191 replies to this topic

[smallworld]

As for Yebisu, more than one person has raved about it, but it was quite disappointing. I think because it's got a fuller body (like  wheat beers you can get here : Big Rock and Grasshopper comes to mind) that it's "different" from most dry Japanese beers...Is it the regular Yebisu or the Black Yebisu that's all the rave?

Goyatofu, Sorry you didn't like Ebisu so much. But hey, that leaves more for me!
Ebisu is not really that popular in Japan, in fact it can be hard to find. But it has a small and dedicated cult following. The regular one is what most people love, but the black is nice too. Ebisu does have a fuller, more European flavour, so if you prefer lighter beers you probably won't like it much.

My parents went home yesterday from a two-week visit to Japan, and my Dad just couldn't get enough of Japanese beer! He liked most of the regular draught beer by the big makers, and he really liked all the micro-beers and lesser-known beers we were lucky enough to find.
The only beer he didn't like was one he bought at random- Kirin Green Label, which is a low sugar (or low something) beer. It was so bad he had to pour it down the drain, which he's only done a few times in his life! He learned to stay away from any kind of beer that was supposed to be healthy- leave that crap to dieting OLs looking for a cheap buzz. Yuck.

We even did a brewery tour, at the Suntory brewery in Fuchu (western Tokyo), which he said was the best, most sophisticated tour he's done. And he's done a LOT of brewery tours, so that's high praise!
We tried three kinds of beer during the tasting, all of which he liked: Magnum Dry, Malt's, and especially Premium Malt's:
http://www.suntory.c...mium/index.html
We took home one of their new ones that wasn't on tap, Akairono Houjun Table Beer, which he loved:
http://www.suntory.c...beer/index.html

Other favourites:
Kinga Kogen Beer:
http://www.gingakoge....com/index.html
The autumn beers:
http://www.suntory.c...ama/index2.html
http://www.kirin.co....iaji/flash.html
And a whole bunch more that we'll never be able to remember. I told him to keep the bottles/cans of stuff that was especially good, but I think the maids just kept throwing them out. Oh well.

Hope some of you in/ coming to Japan can try some of these!

[torakris]

I guess I have been in Japan too long because I don't find this idea strange at all. Actually it is not to bad, especially in a warmed can......

Anyone else drink milk tea or buy any of the numerous milk tea flavored products?

there was some discussion of this in the engrish thread:
http://forums.egulle...showtopic=20442

[Sinbad]

I guess I have been in Japan too long because I don't find this idea strange at all. Actually it is not to bad, especially in a warmed can......

Anyone else drink milk tea or buy any of the numerous milk tea flavored products?

there was some discussion of this in the engrish thread:
http://forums.egulle...showtopic=20442

You have been to long in Japan when you don't find things strange anymore

I never got the (milk) tea and coffee in a can craze in Japan. The variety is just astonishing and there are new labels and flavors popping up all the time. I just can't understand how people can drink it?

[elyse]

I think the reasos why it seems so gross is because we hope all tea and coffee we drink will be fresh. The fresher the better. And have you ever saved coffee and tea with milk already in it? Yuck.

[torakris]

Oh dear, I am ashamed to admit that I like the milk tea in the can better than the milk tea I make at home.....

Here is my favorite

http://www.cocacola....eup/kotyakaden/
the first one in the short blue can

[margaret]

Oh, I used to love this stuff. Still do, actually, although I don't drink it as much anymore. Should I be ashamed?

My favorite was always Kirin's Gogo no Koucha milk tea. I used to drink this after lunch at school all the time - milk tea or else ko-hi gyunyu (coffee milk).

You know, it totally never occured to me that canned milk tea and coffee are weird. Are they really?

[torakris]

a "tasting" of the new winter beers/chu-hi

http://www.japan-zine.com/Feature.htm

[Jason Perlow]

I like the Maxwell House ice coffee with milk in a can. Kinda weird that an American brand name would produce such a version for the Japanese market. Probably some weird American GI influenced thing.

I'm not sure if its Korean or Japanese, though, as I buy it locally here at Han Ah Reum, which is a Korean supermarket chain that stocks Korean and Japanese items. I'm sort of under the impression though that a lot of these trendy weird convenience items are popular in Tokyo and Seoul simultaneously. I've seen Korean as well as Japanese versions of the same type of items, particularly as it goes with these tea and coffee beverages in a can.

