Gadling

Japan is making a few new enemies on the international culinary scene as of recent…

This past March, Michelin guide director Jean-Luc Naret decided to shake things up a bit by snubbing the traditional gourmand capital of Paris, and naming Tokyo the world’s top food city. According to Naret, himself a French man, “Tokyo is becoming the global city with the finest cuisine, the city in the world with the most stars.”

Indeed, the French were horrified to hear that restaurants in Tokyo were awarded a total of 191 stars, nearly twice the amount awarded to Paris and more than three times the amount awarded to New York. The final nail in the coffin came when Michelin guides announced that three of the top eight restaurants in Tokyo serve French food.

Now, it seems that Scotland and Ireland may soon join the foray, especially since a Japanese whisky was dubbed the best single malt at the World Whiskies Awards last month. Despite stiff competition from traditional whiskey powerhouses, the Yoichi 20 Years Old single malt, which is produced by Nikka Whisky Distilling Company on the island of Hokkaido, was awarded “Best of Show” by a panel of judges from Europe, the United States and Japan.

The London based competition, which was organized by Whiskey Magazine, hosted more than 200 labels that were divided into categories based on regional and style variations. Each whiskey was then independently assessed in a series of three blind tasting rounds by a panel of tastings experts.

According to Rob Allanson, the main organizer of the event: “It is well known in the industry, and amongst connoisseurs, that Japan produces good whiskey. Japanese whiskey is still a niche market but demand is growing. I think this year we have seen some of the best the Japanese market has to offer in the competition. They performed magnificently and are starting to make waves on the international market.”

The award-winning whiskey comes from the Yoichi distillery, which was founded on the frigid northern Japanese island of Hokkaido in 1934 by the legendary distiller Masataka Taketsuru. Regarded as the Japanese father of whiskey, Taketsuru learned his skills on several trips to the Scottish highlands. While temperatures in Hokkaido are significantly colder than in the British Isle, Taketsuru discovered how to adapt the whiskey distilling process to suit Japan’s climate and conditions.

So how does Yoichi 20 Year taste? Delicious.

One judge described the blend as “round and full bodied, starts with sugared pecans, vanilla, sweet malt, then moved into more hazelnut and fruit cake in the finish,” while another described it as ”medium amber hue with a bold nose of sherry tobacco and old leather.”

So how do you buy a bottle? Not easily.

Reserves of Yoichi 20 Year are flying off shelves in light of its recent accolades, though the upside is that production volume is likely to increase in the years to come. While its market price is around US$300 a bottle, you can probably expect this figure to soar. Then again, is it really possible to put a monetary value on the world’s best whiskey?

With that said, if you’ve ever tasted this epic brew, leave a comment and tell us about it!

Whether you’re an amateur blogger or a professional news hound, it’s hard to resist the temptation to write so-called ‘human interest pieces,’ namely random anecdotes and stories that make you feel happy to be alive. Considering the bleak and depressing nature of the international news climate as of recent, human interest pieces are an important part of injecting a bit of optimism into your day.

With that said, perhaps you can understand why the Japanese news outlets are going crazy over the miraculous story of Yousuke, the pet African grey parrot who flew out of his cage two weeks ago in the city of Nagareyama near Tokyo. Although the worried owner contacted police, in the end it was Yousuke the parrot who found his owner, not the other way around!

After being found by a local woman, the parrot was brought to a veterinary clinic to be properly cared for. Like all African grey parrots, Yousuke is extremely chatty, and began performing popular children’s songs in fornt of the staff. However, everyone was surprised beyond belief when the parrot began speaking its full name and home address!!

According to the veterinarian, the bird chirped “I’m Yosuke Nakamura,” prior to stating clearly his full home address down, right down to the specific house number! Soon after, the bird was reunited with his worried owner, who rewarded the bird with a snack of fresh fruits and vegetables.

