insights from frontier Japan

Kobayashi Shuzo Co., Ltd, a sake brewery in the town of Kuriyama in central Hokkaido, began its online sales ‘Autumn Sake Festival’ on September 10. Two types of sets containing three 720 ml bottles, are available: one ‘dining’ set suitable for drinking with meals and another ‘night drink’ set suitable for post-meal drinking with snacks. Labeling with regard to the difference in the polishing ratio of the sake rice can also be enjoyed. The sales will end when stocks run out.

Barbecue restaurant chain Heiwaen (Obihiro) started selling frozen meat from a vending machine on August 27. The first vending machine was installed in front of their Midorigaoka location (in Obihiro City). Five different types of flavored meat are available at the machine, including the "jingisukan" mutton that is popular inside the restaurant as well.

The sale of Akkeshi Blended Whisky ‘Shosho’ to successful lottery-ticket holders began on August 28 at the "Akkeshi Gourmet Park Conchiglie", a Michi-no-Eki (roadside rest area) in the town of Akkeshi in the Kushiro region of eastern Hokkaido. The whisky is a new product of the Akkeshi Distillery, a whisky producer in the town. To prevent the whisky being sold on for a higher price, the sales method was changed from the previous general sale to a lottery method, and just 60 bottles went on sale. The number of applicants was 12 times the number of bottles available.

A Hakodate hamburger chain has unveiled a new menu item to commemorate the addition of a group of Jomon Era prehistoric sites in Hokkaido and northeastern Japan to UNESCO's World Cultural Heritage list.

All-you-can-eat Yubari melon is being offered at two locations in the city of Yubari, and garnering high praise. Melon Terrace mainly serves individual customers, and has received 1,500 customers in the two weeks since the start of their all-you-can-eat service on June 25. At this pace, they stand to surpass the 2,000 customers from last year, in which they were only open for one month.

It’s the height of the cherry harvest season in the southern Hokkaido town of Nanae, which is famous for the cultivation of fruit trees. The trees in the orchards are adorned with red cherries, which producers harvest carefully by hand.

On June 26, the Shin Hakodate Agricultural Cooperative (Hokuto) in southern Hokkaido began selling ‘Dojima Roll Tomato Mix,” a roll cake made with tomatoes produced in the city of Hokuto. Jam made from tomatoes produced in Hokuto is added to the cake’s sponge and cream.

On June 26, bread bakery and sales shop Masuya in Eastern Hokkaido's Obihiro started selling limited quantities of "Minori no Megumi", a high quality bread bursting with Tokachi ingredients. It is made from Tokachi grown flour "Minori no Chikara", and is a high quality product that is softer and more plump than regular bread. This is the first time for the Masuya bakery to try its hand at the high quality bread category since its inception in 1950.

The harvesting of hydroponically cultivated paprika, which takes advantage of the cool climate in Kushiro in eastern Hokkaido, is reaching its peak at the Hokkaido Salad Paprika facility in the city of Kushiro. 　As well as common red, yellow and orange paprika, the company also cultivates a very sweet, long, thin variety in its greenhouses.