Press Release
Takumi Watanabe and Sonia Kao, two top bartenders active on the world stage, will perform together for one day only at "The Session #22 - WORLD CLASS NIGHT -" held on Sunday, March 29th
THE KAHALA HOTEL & RESORT YOKOHAMA located at 1-1-3 Minatomirai, Nishi-ku, Yokohama, Kanagawa Prefecture, and headed by General Manager Yasutoshi Abe, will celebrate its fifth anniversary in September 2025. The hotel will host a one-day-only cocktail event, "The Session #22 – WORLD CLASS NIGHT -," at THE KAHALA Lounge on Sunday, March 29, 2026.
"The Session" is a series of events that has been held as a special day to invite top bartenders highly acclaimed both in Japan and overseas to experience their techniques and sensibilities. This 22nd installment will feature two main cast members: the world-famous legendary bartender Takumi Watanabe, and Sonia Kao, a bartender who also works as a marketing creator at one of the largest companies in the bar industry.
Based in Sakurai City, Nara Prefecture, Watanabe won the Japanese qualifying round of the world's largest cocktail competition, "Diageo World Class 2010," in 2010, and went on to compete in the world finals. His outstanding technique and expressiveness have been highly praised internationally, including winning his division at the world finals. His eponymous cocktail, "Takumi's Aviation," has been featured in an international cocktail book and is known for helping to make Nara Prefecture a cocktail tourism destination.
Meanwhile, Sonia Kao is a hybrid creator with a background in digital marketing who is active in many fields as a bartender, photographer, and creative director. In recent years, her sensibility and expressiveness have attracted attention, including being selected as one of the 10 finalists in Japan for the "Diageo World Class 2025" competition, and her original cocktails using Chinese tea have become a hot topic.
On the day, original cocktails will be served, each highlighting its own unique character, based on Tanqueray No. 10 from Diageo Japan Ltd. This one-day-only special experience will bring together the skills and sensibilities honed on the world stage.
■ Overview of "The Session #22 – WORLD CLASS NIGHT -"
[Location] THE KAHALA Lounge (14th floor, THE KAHALA HOTEL ＆ RESORT YOKOHAMA)
[Date] Sunday, March 29, 2026
[Hours] 15:00-17:00, 19:00-23:00 (last order 22:30)
[Price] From 3,036 yen (tax and service charge included)
[Organizer] THE KAHALA HOTEL & RESORT YOKOHAMA
[Cooperation] Diageo Japan Co., Ltd.
[URL] https://thekahala.jp/yokohama/event/5720/
[Inquiries] 045-522-0077 (Restaurant reservations 10:00 - 17:00)
Takumi Watanabe
Watanabe's masterpiece "Takumi's Aviation"
Sonia Kao
About Tanqueray Number Ten
Tanqueray No. 10, positioned as Tanqueray's premium product, is distilled using the original TINY TEN, a 400L swan-neck pot still created in the 1960s. It features an elegant and delicate flavor created by carefully selected botanicals and fresh fruit, the distinctive characteristics of which are known as a "citrus heart." It is a handcrafted gin meticulously crafted in small batches by the master distiller.
*The photos include illustrative images.
*Contents may change depending on the supply situation, etc.
*Alcoholic beverages cannot be served to anyone under the age of 20 or to customers who are driving.
[Contact for media inquiries regarding this matter]
THE KAHALA HOTEL & RESORT YOKOHAMA
Public Relations Officer: Shino Asahioka
E-mail: R14037220@rt-group.jp / TEL: 045-522-0023
