “B tasted like squid candy.”

▼ Masanuki Sunakoma (incorrect): 24 wins, 16 losses (60 percent accuracy): “It wasn’t so much that A was good. B was just worse.”

▼ Go Hatori (incorrect): 22 wins, 15 losses (59.4 percent accuracy): “A was delicious like corned beef.”

▼ Mr. Sato (incorrect): 20 wins, 15 losses (57.1 percent accuracy): “B was sluppin sluppin.”

▼ Yoshio (correct): 17 wins, 17 losses (50 percent accuracy): “This was a really good one!”

By the way, Gourmet Writers’ Rating Check is held in seasons with this, the second, nearing its end. Once concluded, the next season will start anew with all writers being given a clean slate for the first time in two years.

One fun fact is that P.K. is the only writer who has taken part in every single challenge this season, making his commanding lead even more impressive. Only time will tell if he can hang onto it until the very end. Find out next time on Gourmet Writers’ Rating Check!

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McDonald’s Japan is bringing back its Beef Stew Pies (and their lovely puns)!

When winter comes, McDonald’s Japan’s pies aren’t just for dessert.

Here at SoraNews24, we’re of the opinion that pie is never really a bad thing, and so we’re happy to be tempted by McDonald’s Japan’s chocolate and strawberry pies every time we set foot inside one of their branches. Soon, though, McDonald’s Japan’s pies won’t just be for dessert, as they’re bringing back their Beef Stew Pies!

The Beef Stew Pie is a seasonal winter offering, with a crisp crust filled with beef, potatoes, and carrots. McDonald’s Japan even adds fond de veau veal stock to the piping hot stew, because just because this is fast food take-out that you eat with your hands doesn’t mean it can’t also be classy.

But McDonald’s Beef Stew Pie isn’t just for people who love stew and foodstuffs with fancy French names. It’s for people who love puns too! Since “pie” sounds very similar to “ai,” the Japanese words for “love” (well, one of them, anyway), McDonald’s marketing team has decided to have some fun with the packaging, which randomly features one of a number of pie/ai wordplay patterns.

▼ From left to right: Pai wa, ai da. (Pie is love.)
Pai sareru yori, pai shitai. (More than I want to be pie-ed, I want to pie.)
Pai wo sakendemo ii desu ka? (Is it OK if I shout pie?)

▼ Pai suru kimochi wo taisetsu ni. (Hold on to your feelings of pie.)
Pai shiteru.) (I pie you.)

There’s even more romance in the air, or maybe we should say air passing through the romance, with random packages that have heart-shaped steam vents.

And since the marketing team is obviously not taking itself too seriously, neither is J-pop recording star Takanori Nishikawa, a..k.a. T.M.Revolution, who appears in a commercial for the Beef Stew Pie while swapping “pie” for “ai” in its lyrics.

McDonald’s Japan’s Beef Stew pie goes on sale December 6, priced at 220 yen. It’s scheduled to be available until early January, so if you want to pair it with one of McDonald’s Gurakoro burgers, that’s an option too.

Source, images: Press release
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Starbucks Japan’s new Christmas Frappuccino: festive fantasy or festive fail?

A nutty way to celebrate the holidays.

It’s now less than a month until Christmas, which means it’s time for Starbucks to release its second festive Frappuccino of the year, and the flavour of choice is…pistachio.

This might seem an odd choice for the holidays, but the green-white colour of the drink is said to mimic the look of a snow-tinged Christmas tree. Released on 29 November, our reporter K. Masami was one of the first in line to try it, ordering both the Melty White Pistachio Frappuccino (690 yen [US$4.67]) and the Melty White Pistachio Mocha (priced from 550 yen for a Short).

▼ She began her taste test with the Frappuccino.

Though the drink looked simple at first, its taste turned out to be quite complex. The milky base contained a sauce at the very bottom made with white chocolate ganache and shaved white chocolate, creating a remarkably rich body that helped to make the pistachio flavours seem extra creamy.

The well-rounded, gentle nuttiness took Masami’s breath away with its deliciousness, and the Merry Cream topping, made with mascarpone and white chocolate, added an extra depth of flavour to every mouthful.

The mocha, available hot or iced, contains pistachio, white mocha-flavoured syrup, a shot of espresso and steamed milk. According to the barista, this beverage tastes just as delicious when the regular milk is swapped out for soy or almond milk, so Masami tried hers with almond milk for an additional 55 yen.