[Sinbad]

Ginga Kogen is actually a very nice beer, there are quite a few nice microbrews in Japan. Yona-Yona is another one that is also reasonable priced and there are a few others as well.

My last few years in Japan I never puchased a single bottle of any of the mass-produced crap from the big four (Asahai, Suntory, Kirin and Sapporo). Their standard beer are all at best "mama-desu", and they have an irritating habit of throwing out mediocre seasonals with silly names like "Winter Snow Flake Santa" or whatever they might call them.

Japan is a great country to eat in, but I do have one complaint and that is the selection of beer at restaurants which is uniformly bad (if you like me dislike the big four choices). I have extended my personal consumer boycott of the big four to include meals at restaurants, I always ask for a microbrew and if they don't have it I settle for Sake (which is pretty much always the case except in Fukuoka where quite a few places surprisingly carried local brews). Life is to short to waste on the big 4 and with sake in Japan being so good it usually doesn't feel like too much of a sacrifice.

[Jason Perlow]

Love Sake. Especially the stuff from Nara.

[Sinbad]

I have yet to start getting a preference for Sake from a certain region. I look at the grading, but I never actually worry to much about the region (unless they would claim that the brewery is in Kawasaki or another industrial hub).
Many Japanese tell me that sake from a certain region is the best, but it usually happens to be their hometown so I usually take it with a grain of salt.
Any reason for Nara? Preference cold/hot? I prefer cold sake, even in the winter.

[Jason Perlow]

Cold.

I like Nara because I've been exposed to a lot of them from that region.

[Hiroyuki]

Many Japanese tell me that sake from a certain region is the best, but it usually happens to be their hometown so I usually take it with a grain of salt.

You are right. But believe me, kome dokoro wa sake dokoro.
I said, 米所は酒所.
Translation: A (good) rice-producing district is a (good) sake-producing district.

That's why I recommend the brands produced in Niigata prefecture, especially the ones produced in Shiozawa!! The best brands in Japan!!

***
Take it with a grain of salt, of course.

Edited by Hiroyuki, 07 May 2004 - 07:12 AM.

[Sleepy_Dragon]

I'm allergic to alcohol, but sake is one of the very few alcohols I can actually drink without getting sick. Just one glass though. It goes so well with briny oceanic foods, mmmmm.

I like C.C. Lemon too. And the hot coffee can vending machines seem like such a great idea. Buy one to stick in your coat pocket to keep hands warm!

Otherwise, I'm generally a tea drinker, and green tea is among my favorite things to drink.

Pat

Edited by Sleepy_Dragon, 10 May 2004 - 03:27 PM.

[redfox]

Is ume-su something you would plan to drink normally, or to use in more normal vinegar applications?

[torakris]

Is ume-su something you would plan to drink normally, or to use in more normal vinegar applications?

I would say it is more common to find ume-su (plum vinegar) in cooking, but there is a recent trend now of vinegar drinks (black vinegar being very popular) and it wouldn't be unusual to find it in a glass watered down with either water or some type of liquor.
I have seen recipes mostly called for it in salads but also simmered dishes, rice dishes and deserts.

and then there is ume-shu, the plum wine.....

[Hiroyuki]

I used to drink regular beer in my 20s, except on those very Japanese festive occasions such as New Year's Day that made me want to drink sake. I made the switch to low-malt beer (happoh-shu 発泡酒) in my mid-30s partly because it was cheaper and partly because it was improved to have almost the same flavor and taste as regular beer. And, finally, last year, I made the switch to shochu BECAUSE it is the cheapest. I mean koh-rui 甲類 shochu, similar to white liquor, not otsu-rui 乙類 shochu, which has gained popularity recently, such as imo-jochu.

As I already mentioned in another thread, I'm a heavy green-tea drinker. I can drink 2 liters of green tea or more. I rarely drink juice except tomato juice.

[Hiroyuki]

and then there is ume-shu, the plum wine.....

I'm afraid that the expression "plum wine" is misleading, since ume-shu is made by putting plums and then rock sugar in a jar and then pouring white liquor in it. I'm blaming dictionaries not you, torakris.

[torakris]

and then there is ume-shu, the plum wine.....

I'm afraid that the expression "plum wine" is misleading, since ume-shu is made by putting plums and then rock sugar in a jar and then pouring white liquor in it. I'm blaming dictionaries not you, torakris.

