A Chinese logistics company made a costly mistake by freezing 2,000 cases of wine destined to Japan after misreading the dash sign in temperature instruction as a minus sign. Read More
Japan
The Japanese government has announced they will revise liquor taxes in October. Mari Yasuda reports from Japan on the impacts, and reactions from importers and merchants. Read More
An extremely rare 1923 DRC Romanée Conti in the legendary Vandermeulen bottling will go under the hammer at Kaigai's upcoming auction in October. Read More
A new world record for the most expensive bottle of Japanese whisky is set by Bonhams in Hong Kong this month. Read More
Taku Iguro, sommelier of three Michelin-starred restaurant L’OSIER in Ginza Tokyo, saw off tough competition and was named the Best Sommelier of Japan in 2020. Read More
On July 15, Otokoyama Honten, a more than 100-year-old sake brewery in Kesennuma of the coastal Miyagi Prefecture in Japan, finally re-opened its shop after being severely damaged by a devastating tsunami in 2011. Read More
Heavy rains in Japan this month wreaked havoc on the country's renowned Kuma Shochu distilleries, writes Mari Yasuda. Read More
The popularity of sake is growing globally as the West develops a taste for the rice wine. The rise also led to an explosion of information on sake in English. Here, Mari Yasuda highlights three top sources to follow. Read More
How did Japanese restaurants and bars manage to keep their business afloat during and after lockdown? Smart take-away policy using smaller bottling formats and promoting rare gems are some of the strategies that saved many businesses, writes Mari Yasuda. Read More
Alcohol home consumption in Japan increased during the lockdown period, when the country’s prime minister announced a state of emergency. While on-premise consumption collapsed, off-trade … Read More