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September 19, 2025
 

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DRINKING

Japan Airlines Managing Executive Officer Yukio Nakagawa (center) and others apologize after one of the airline's pilots was found to have been drinking alcohol, during a news conference in Tokyo on Sept. 4.
JAPAN
Sep 17, 2025
JAL to punish president and 36 others over pilot drinking scandal
A JAL pilot consumed alcohol the day before work, resulting in delays of up to 18½ hours for three flights.
Sumadori Bar on Shibuya Ward's main Center Gai street targets young customers who prefer low-alcohol drinks or abstain altogether.
JAPAN / Science & Health / Longform
Sep 15, 2025
Rethinking that second drink: Japan’s Gen Z gets ‘sober curious’
Young Japanese are saying no to booze — and yes to mocktails, gaming and sober nights out. Breweries are pivoting to meet them.
Sensing a bleak future for the local "awamori" liquor, Mizuho Distillery ventured into rum production, releasing a collection of eight rums made from "kokutō" (partially refined or unrefined sugar) sourced from various islands in Okinawa Prefecture.
LIFE / Food & Drink
Sep 12, 2025
The sweet rise of Okinawan rum
The spirit is emerging out of the shadow of the local “awamori” liquor, thanks to a growing band of producers who are keen to tell the tale of the islands' traditional agriculture.
Japan Airlines President Mitsuko Tottori (right) bows in apology Wednesday in Tokyo over the company's pilots causing flight delays due to drinking alcohol.
JAPAN
Sep 10, 2025
JAL reprimand over drunken pilots adds to airline’s woes
The transport ministry issued a fresh warning to the airline for insufficient oversight involving a series of heavy pre-flight drinking cases.
The transport ministry in late December issued a business improvement notice to Japan Airlines after various in-flight incidents in 2024, including a pilot’s excessive consumption of alcohol.
JAPAN
Sep 3, 2025
Japan Airlines apologizes after another pilot drinking report
"We sincerely apologize to our customers and all parties involved for the inconvenience and trouble caused,” the company said.
Shinji Mizutani opened Tanikoretani in August 2024, after converting a dilapidated shophouse in Kiyosumi-Shirakawa into a retro-look "izakaya" tavern.
LIFE / Food & Drink / TOKYO FOOD FILE
Aug 24, 2025
Behind Tanikoretani’s quiet facade, a lively world of sake-fueled food
A chance encounter with a two-story rental space led Shinji Mizutani to set up a vibrant tavern in Tokyo’s Kiyosumi-Shirakawa neighborhood.
Reigen, Germany's first sake brewery, makes a diverse, nontraditional range of sake that includes fruit-flavored sips and wine barrel-aged renditions.
LIFE / Food & Drink
Aug 22, 2025
Germany's first sakemaker offers a bold brew of ideas
Yellowish and high in acidity, German sake won't please the purists, but open-minded consumers, especially wine drinkers, may find something appealing.
Fukagawa Distillery's bar offers a view of the distillation still behind its walls.
LIFE / Food & Drink / Kanpai Culture
Aug 10, 2025
In a coffee-mad neighborhood, a gin distillery is a clear alternative
Located in Kiyosumi-Shirakawa, Fukagawa Distillery wants residents to “think of gin as their local drink."
A staff inspects a distillation pot still at Suntory's new Osaka Spirits & Liqueurs Craft Distillery, which will focus on gin production and help Suntory capture a bigger slice of the fast-growing gin market.
LIFE / Food & Drink
Aug 3, 2025
With a new distillery, Suntory makes a spirited move on gin market
Currently in operation, the high-tech facility in Osaka will open to the public next year with a focus on its popular Roku gin variants.
Paul Weaver, director and head of cannabis at U.S.-based Boston Beer Company, shows the company's weed-themed product catalogs in his office in Toronto in June.
BUSINESS
Jul 28, 2025
U.S. alcohol sector prepares to fight back against buzzy cannabis drinks
Alcohol makers are still suffering a hangover following America's pandemic drinking binge, when sales spiked as cash-flush consumers splurged on pricey bottles of liquor.
At the Asia's 50 Best Bars 2025 awards ceremony, 20 new entries were added to the list, reflecting the increasing diversity and creativity of Asia's bar scene.
LIFE / Food & Drink
Jul 17, 2025
Tokyo nabs four spots on Asia’s 50 Best Bars list
Two of the city’s bars, Bar Benfiddich and Virtu, drop ranks while this year’s list showcases a wider diversity with several new entries from places like Jakarta and Bengaluru.
At modern French restaurant Crony, sommelier Kazutaka Ozawa impresses guests with his thoughtful wine pairings.
LIFE / Food & Drink / Kanpai Culture
Jun 15, 2025
Kazutaka Ozawa: ‘The best wine is the one that brings you joy'
The oenophile, who recently earned the title of Asia’s Best Sommelier, shares his thoughts on domestic sips and Tokyo’s vino trends.
Canes & Tales' Art Deco-inspired interior is designed by renowned architect Andre Fu.
LIFE / Food & Drink / Kanpai Culture
Jun 15, 2025
Osaka’s Canes & Tales raises a glass to bygone charms
With its creative cocktails and classy air of a gentlemen’s club, Canes & Tales is a sophisticated addition to the city’s thriving drinks scene.