Masami thinks almond milk is a great partner for espresso, and it turned out to be a great choice for this particular drink, as it brought out the coffee notes while highlighting the aromatic pistachios at the same time. This was a fantastic winter warmer that was just as well-rounded as the Frappuccino, and the Merry Cream topping was equally delicious with the hot beverage.

As an added bonus, a couple of cute Starbucks cards with animal designs were released on the same day, so Masami took the opportunity to snap them up as well.

While the new drinks might not look as festive as some of the releases from Christmases past, like this Santa’s boot, they’ll definitely be a festive fantasy for pistachio lovers, especially if you’ve got time to enjoy them both in one sitting. Both drinks are only available for a limited time, though, so you’ll want to get in quick to try them while stocks last until 25 December.

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Studio Ghibli anime Paper Shadow Art craft kits back in stock in time for the holidays【Pics】

Clever analog visual effect makes it look like Totoro and Kiki are stepping into the real world.

Part of what makes Studio Ghibli’s anime look and feel so special is their commitment to doing things the old-fashioned way. While their films aren’t completely devoid of digital techniques, co-founder Hayao Miyazaki and the rest of the Ghibli artists almost always show a preference for clever analog effects, and that’s something reflected in a pair of new arts and crafts kits from Ghibli specialty shop Donguri Kyowakoku.

They’re called the Paper Shadow Art series, collections of precision laser-cut paper artwork featuring characters and settings from My Neighbor Totoro and Kiki’s Delivery Service. By layering the illustrations one on top of another, you can create a three-dimensional effect that makes the characters literally pop out from the background paintings.

The Totoro Paper Shadow Art kit, called “Echo to the Sky,” depicts the trio of Totoros, sisters Mei and Satsuki, and the Catbus all shouting across the bucolic countryside that they’re neighbors in.

Meanwhile, the vertically oriented “Girl’s Time” kit shows Kiki seated on a ladder in her witch mother’s potion workshop inside her parents’ house, with all sorts of herbal ingredients stocked on the shelves.

Each kit s priced at 5,500 yen (US$37) and measures 36.9 by 25.1 centimeters (14.5 by 9.9 inches), with a thickness of 1.4 centimeters, making them large enough to be noticed as interior decorations but not so big as to get in the way. Because of their thickness, they won’t fit in regular picture frames, but Donguri Kyowakoku does offer a special Paper Shadow Art frame as well, for 3,300 yen.

All of the items are available through the Donguri Kyowakoku online shop (Totoro kit here, Kiki’s here, and frame here) as part of a recent restock, making them great little craft projects over the holiday season.

Source: Donguri Kyowakoku
Top image: Donguri Kyowakoku
Insert images: Donguri Kyowakoku (1, 2 , 3)
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This remote island guest house may have converted our “private rooms only” traveling reporter

If you’ve never tried a guest house before, you definitely should!

When traveling, there’s a variety of options for places to stay depending on your budget and your preferences. There are hotels, of course, and, in Japan, capsule hotels and ryokan (Japanese-style inns), but for the budgeting, open-minded, and more adventurous traveler, there are also hostels and guest houses, where you often share a room with other people and the bathrooms and living spaces are communal.

For some people, however, those are a no-no. Especially for our Japanese-language reporter Kouhey, who can’t sleep when he’s sharing a room with other people. Even when he was in the hospital, he tried to leave as soon as possible because he couldn’t stand being in a multi-patient room.

He’s stayed in a guest house before, when he’d had no choice. There were no private rooms available within his budget, and the cost of the room was 3,000 yen (currently US$20) per night, so he decided to book it.

▼ This wasn’t it, but it looked similar.

He’d been put in a four-person room with a group of three other young men who were in their early twenties. The guest house had arranged a drinking party for the people in the room, so Kouhey, despite being decades older, actually had a good time hanging out and didn’t feel his age at all.

However, the first problem came when he went to take a shower afterwards. There was no shampoo and no towels! Kouhey had never stayed in a guest house before, so he didn’t know he had to bring his own things. Without anything to wash or dry off with, he decided to skip the shower and go straight to sleep, but sleep didn’t come easy. His roommates’ snores and teeth grinding kept him awake all night. That’s when Kouhey vowed to never stay in a guest house ever again, until seven years later, when he recently went to book a hotel on Ishigaki Island in Okinawa and was met with a similar situation.

