003: Japan 2016 day 03 | Suntoury Yamazazki Distillery

2016年 12月 15日 (木)

It was going to be the first of many late starts, but today was an exception as Vivian landed a job interview! The moment we landed, Viv had received word about it but seeing as we were miles away from home, things weren't looking too bright. Much to her surprise, the employer agreed to interview her through the wonders of the internet that was video calling. As Vivian was busy with that, Alex and Wilson were snoring away peacefully.

01A sleeping in bed.jpg
01B sleeping boy.jpg

Leaving Carolyn and I to ride around the lovely neighbourhood. Provided we could get on the bikes. It took forever figuring out how to move the kickstand. Simply pushing on it directly wasn’t doing it and felt like it was about to break... After battling around with it for too long, we finally figured it out. It needed to be pressed down on this switch type thing and then pushed... nice idiot theft deterrent.

Without wasting any more time, we set off with no particular destination in mind. Just a simple tour around the neighbourhood with a quick 7-Eleven breakfast stop.

02B holding an onigiri.jpg
03 tires on a wall.jpg
02A riding in the car park.jpg

While I do enjoy cycling in Adelaide, the casual and lax nature of riding here is just so nice. The fear of not having to wear a helmet on casual rides like this one was freeing. Footpaths and cycling paths were smooth, the odd elevations, bumps or dips were non-existent and, most importantly, clear of anything tire puncturing. The amount of broken glass, loose gravel or leftover construction filth that I have ridden over... This was my cycling safe-haven.

05 girl laying in bed on laptop.jpg

Back at the apartment, Vivian had finished her video call and the boys were still asleep... With the morning kerfuffle over, we head to the Suntory Yamazaki Distillery for a factory tour.

08B boy blankly looking right.jpg
08A girl looking right.jpg
06 construction work at train station.jpg
07+man+on++escalator.jpg

From the station, it was a lovely walk through the neighbourhood until we timely arrived at reception, a little booth found at the side of the massive building.

09A streets of Yamazaki Kyoto.jpg
09B streets of Yamazaki Kyoto.jpg
10 Suntory Yamazaki distillery.jpg
11+whiskey+barrels+in+Yamazaki+distillery.jpg

Following reception's eloquent directions, we reached a hall where we joined the other tour goers and guide. Although we had English audio, our guide often spoke in her perfect English.

12A tour guide orientation.jpg
12B mini barrels of whiskey.jpg

Lasting just over an hour, we were given an insight into their facilities, processes and products.

13A Suntory Yamazaki distillery machinery.jpg
13B Suntory Yamazaki distillery processing tanks.jpg
15 Suntory Yamazaki distillery employees in lab.jpg
16A Suntory Yamazaki distiller line.jpg
16B Suntory Yamazaki distiller.jpg
16C Suntory Yamazaki distillery machines.jpg
17A Suntory Yamazaki distilleries.jpg
17B Suntory Yamazaki distillery cabinet.jpg
18A Suntory Yamazaki distiller.jpg
18B Suntory Yamazaki distiller.jpg

My favourite part was when we were taken down to the cellar where endless rows of barrels were kept. All accompanied by that fantastic musky smell lingering in the air.

19A alleyway of whiskey barrels.jpg
19B barrels of whiskey at Suntory Yamazaki.jpg
20A tour guide explaining difference between aged whiskeys.jpg
20B display barrel of whiskey.jpg
21 barrel of Yamazaki whiskey.jpg
22A whiskey barrels of different sizes.jpg
22B barrels of whiskey in the dark.jpg
23 bamboo trees.jpg

The tour finished classily with a whiskey tasting. For each person, there were four glasses with three different samples. With the last one being another single malt sample, where we all turned into bartenders and collectively made highballs. Not that it mattered, because alcohol tastes like the butt of the earth. Though, I liked #2 with its fruity undertones, making it somewhat bearable. What was more than bearable were the snacks - they were delicious.

24A tasting table.JPG
24B trays of whiskey samples.jpg
25B range of whiskey variations.jpg

This whole tour was just ¥1000! Talk about value. The tour was an enjoyable learning experience and I wholeheartedly recommend visiting, even if you're not a fan of alcohol.

With our glasses left untouched empty, the group broke off to browse the gift shop. Here, they sold all kinds of whiskey, whiskey knick-knacks and the best thing in the shop: snacks.

27A different whiskeys at the shop.jpg
27B different glass types for whiskey.jpg
28A Otona no Kohaku Pocky.jpg
28B whiskey accessories.jpg

Alex and Wilson both purchased an 18 year Yamazaki Single Malt bottle for about ¥33000 (sub $400 AUD at the time). They retail for $800 back home! While the boys invested into their liquid gold, I invested into my solid gold (the aforementioned glorious snacks). In my basket, I had ‘Otona no Kohaku’ Pocky, a pack of jerky and a pack of these pasta snacks.

The Pocky tasted nice but wasn’t anything special. Drawn in by its refined understated packaging, I just had to try some. Inside the cylindrical container were six individual packets as opposed to the usual singular bundle of Pocky. The taste was definitely different to the original. As its name suggests (lit. translated adult’s amber), it had a mature profile with its rich dark chocolate coating and subtle hints of malt in the biscuit. While it is intended to be paired with whiskey, they tasted fine without the alcoholic pairing.