Members of the Okinawa Prefectural Police and the U.S. military conduct a joint patrol in the city of Okinawa in April. Prefectural police arrested a U.S. Marine for an alleged hit-and-run case on Sunday.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
May 26, 2025
U.S. Marine arrested for Okinawa hit-and-run that injured four
Lance Cpl. Ivan Garcia-Martinez’s breathalyzer test showed an alcohol level approximately twice the legal limit, police said.
After establishing Lagoon Brewery in 2021, Yosuke Tanaka began making export-only "nihonshu" (Japanese sake) and later, "craft sake," a new genre of sake that isn't bound by the rules of traditional sakemaking.
LIFE / Food & Drink
May 25, 2025
Brewed from rice, water and tomatoes: The growth of ‘craft sake’
Hampered yet inspired by the strict regulations for new brewers, a growing breed of sake producers are making the beverage on their own creative terms.
Bolstered by a strong turnout last year, Raw Wine Tokyo, a natural wine festival, is returning to quench the thirst of natural wine lovers.
LIFE / Food & Drink
May 9, 2025
The world’s biggest natural wine festival returns to Tokyo
After impressing the city’s wine buffs last year, Raw Wine is back with more than 80 natural wine producers from around the world.
A 31-year-old man was taken into custody on Monday on suspicion of drunken driving after he caused a multivehicle crash in the city of Yokosuka, Kanagawa Prefecture.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
May 6, 2025
Driver arrested at scene of Yokosuka crash that injured eight
A breathalyzer test showed the 31-year-old man's blood alcohol level was approximately three times the legal limit.
With a heady mix of sake, food and live music, this year's Craft Sake Week is drawing the crowds.
LIFE / Food & Drink
Apr 24, 2025
Craft Sake Week is back with its usual brand of cool
The annual Roppongi Hills festival is banking on a combination of top sips, delicious bites and party vibes to spread the gospel of Japan’s signature tipple.
After focusing on cabernet sauvignon in Napa Valley, winemaker Eiji Daniel Akaboshi moved to make pinot noir at the renowned Freeman Vineyard & Winery in Sonoma County.
LIFE / Food & Drink
Apr 13, 2025
In California, a Nikkei vintner finds his heritage and purpose
The discovery of a distant relative's wine legacy in California led winemaker Eiji Daniel Akaboshi to look at his vocation in a new light.
After getting her career started in Japan, Courney Kaplan has become one of Los Angeles' leading sake evangelists from her base at Ototo.
LIFE / Food & Drink / Kanpai Culture
Apr 6, 2025
In Los Angeles, Courtney Kaplan says sake is having a moment
Los Angeles has no shortage of Japanese restaurants, but Ototo makes the country's national drink an easy sip.
Wealthy foreign nationals picking up ultimate souvenir — a condo in Tokyo
A high-end property in the fashionable Daikanyama district in Tokyo
Japan dispatches five language education 'partners' to India
Five members of the Japan Foundation's Nihongo Partners program (front) gather at the Japanese Embassy in New Delhi on Monday.
End of U.S. de minimis exemption causes headaches for some businesses in Japan
Proxy-shopping services — companies that ship Japanese products ranging from cosmetics and snacks to limited-edition stationery on behalf of customers abroad — are already feeling the impact of the U.S. suspending de minimis exemptions.
Over 90% of low-income families in Japan struggling to feed children
Save the Children Japan domestic program chief Sonoko Kawakami speaks at a news conference in Tokyo in July. A survey conducted by the group in June has found that over 90% of low-income households with children face food insecurity.
Struggling train firm in Chiba Prefecture turns to self-deprecating humor
"Laughter is important when you're in a difficult situation," said Katsunori Takemoto, president of Choshi Electric Railway, on Aug. 5 in Choshi, Chiba Prefecture.
Japan’s front-line researchers see bright path ahead for dementia treatment
A scientist looks at scans of grains at the Memory Centre at the Department of Readaptation and Geriatrics of the University Hospital (HUG) in Geneva, Switzerland, on June 6, 2023.
Still plenty to fight for, says Japan’s team leader at worlds
Race walker Hayato Katsuki earned bronze for Japan on the opening day of the World Athletics Championships on Saturday.
Wealthy foreign nationals picking up ultimate souvenir — a condo in Tokyo
A high-end property in the fashionable Daikanyama district in Tokyo
Japanese athletes inspired by raucous home fans at World Athletics Championships
Fans cheer on the home favorites during the women's marathon at the World Athletics Championships in Tokyo on Sunday.
Japan's major art events converge this fall
Shinji Ohmaki’s “Tokinokage” exhibited at Fuji Textile Week 2021 shows the use of fabric as art.

Podcast

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

Longform

Sumadori Bar on Shibuya Ward's main Center Gai street targets young customers who prefer low-alcohol drinks or abstain altogether.
Rethinking that second drink: Japan’s Gen Z gets ‘sober curious’
By Alex K.T. Martin

SUSTAINABLE JAPAN

We are pleased to announce the winners of the 6th annual Sustainable Japan Award.
We are pleased to announce the winners of the 6th annual Sustainable Japan Award.

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