Our final post on Foodex Japan 2010 highlights ways that the traditional drinks industry in Japan is aiming to catch the attention of a younger audience.
Okinawan Awamori managed to break out of its stuffy image with a popular caramel coffee liqueur imaginatively called Awamori Coffee. The product was launched a year ago and judging by the scrum around their booth, sales will continue to climb.
The demographic for sake (nihonshu) drinkers tends to be older, so manufacturers are trying to break with tradition. Sake brand Hakutsuru set up a bar serving cocktails made with sake. Their representative explained that sake-based cocktails have been proving popular abroad, so they were trying to encourage the trend in Japan. The booth proved popular, so we might see bars begin to take up the idea in the future.