Bacon jerky, or what the official site describes as ‘fragrant treats’, were pretty tasty. With other flavours like cheese, salmon and mixed nuts, it was quite difficult to make my decision. I found them to be quite sweet but as I chewed, more savoury flavours arose and a slight peppery kick invites itself to finish it off.

Lastly, the pièce de résistance: the pasta snacks. My favourite of the bunch. The highlight of the trip – ok, slight exaggeration but they’re really good. Packed in a plain foil Ziploc bag, they’re quite passable on first glance but these things were, without a doubt, the best thing out of the shop. The bite-sized fried pasta pieces were just packed full of flavour and the nice crisp crunch rounded out the eating experience. They were so good that I found myself constantly reaching for more, grabbing handfuls every time. Finished the packet within the hour...

28C Suntory cask-smoked bacon.jpg
28D Suntory pasta snacks.jpg

Past the trap of the gift shop, we were met with a cool whiskey gallery and tasting bar where we hung around until hunger got the better of us. It was 15:00 afterall...

29 whiskey through the years.jpg
30A shelves of whiskey bottles.jpg
31A shelves filled to brim with whiskey bottles.jpg
31B corridoor of whiskey shelves.jpg
32A wall of whiskey accoutrements.jpg
32B curved shelf of whiskey.jpg
33B various glasses hanging.jpg
33A whiskey tasting bar.jpg

Today’s lunch menu was at Vegans Café & Restaurant. We had planned to go yesterday but they weren’t open (good to check these details and not get sprung with surprises). What was a 15min walk from the nearest station turned into what felt like foreverrrr. But! It was a nice scenic neighbourhood walk.

34 railway crossing in neighbourhood.jpg
35 passing Keihan train.jpg
36 sign for Vegans cafe and restaurant.jpg

The place was cosy and warm, much like its welcoming staff. With such an extensive menu, the time taken to order was equally so. Eventually, we had on the table: bowls of ramen, pizza, a teeny rice bowl and a pita sandwich. For a sweet finish, we had some green tea and banana “milkshakes” (read ice-cream). The food was good and well priced. While not mind blowingly delicious, it was a satisfying way to fend the hunger.

37 people ready to order.jpg
38A bowl of vegan ramen.jpg
38B began pizza.jpg
39 hot bowl of vegan ramen.jpg
40 variety of vegan food on table.jpg
41A vegan pita sandwich.jpg
41B soy green tea ice-cream.jpg

After finishing our meal, we decided that now was a good time for a valuable lesson. As the usual procedure goes, we asked for the bill (ビル). We chatted away awaiting for the staff’s return. As they came back, we noticed that they didn’t return with the slip of paper or little folder but a cold bottle of beer (ビール) in hand. Odd.

Bringing up key words like money and finished didn't clear up the misunderstanding. The waiter was still dumbfounded as we racked our brains coming up with the answer. Then, like a bolt of lightning, it came to us. Check! It was CHECK (チェック).

42 guy browsing on phone.jpg
42 stranger peers into the friends' amusement.jpg

Back in Kyoto central, we trawled through Nishiki Market - a long strip of food stalls, fresh groceries and the odd souvenir shops. Being the latter half of the day, it wasn’t as busy and the stock had dwindled down a bit but that didn’t stop the influx of people coming and going. Though our time was short, I still enjoyed our walk down the lively strip.

43A fried food stall.jpg
43B souvenir shop in Kyoto market.jpg
44A Nishiki market overhanging banners.jpg
44B Nishiki market shopping strip.jpg

Shortly after, we visited the Yasaka Shrine after my embarrassingly unsuccessful attempt at finding these particular picturesque streets of Gion. The shrine is always open and being the evening, the place wasn't littered with people. Free to view at our own pace, we admired the big gate out front and the array of lanterns at the centre stage. The lantern's glow emanated throughout the grounds making for quite a pretty sight.

46A gate of Yasaka shrine.jpg
46B shady dealings at Yasaka shrine.jpg
48 wood structure of shrine.jpg
49A array of lanterns at Yasaka shrine.jpg
49B line of lit lanterns.jpg
50 small shrine.jpg
51 street as seen from Yasaka shrine.jpg

Wandering the district a little more, our hunger kicked in once again. A Google search led us to Gion Kappa Restaurant (when we went, it was known as Kappa Kyoto). The restaurant is an izakaya, where meals are more like small cheap eats.

The food was nothing to brag home about. It was a passable meal that didn't suck or amaze. What I didn't like was how long it took for the orders to come out. The place wasn't packed or anything and we didn't order much sooo... Adding to my nitpicks, I reckon the staff could've been more welcoming, especially after the warm attention Vegans Café & Restaurant gave.

52 street alleyway.jpg
53A chef preparing food.jpg
53B chef behind counter.jpg
53C chef frying food.jpg
54A group of chefs cooking.jpg
54B chefs working hard.jpg
53D chef reaching for ingredients.jpg
55 friends chatting amongst themselves.jpg

Post-meal, we didn't do much and headed back to our humble penthouse suite where we enjoyed another night full of antics and banter. Tomorrow was going to be a full day travelling all around Kyoto and its alliterative "K" spots. Thanks for reading.

Not enough Japan? Visit Carolyn's post for her sober take on the day.