author

 
Menu
Search
 
July 28, 2024
 

Today's print edition

Home Delivery
Subscribe for more access
Melinda Joe

Meta

Twitter

@MelindaJoe

Melinda Joe
Melinda Joe is an American journalist in Tokyo. A certified wine and sake professional, she writes about Japanese drinks in her Kanpai Culture column for The Japan Times and blogs at tokyodrinkingglass.blogspot.com.
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink / KANPAI CULTURE
May 15, 2022
Make rice, not war: Chefs and brewers cook for Ukraine
Some of Japan's top chefs, brewers and distillers came together to support Ukraine with nothing more than rice and seaweed.
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink / KANPAI CULTURE
Apr 12, 2022
Sake springs eternal at Yumegokoro Shuzo
Welcome in the season with warmer weather, longer days and sake as fresh as a sea breeze.
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink / KANPAI CULTURE
Feb 12, 2022
Tour Japan's luxury ryokan without stepping a foot outside of Tokyo
The 'Essence of Japan' series brings several 'okami,' the female proprietor of a traditional inn, from across the country to act as guides to regional specialties.
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink / KANPAI CULTURE
Jan 29, 2022
Whisky to join gin on the menu at Niseko Distillery
Distillery's Ohoro Gin takes inspiration from its northern surroundings, the name even coming from the Ainu language.
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink / KANPAI CULTURE
Dec 26, 2021
Brewer and chef team up for an adventure in 'Saketronomy'
Naohiko Noguchi collaborations aim to present Komatsu, Ishikawa Prefecture, as a destination for gastronomic adventures.
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink
Nov 27, 2021
Already known for its skiing, Niseko ups the luxury
Already home to top-notch craft beer and cocktails, new investment sees Niseko becoming even more of a five-star destination.
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink / KANPAI CULTURE
Nov 13, 2021
Think pizza and beer can’t be high-end? The Pizza Bar on 38th says think again.
From November, the acclaimed pizzeria is offering special set menus pairing seasonal pizzas with locally produced wines and beer.
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink
Oct 30, 2021
Gucci Osteria Tokyo takes you into a culinary wonderland
The third collaborative restaurant between Massimo Bottura and Gucci has finally opened in Ginza, blending fashion with Italian-Japanese fine dining.
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink / KANPAI CULTURE
Oct 9, 2021
For Japan’s Champagne lovers, every day is now a cause for celebration
Forget about unsatisfying mocktail pairings: With Tokyo's state of emergency over, it's time to bust out the bubbles. For the best Champagne cart around, head to Sezanne.
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink
Sep 11, 2021
Onigiri for Love: Little packages from chefs with big hearts
Yoshihiro Narisawa and Wagyumafia's Hisato Hamada launched the rice ball charity project as a way to support producers in rural areas and express thanks to Japan's health care workers.
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink / KANPAI CULTURE
Aug 21, 2021
Teetotal no more and order craft alcohol online
The state of emergency may be ongoing, but you can still support Japanese sake and cocktail producers from home by ordering craft alcohol online.
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink / KANPAI CULTURE
Jun 12, 2021
The secret to this sake’s flavor? Aging it underwater
What started as an experiment has turned into a way for Otokoyama Honten brewery to recover from the 2011 Tohoku triple disaster.
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink / KANPAI CULTURE
Apr 10, 2021
Go on a ‘sake voyage’ right in Tokyo’s backyard
The Yottemikke Sake Tourism Association entices travelers to explore Utsunomiya's gastronomic delights.
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink / KANPAI CULTURE
Mar 20, 2021
Sipping spring spirits with all of Tokyo at your feet
Bar Virtu's spring-inspired cocktail lineup is the excuse you need to glam up and escape the humdrum of daily life.
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink / KANPAI CULTURE
Feb 13, 2021
SG Low: A street culture-inspired izakaya gets the speakeasy treatment
SG Group's newest cocktail bar has a pared-down atmosphere, but the food and drinks have a high-class global twist.
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink / KANPAI CULTURE
Jan 10, 2021
When it comes to sake, a little heat can go a long way
Gone are the days when hot sake implied poor quality, and kanzake is finally taking pride of place at the socially distanced dinner table.
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink / KANPAI CULTURE
Dec 19, 2020
Sake brewing in 2020: ‘Hard times are going to be with us for a while’
After years of incremental gains due to growing popularity abroad, Japan's sake producers struggled with substantial losses this year.
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink / KANPAI CULTURE
Nov 7, 2020
You, too, can learn from master sake brewers with Taste with the Toji
Looking to support the sake industry during the pandemic, sake educator Simone Maynard created a weekly online event to connect brewery and consumer.
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink / KANPAI CULTURE
Oct 17, 2020
Tokyo’s newest drinks trend? Upscale alcohol-free cocktails.
The low- and zero-proof alcohol trend has hit Japan, and for those who want to abstain without sacrificing flavor, there's no shortage of options.
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink
Oct 10, 2020
Spice Lab Tokyo: Defying expectations of Indian-Japanese fusion cuisine
How does executive chef Tejas Sovani balance the maximalist complexity of Indian recipes with Japanese cuisine's understated grace?
Japan's population continues to fall even as foreign resident count rises
The number of residents in Tokyo as of Jan. 1 rose by 0.03% from a year before, data shows, marking a year-on-year increase for the first time in three years, while the country's other 46 prefectures saw their populations continue to decline.
Ahead of the Olympics, Japan is still talking about the gymnast who won't be there
Japan's Shoko Miyata withdrew from the gymnastics team herself over her drinking and smoking, although it had already appeared as though the association was prepared to send her home from the team’s training camp in Monaco.
Yen melt-up nudges Japanese stocks into correction territory
Japanese stocks are down 10% from their July peak as the yen strengthens.
‘Crazy’ yen rally is at risk of shattering as soon as Wednesday
Some investors are warning that a yen rally is fragile, as was on show this week when the yen rapidly retraced an advance after Thursday’s stronger-than-expected U.S. economic growth figures.
Japan's average life expectancy rises for first time in three years
A decline in COVID-19-caused deaths likely helped boost the average life expectancy for Japanese men and women to rise for the first time in three years in 2023.
The Japanese Olympians looking to shine in Paris
Rim Nakamura, who is attempting to win Japan's first Olympic gold medal in cycling, will be one of the top Japanese athletes to watch at the Paris Games.
Japan’s minimum wage set for record ¥50 hike in major boost
Demonstrators rally to demand a big hike in minimum wages in Tokyo last week.
Japan loses top spot on strongest passport list to Singapore
Japan had the strongest passport for six years running from 2018, before being dethroned by Singapore on the 2024 list.
Why Japan's mysterious stash of classified funds escapes scrutiny
Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshimasa Hayashi (right) during a meeting in Tokyo on Tuesday.
Japan eyes gold — and the future — as Olympic men's soccer campaign begins
Japan midfielder Yu Hirakawa controls the ball during a match against the United States in Kansas City, Kansas, on June 11.

Podcast

One of the many entrances to the Kabukicho neighborhood in Tokyo’s Shinjuku Ward.
Kabukicho: Tokyo’s ‘stadium of desire’

Longform

Traditional folk rituals like Mizudome-no-mai (dance to stop the rain) provide a sense of agency to a population that feels largely powerless in the face of the climate crisis.
As climate extremes intensify, Japan embraces ancient weather rituals
By Alex K.T. Martin

SUSTAINABLE JAPAN

JNTO promotes sustainable tourism initiatives
JNTO promotes sustainable tourism initiatives

SPECIAL SUPPLEMENTS note

Read more

SUPPLEMENTS BINDER