The hotels were shockingly expensive! He really didn’t want to spend that much money, so he reluctantly decided to make a reservation in a guesthouse. According to his research, which included searches on hotel reservation sites and YouTube, he found one in a neighborhood near the center of town called Misakicho that looked good and actually had a private room open.

Worried that he’d made a mistake that could ruin his trip, when he arrived on Ishigaki Island, he headed for the guesthouse, which is called Island Honu and is a three-minute walk from the center of town.

It definitely looked different from the hotels he was used to, but its entrance had a resort-like feel to it that was appealing. Upon arrival, Kouhey decided maybe this guesthouse wouldn’t be so bad.

After checking in at the front desk, he entered the main part of the building.

It was surprisingly stylish! With what looked like a full-service bar and plenty of space for dining, socializing, and working, it was functional as well as fashionable.

Kouhey’s impression of guesthouses as “simply places to lay your head down” was blown away in an instant. He’d had no idea that guest houses could have bars! It really added to the building’s resort-like feel, and he actually felt kind of excited to stay there.

With an added bounce to his step, he headed to his private room, which can fit up to two people but he booked for himself. When he opened the door, he was greeted by…

A mini sofa and a table?

There was already a seating area in the communal space–with table room for computer work if needed–so Kouhey was surprised to see that the room also had space for that. It was perfect for someone like him who likes his privacy.

Farther into the room was a bunk bed.

Compared to a hotel, it definitely felt much tighter, but that didn’t bother Kouhey.

The sleeping area was equipped with an outlet and a USB port.

Naturally, the room wasn’t as spacious as a hotel room, but it was perfect for a person traveling solo. Kouhey had no complaints; in fact, he’d call this a win.

The guest house also had gender-separated dormitories that fit four people.

Though they’re shared rooms, the beds were all removed from each other, so you might even be able to maintain a bit of privacy. That was different from the guest house Kouhey stayed at before.

As a bonus, there was also a second communal area.

That room had a fridge, microwaves, and plenty of kitchen tools, so he could even bring in food to cook if he wanted to.

It was very well-stocked with dishes and cups…

As well as pots and pans.

Since this room was separate from the bar area, you might not even have to cross paths with another party. Plus, if you’re traveling with a group, it would be a great place to hang out with your friends. This is actually a benefit to guesthouses, something you won’t find in hotels.

The toilets, showers, and vanity rooms were separated by gender, but there was also a bathtub that anyone could use.

And unlike the guest house Kouhey stayed at before, this one had amenities!

There were also laundry facilities…

And also rentable towels!

What’s more, they even had bicycles to borrow for free!

The bar was an actual business that’s open not only to guests but also to locals, though sadly during Kouhey’s visit, it was closed.

Sometimes, if you’re lucky, the owner of the guesthouse will cook simple meals for you or pour you sake. Two out of the four nights Kouhey stayed there, he joined drinking parties with the owner and some of their friends. The omelet rice the owner cooked was absolutely delicious.

There were also lots of different, interesting people staying at the guest house, so Kouhey got to make friends with a world-traveling freelance wedding photographer and a diver who comes to Ishigaki about 10 times a year.

While sharing sake, they watched movies on the big screen together, played instruments and chatted. It was really the best time, which led Kouhey to realize that the good thing about guest houses that you can’t find at hotels is meeting interesting people like this and having great conversations.

Kouhey’s trip was in the middle of November, and all he paid for his room was 6,00 yen per night. Of course, that price depends on the season, but Kouhey believes that the next time he comes to Ishigaki, he’ll stay at Island Honu even if the hotels are the same price.

Everyone has a different reason to travel, but in Kouhey’s opinion, his favorite thing about traveling to remote islands is getting to meet new people (and also probably getting drunk with them), and for that, guest houses are perfect. Of course, they do have some downsides, like having to wait for the showers and toilets (since they’re shared), but in Kouhey’s opinion, at least for this trip, the pros far outweighed the cons.

With this positive experience, Kouhey now has more options for budget accommodation. The next time he’s booking a trip, he’ll be looking into more guesthouses to see what kinds of cool places he can find!

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