Actually I hestitated to use that word, but ended up with it because it is the word everyone outside of Japan is familiar with and because I couldn't think of anything else to call it....

EDIT:
I am looking foward to the green plums coming into the markets in a couple weeks to I can make my own ume-shu this year!!

Edited by torakris, 11 May 2004 - 03:30 AM.

[Hiroyuki]

I'm allergic to alcohol, but sake is one of the very few alcohols I can actually drink without getting sick.

I found your remarks interesting for two reasons:

1) I have never heard of anyone allergic to alcohol. I suppose that you simple mean you can't hold your liquor, which means that your liver cannot decompose acetaldehyde fast enough. You can become allergic to pollen, house dust, buckwheat, eggs, and other substances, but not to alcohol. Or, am I wrong?
2) In Japan, sake is said to be more likely to give you a hangover than other types of alcohol such as shochu. After running through several websites, however, I have found that this is not necessarily true. All types of alcohol give you a hangover if you drink too much of it.

***
Addition:
A message to torakris:
Oh, women! My wife, my sister, and my mother all love ume-shu. And you too.

Edited by Hiroyuki, 11 May 2004 - 05:51 AM.

[jrufusj]

I'm allergic to alcohol, but sake is one of the very few alcohols I can actually drink without getting sick.

I found your remarks interesting for two reasons:

1) I have never heard of anyone allergic to alcohol. I suppose that you simple mean you can't hold your liquor, which means that your liver cannot decompose acetaldehyde fast enough. You can become allergic to pollen, house dust, buckwheat, eggs, and other substances, but not to alcohol. Or, am I wrong?
2) In Japan, sake is said to be more likely to give you a hangover than other types of alcohol such as shochu. After running through several websites, however, I have found that this is not necessarily true. All types of alcohol give you a hangover if you drink too much of it.

Alcohol Allergy

Allergic reaction to alcohol is rare, but can occur. Most often, in testing, it is identified as an allergy to one of the breakdown products of alcohol, such as acetaldehyde or acetic acid. There are relatively few documented instances in the public, layman's literature. I'm not an MD, a substance abuse counselor, or indeed a scientist of any stripe, so my understanding is limited and open to correction. Ethanol levels of .01 to .03 mg/100 ml of blood are naturally produced by the body's ordinary functions, so total alcohol allergy is unlikely to occur (but is theoretically possible, I imagine).

By definition, an allergy is the reaction of the immune system to a substance (allergen). Most often, the allergen is a protein. Ethanol is not a protein; neither are acetaldehyde or acetic acid. Thus, one would expect alcohol allergies to be realtively rare.

Intolerance to alcohol is much more common. Intolerance reactions can range from mild to severe, but do not involve the immune system, hence they are not technically allergies. Antabuse (a drug sometimes used to treat severe alcohol abuse -- somewhat on the model of behavioral therapy, by creating an extremely unpleasant physical reaction to alcohol) creates an intolerance reaction, not an allergic reaction.

Alcohol can also be a powerful cofactor in anaphylactic reactions where allergy to another substance is involved.

Those Damn Hangovers

In the narrowest sense, a hangover is the body's reaction to excessive alcohol intake and the process of alcohol metabolism (and byproducts thereof).

Hangovers can be exacerbated by other substances in the alcoholic beverages. To make matters more confusing, these exacerbating reactions can be allergic reactions (such as to histamines or sulfites) or intolerance/mild poisoning type reactions. Beers and wines are most likely to produce allergic reactions. Sake falls into this category, though I have never heard of allergic reactions to sake. Are sulfites commonly used in sake production?

If one were to drink "perfectly" distilled, undiluted spirits, any reaction one had would be to the alcohol, as there are no foreign substances (except for small amounts resulting from the fact that alcohol is unstable and cannot exist in 100% purity if in the presence of air).

However, other than "grain" alcohol, almost all distilled spirits distributed for consumption contain other elements. The process of distilling is dependent on temperature. Alcohol evaporates and condenses within narrow temperature bands. If distillation processes capture the product of evaporation within the right band, only alcohol is captured.

Pure alcohol, though, is essentially without character. Flavoring in the ultimate product comes from three main sources: congeners, direct flavor additives, and indirect flavor additives. Congeners are substances other than ethanol that are produced by a distillation immediately before and after ethanol (in other words, in temperature ranges near the distillation band for ethanol). It is these congeners that give a spirit any character of the source product (such a hints of the grape/wine in cognac or marc or grappa). They are commonly referred to in the whiskey industry as heads and tails.