Mr. Nakamura, the owner, not the bird, was jubilant: “I’m glad I had taught him his name and address and name!” He went on to describe to police how he spent two years teaching the bird to properly recite his contact information in case he ever escaped.

So, just exactly how smart are African grey parrots?

The African grey parrot is considered to be one of the most intelligent birds, and wildlife experts hypothesize that it has the cognitive ability of a six-year-old human child. In the rainforests of central Africa, grey parrots have a long history of cooperative feeding, which may have preempted their impressive cognitive abilities, and enabled them to survive the feast and famine cycles that are common in this habitat.

According to Dr. Irene Pepperberg, a scientist that has conducted extensive research with captive African greys, parrots are actually capable of associating human words with specific meanings. Based on studies with an African grey named N’kisi, who learned around one thousand vocabulary words, and could actually string together complete sentences, Dr. Pepperberg has suggested that parrots may actually have their own language.

Sadly, while this story is a touching tale of a beloved pet finding his way back to his caring owner’s arms, it’s worth noting that African grey parrots are endangered, and are listed on Appendix II of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES).

This means that exports must be accompanied by a permit issued by a national authority, which declares that the particular animal’s finding was non-detrimental to the species in the wild. Sadly, their demand in the pet market means that African grey parrots are one of the most heavily-trafficked CITES-listed bird species.

Moral of the story: Grey parrots are the smartest pets you can own (sorry Rover!), but please do make sure that they were obtained via legitimate pathways. Thanks!

** All images courtesy of the WikiCommons Media Project **

This may be one of the coolest things you’ll see today…

Unless you’re a science and nature dork like me, you might not be aware that flying fish are real creatures, and they actually do fly (well, sort of). You might also be surprised to hear that their roe tastes great when sprinkled on top of California rolls, and that their flesh is divine with a dab of wasabi and splash of soy sauce!

Anyway, back to the lecture at hand – earlier this week, a Japanese television crew captured some seriously kick-ass footage of a flying fish off the southern coast of Kyushu island in Japan. As you can see in the video below, the fish spends an astounding 45 seconds out of the water, which is now being regarded as the longest ever recorded flight by this species.

As I said before, I’m a bit of a science and nature dork despite my father’s best attempts at teaching me sports – sorry Dad, I did try! – though I think you’ll all agree that flying fish are pretty freakin’ cool creatures. After all, how many fish out there have the power to soar through the air at speeds up to 30 miles per hour, and can escape hungry predators with aerial acrobatics?

First question: What is a flying fish?

The Exocoetidae or flying fish are found the world over, though they’re especially common in the warm tropical and subtropical waters of the Atlantic, Pacific, and Indian Oceans. Even if you’re not a marine biologist, their distinguishing features are pretty obvious, namely the huge pectoral fins that look like they were taken straight from a F-22 Raptor!

Second question: How do flying fish fly?

Actually, they don’t fly, but rather use their tail fins to accelerate rapidly towards the surface of the water to achieve lift-off, thus escaping the mouths of hungry predators. Once airborne, they spread their wings, er…fins, and glide along the thermals with the type of grace and elegance that is only found in nature. While gliding, flying fish can reach speeds of up to 30 miles per hour, and can cover about 50 yards in a single bound.

In this particular record-breaking jump, the fish was able to stay aloft by occasionally beating the surface of the water with its tail fin. This produces the additional thrust needed for multiple jumps, which enables flying fish to cover distances equal to several football fields

Awesome.

Third and final question: How do flying fish taste?

Delicious. Flying fish roe is known in Japanese as tobiko (とびこ), though it most commonly appears in Californian style sushi as those bright orange eggs on your roll. They’re salty, have a unique tang not unlike caviar, and pop in the mouth like little seaweed-scented bubbles. And, while the flesh of the fish itself is an expensive delicacy that is hard to find outside Japan, it has a soft and refined texture that justifies the high price tag.

On that note, I think it’s time to head out for a sushi lunch…

** All images courtesy of the WikiCommons Media Project **