On the island of Kyushu, the center of production for Japan's shōchū distilled liquor, long-established breweries have started to branch out into the Western spirits of absinthe and gin, making use of the rich variety of local fruits, herbs and other potential ingredients to produce carefully crafted drinks.
While honoring traditional production techniques, the challenge has been to adapt distilling equipment to reach the required level of purity for the alcohol and to select the right raw materials.
Munehiro Sata, 51, president of Sata Souji Shoten, a brewery founded in 1908 in Minamikyushu, Kagoshima Prefecture, has developed a fascination with absinthe, which was once banned in a number of European countries and the United States due to rumors, which proved unfounded, about its hallucinogenic properties.