Direct flavor additives are things like the plums in ume-shu. Indirect flavor additives (my term, not a term of art) are flavor compounds that come from processes such as barrel aging (major elements in brandies and whiskeys).

It is these other substances that can make one's hangover worse with one type of beverage compared to another.

I hope that the experts from one of the drinks fora will correct my errors (of which there are sure to be many). This is simply an off-the-top-of-the-head layman's explanation.

Longwindedly yours,

Jim

[Hiroyuki]

Are sulfites commonly used in sake production?

Wow, thank you for such a full report, jrufusj, and congratulations to the recent addition to your family.

I have just learned from several websites that sulfites are not used in sake production. I have also learned that no antioxidants are added to sake. I'm glad to know that. Thank you again for your information.

I was silly enough to believe (just from my experience) that wine is less likely to give me a hangover than sake. Now I know I was wrong. Or, maybe this is true especially for me.

[Sleepy_Dragon]

Thanks for that info, jrufusj. After reading it, I guess technically, I am not allergic to alcohol itself. Probably what is happening is an intolerance to alcohol, and an allergic reaction to something that only occurs in beer and wine.

Sake gives me the least trouble, followed by a few of the spirits, but I can only have one drink. About 3/4 the way through that one drink, it starts to taste very, very bitter. Probably my body telling me something important! But I'm generally in good spirits (hehe) while drinking it.

Beer and wine make me hyperventilate, because it feels like I'm suffocating and can't get enough air into my lungs. Then after that I just throw up. It's really unpleasant and miserable, and I have no good memories of it. So whenever people make sympathetic comments from assuming my life must be empty without beer and wine, I just shrug and tell them they'll have to drink one for me. They always agree to do that!

And Hiroyuki, nice to know you like 2 liters of tea, I do too!

I like plain green leaf tea and the kind with toasted rice in it as well. The first time I tried the toasted rice kind, it was such a revelation. Never knew tea could be like that.

Pat

[Hiroyuki]

>The first time I tried the toasted rice kind, it was such a revelation. Never knew tea could be like that.

Oh, was it? I guess you mean genmai-cha 玄米茶. I do like genmai-cha, but I usually drink kuki-cha (stalk tea).

Have you read this thread?:

http://forums.egulle...showtopic=20288

[melonpan]

sangaria melon soda and strawberry soda come in aluminum bottles and are sold for under us$2. they can be a hard to find because they arent replenished as often as other more popular drinks. but i have seen them once at a local 7-11 (yaaay!).



sangaria melon soda is special, though, because it tastes EXACTLY the way those fruity korean (and japanese) erasers i got as a kid smell. you know, the ones that smell soooooo deliciously tasty that youre never sure if its edible or not (they arent!!). every sip of what we call 'ji-u-gae soda' (eraser soda) is a sip into my childhood.

[melonpan]

first, thank you to hiroyuki for his help. :D

we drink barley and corn tea like water but im always game for instant bottled beverages... like kirins morokoshi namacha and suntorys manten batake.



when you first sip morokoshi namacha (kirins namacha page) youre belted with a pleasant, but very strong and very clear roasted corn taste. theres a slight taniney tang from green tea but it doesnt scream green tea. morokoshi namacha is a happy, pale golden color and the ingredients list includes corn, green tea and black beans. great little drink.

suntorys manten batake page also has a roasted taste, but its not as clear or light tasting as the morokoshi. it tastes thicker somehow and the flavour is complex, hard to describe. there is no outstanding flavour, no "this is barley tea", no "this is corn tea" feeling. its definitely kind of vegetably. this isnt hard to understand when you know that 14 grains, beans and vegetables that go to make this tea: barley, something referred to as "herb tea" (herb tea? what kind of herb??), job's tears, brown rice, corn, soybeans, spinach (actually komatsu), peas, asparagus, sweet potato, bitter melon, cabbage, daikon and onion. whew! i dont know how this stuff manages to avoid tasting like a decent vegetable broth, but it does. its not a broth at all; its very much a tea. and like the morokoshi namacha, there isnt any strong taniney taste from the green tea (thats a 15th ingredient!) in it, but i do notice a slight dryness to my throat after drinking.

if they both werent so precious and around us$2, im sure id be drinking them more often, but i dont mind too much. homemade barley and corn tea arent such slouches either.

