Notification

At the Japan Final of the "iichiko Irodori Cocktail Competition" held on Saturday, November 8th, bartender Yuya Takahashi of THE KAHALA Lounge was crowned the first ever Japanese Champion. We are pleased to announce that he has also been selected for the "Spirit of Saiten Award," a special award chosen by bar and cocktail enthusiasts with a different perspective than the professional judges, making him a double honor.

This cocktail competition was planned as a forum for bartenders from all over Japan to compete with their creativity and skills, with the aim of promoting the appeal of Japanese food culture and ingredients both domestically and internationally through original cocktails using "iichiko Saiten," a genuine barley shochu that makes the most of the characteristics of koji distilled spirits.

The cocktail "Oedo Fashioned" created by Takahashi is inspired by "Yanagikage," a cocktail said to be the oldest in Japan that was drunk during the Edo period, and is a sublimated Old Fashioned drink that combines brown rice, mirin, and soy sauce, which have been staples on Japanese dinner tables, with "iichiko Saiten." This "new Old Fashioned," reconstructed using traditional Japanese ingredients, was highly praised for not only clearly highlighting the umami and flavor derived from the koji of "iichiko Saiten," but also for its name, which accurately expresses the flavor and story, its high level of understanding of the theme, and its presentation skills.