The Japanese like Beaujolais Nouveau wine so much they're swimming in it ... literally.
A hot spring spa resort in Hakone, a resort region near Japan's celebrated Mount Fuji, is pouring the fruity red wine into one of its pools until Sunday to celebrate the release of this year's product.
The Hakone Kowakien Yunessun has invited a French sommelier to come to Japan to pour a dozen bottles of the Beaujolais Nouveau, produced by France's Cordier, into its open-air "wine spa" every day.
PHOTO: AFP
"We installed the wine spa last year, and conducted the Beaujolais Nouveau celebration. It was a great success," said Seiji Sanada, an official at Yunnesun.
"The aroma of Beaujolais is very pleasing, very nice. From the open-air spa, you can see the mountains, leaves turning color and hear the sound of a nearby ravine. It's very pleasant," he said.
Yesterday when officials in the "wine spa" poured the Beaujolais Nouveau into the bath, people enjoyed catching the wine falling through the air with their hands and tasting it, while soaking in the bath at the same time.
Japan is the biggest importer of Beaujolais Nouveau, with the wine sold everywhere from fine restaurants to convenience stores.
Even though beer and Japanese sake remain far more popular than wine, Beaujolais Nouveau has become a seasonal fad in Japan which this year ordered a record 11 million bottles.
Sanada insisted that the Beaujolais bath had real value.
Wine smoothens the skin and its aroma relaxes the mind, he said.
The company said bathing in wine is "a rejuvenation treatment."
"It has been said that the Queen of Egypt, Cleopatra, loved to bath in wine," said a company release.
Japan is dotted by natural springs, or onsen, where people kick back and soak in steamy hot water.
ALCOHOL COULD DAMAGE YOUR HEALTH
EXPRESSING GRATITUDE: Without its Taiwanese partners which are ‘working around the clock,’ Nvidia could not meet AI demand, CEO Jensen Huang said Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) and US-based artificial intelligence (AI) chip designer Nvidia Corp have partnered with each other on silicon photonics development, Nvidia founder and CEO Jensen Huang (黃仁勳) said. Speaking with reporters after he met with TSMC chairman C.C. Wei (魏哲家) in Taipei on Friday, Huang said his company was working with the world’s largest contract chipmaker on silicon photonics, but admitted it was unlikely for the cooperation to yield results any time soon, and both sides would need several years to achieve concrete outcomes. To have a stake in the silicon photonics supply chain, TSMC and
IDENTITY: Compared with other platforms, TikTok’s algorithm pushes a ‘disproportionately high ratio’ of pro-China content, a study has found Young Taiwanese are increasingly consuming Chinese content on TikTok, which is changing their views on identity and making them less resistant toward China, researchers and politicians were cited as saying by foreign media. Asked to suggest the best survival strategy for a small country facing a powerful neighbor, students at National Chia-Yi Girls’ Senior High School said “Taiwan must do everything to avoid provoking China into attacking it,” the Financial Times wrote on Friday. Young Taiwanese between the ages of 20 and 24 in the past were the group who most strongly espoused a Taiwanese identity, but that is no longer
A magnitude 6.4 earthquake and several aftershocks battered southern Taiwan early this morning, causing houses and roads to collapse and leaving dozens injured and 50 people isolated in their village. A total of 26 people were reported injured and sent to hospitals due to the earthquake as of late this morning, according to the latest Ministry of Health and Welfare figures. In Sising Village (西興) of Chiayi County's Dapu Township (大埔), the location of the quake's epicenter, severe damage was seen and roads entering the village were blocked, isolating about 50 villagers. Another eight people who were originally trapped inside buildings in Tainan
SHARED VALUES: The US, Taiwan and other allies hope to maintain the cross-strait ‘status quo’ to foster regional prosperity and growth, the former US vice president said Former US vice president Mike Pence yesterday vowed to continue to support US-Taiwan relations, and to defend the security and interests of both countries and the free world. At a meeting with President William Lai (賴清德) at the Presidential Office in Taipei, Pence said that the US and Taiwan enjoy strong and continued friendship based on the shared values of freedom, the rule of law and respect for human rights. Such foundations exceed limitations imposed by geography and culture, said Pence, who is visiting Taiwan for the first time. The US and Taiwan have shared interests, and Americans are increasingly concerned about China’s
RSS