[melonpan]

buahahahaha....

chosun ilbo reports today about two companies who have put out a series of commercials. edit: found a direct link to the video with better translations in korean: here. some of the translations have been changed as a result...

fanta put out a "classroom series" (top movie link) and suntory put out a acrobats link for their amino shiki drink... both are really amusing.


korean translations were provided for the classroom series, but they were kind of spotty. a couple of the classes didnt have any translations, notably the salesman and the principal classes. but they are still a riot to watch. ive translated what i could from the korean. apologies if they arent true to the japanese thats said...

3rd year, room a: rocker sensei!
(in class)
sensei: oh yeah!!!
students: yeah...
sensei: baby, baby, babeeee~~!
students: baby...
(outside)
student: will i be able to keep up?
* coming soon! new fanta!! *


3rd year, room c: dragon sensei!
(in class)
sensei: (circling a portion of what he wrote) this is the portion thats going to be covered on the exam
students: (write down whats going to be covered)
(outside)
student: i cant take it anymore...
* new semester!! new grapefruit fantas out!! *


3rd year, room d: "exceptional deal" sensei!
(in class)
sensei: if the video is 1,980,000 yen, the take is 20%!! bonus!! (?) if you do silver, 5% off!! now!! add 13% cashback!! so! how much??!!
(outside)
student: the savings was 60%...
* its summer break!! new peach fantas out!! *

3rd year, room f: dj sensei!
(in class)
sensei: the ne-ne-ne-ne-ne-ne next person is yama-yama-yama-shita-chan!
student: the answer is 3x.
sensei: incorrect
(outside)
student: im hurt...
* fanta sweetie is out!! *


3rd year, room g: shogun sensei!
(in class)
sensei: class has begun!
students: (heads are all bowed in front of the shogun)
sensei: does anyone know the answer to this?!!
students: (stay silent and keep their heads down)
sensei: anyone???!!
student: (raising head to answer) yes, i know the answer.
sensei: how dare you (look up)!!!
(outside)
student: what was i supposed to do??



3rd year, room h: soap opera sensei!
(in class)
sensei: (reading book) sashios hometown...
man: (running into room) masako!!
sensei: (kicking stool) what now??
man: i was bad...
sensei: fool! (slaps man, crying) ive been so lonely...
old lady: (standing outside the door) you stray cat...
sensei: mother!
(outside)
student: can we please just go over the lesson...
* fanta! plum flavor! *



3rd year, room j: no good for nothing sensei!
(in class)
sensei: kanji test!
sensei: yoko! if youre a senior, you should be able to at least read this! loser!
student: i cant read it...
sensei: (reading the kanji) to ro pi ka ru fu ru stu!
(outside)
student: pure unreasonableness...
* fanta! even though its spring!! tropical fruits!! *



3rd year, room s: blackbeard sensei!
(in class)
(students draw keys and put the keys in a barrel with the teacher inside.)
sensei: (to unlucky student) you get cleaning duty.
(outside)
student: whos heard of doing it that way...



principal sensei!
(not translated into korean)

Edited by melonpan, 05 August 2004 - 04:44 AM.

[torakris]

Pocky has their royal milk tea flavor back out......



the one on the left

Edited by torakris, 22 September 2004 - 03:43 PM.

[Akiko]

My husband is a huge snob when it comes to coffee and tea (he's british so he thinks he's a born expert when it comes to that kind of tea ). I have to admit, he makes excellent coffee and tea with milk... I don't know how he does it, I use the same ingredients, it never tastes as good when I make it.

He does, absolutely love can coffee. He craves the coffee boss from Japan as well as gogocha! Kirin's gogocha milk, regular, and lemon are all very good.

I actually miss the entire canned, plastic bottle drink market from Japan. I loved the just slightly flavoured waters - vitamin water, and the acerola drinks, as well as the hundreds of teas.

It's too bad those things are so heavy or I would bring back boxes of the stuff!

[torakris]

I personally can not touch amazake (literally "sweet" sake), hence I was surprised to find this:
http://www.grainaiss...om/amazake.html
flavored amazake drinks....?? in the US....??

and then I found this:
http://www.clearspri...od/issue2/4.htm
with recipes for using amazake in cooking....

I didn't know it was more than a drink, they are calling it a dessert...??