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December 04, 2024
 

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Melinda Joe

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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
Dec 11, 2022
The Okinawans helping black kōji to thrive
Nearly destroyed during the destruction of World War II, the enigmatic mold central to awamori lives on.
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink / KANPAI CULTURE
Oct 23, 2022
Virtu’s new master mixer looking to shake and stir up the classics
After stints in Bermuda, Seoul and Beijing, bartender Keith Motsi has come to Tokyo.
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink / KANPAI CULTURE
Sep 18, 2022
Ash's cocktails and coffee lack a major element: waste
Shibuya has no shortage of watering holes, but how many source ingredients from the leftovers of other bars and restaurants?
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink / KANPAI CULTURE
Jul 17, 2022
Drinks first: Reverse engineering the traditional pairing menu
Who says bartenders have to play second fiddle in the pairing menu business?
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink
May 22, 2022
Award-winning alchemical delights at Japan’s best bar
Fresh off being named Japan's top spot for a tipple, Ben Fiddich and its imaginative owner have much more planned than just the next top-shelf drink.
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’s 2024 buzzword of the year urges a reevaluation of past norms
Sadao Abe, who played the role of a time-traveling Showa Era teacher transported to present day in a popular TV drama, receives the 2024 buzzword of the year award for the word "futehodo," the nickname of the series.
Princess Aiko, only child of emperor, turns 23
Princess Aiko on Nov. 22 ahead of her 23rd birthday on Sunday at the Imperial Palace
Ishiba questioned on political reform, social issues and the economy
Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba speaks in the Lower House in Tokyo on Monday.
Nearly 90% in Japan and China have negative views of other
Chinese people's sentiment toward Japan is believed to be impacted by their use of social media platforms such as Weibo and Douyin, as well as whether they have visited Japan.
Bear that attacked Akita supermarket employee captured
A brown bear in Hokkaido. In the city of Akita, a bear that attacked a supermarket employee over the weekend was captured in a box trap on Monday morning.
Can Japan's scientific community rebound from a Nobel nosedive?
The National Museum of Emerging Science and Innovation in Tokyo is a popular place to foster curiosity in the natural sciences.
Europe eyes 'boots on the ground' in Ukraine as possible peace deal option
A serviceman with the Ukrainian Army's 24th mechanized brigade fires a machine gun during an exercise, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in the country's Donetsk region on Friday.
Seven strangers and an algorithm: Can this new dinner app help you make friends?
Timeleft uses an algorithm to match its users with five or six strangers in an effort to prompt “human connection” over dinner at a restaurant. It determines the attendees with the help of a simple personality quiz available when you sign up for the service. 
Don’t worry, you can still use your Japan health insurance card — for now
A My Number card reader at a pediatric clinic in Tokyo. While the government will stop issuing new health insurance cards on Monday, most people will remain unaffected by the move in the short term as existing health insurance cards can still be used for another year.
The Geisha bean is the leading lady of Tokyo's coffee scene
Discovered in the 1930s, the Geisha coffee plant came to worldwide fame in the early 2000s and now represents some of the best coffee on the planet — Tokyo's top cafes included.

Podcast

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

Longform

The National Museum of Emerging Science and Innovation in Tokyo is a popular place to foster curiosity in the natural sciences.
Can Japan's scientific community rebound from a Nobel nosedive?
By Tomoko Otake

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