Three drinks to express “Drink the river and mountain” The creations of a herbalist, sommelier, tea master and bartender. A report on DIG THE TEA’s event on experimental drinks

If you hear the theme “Drink the river and mountain”, what kind of flavor drink would you envision? 

Perhaps such a drink rooted in local resources will be the next generation of sustainable luxury experiences. 

Our team at DIG THE TEA wanted to use botanicals as a gateway to explore the next generation of luxury experiences from Japan and start a new featured series. To kick start this new idea, we held an online event this fall that invited a herbalist, a sommelier and tea master, a bartender and a cultural anthropologist that specializes in contemporary cuisine. 

As the first event hosted by DIG THE TEA, we explored the future of shikohin drinks under the event title, “DIG THE TEA EVENT vol.1, Drinking the river and mountain, The future of shikohin drinks using botanicals and local resources”. 

For the second installment of the event’s report we will introduce the original drinks created by the guest speakers, herbalist Lyie Nitta, sommelier and tea master Marina Fujimoto, and bartender Hiroaki Oda, under the theme of “Drink the river and mountain”. We tasted the individual drinks with anthropologist Shu Fujita, and explored the possibilities behind local x botanical beverage experiences with DIG THE TEA facilitator Otsuki. 

Speakers (from left to right)

Shu Fujita: Cultural anthropologist specializing in contemporary cuisine
Marina Fujimoto: Tea master and sommelier, Manager of chayoi
Lyie Nitta: Herbalist, Founder of TABEL 
Hiroaki Oda: Bartender, Owner of Bar iXey and iXey Non-Alcoholic Spirits Kyoto

The First Drink: Medicinal herbs from Daisen, Tottori’s sacred mountain served on ice 

The first guest speaker to present her drink was Lyie Nitta, a herbalist and the representative of the traditional tea brand, Tabel. 

Her drink’s theme was  “Between birth in water and the bountiful harvest”. 

Nitta: Water is something that circulates. It goes through various paths and there are various stories that it picks up along the way. Nature works slowly, so I chose an extraction method that takes time. It took 2 hours to slowly extract the scent of the herbs over ice. 

In this bowl, there is a kind of mugwort (Artemisia monophylla) that grows in the sacred mountain of Daisen in Tottori Prefecture. The ice is made from water from Amenomanai, a sacred spring water from the Ichihime Shrine in Kyoto City. 

The water is mild and soft. It is said that the water in Kyoto is extremely soft, and it has a refreshing and soft flavor. 

As Nitta pours the drink into a glass with a wide top, the precious couple tablespoons of water glisten inside. 

Nitta: Please try the first sip. I reduced the amount of mugwort for this drink so it is closer to plain water. I hope you can really taste the clear spring water and botanicals of the mountain through the drink. 

Oda: There is a faint sweetness and a hint of spiciness. Does that come from the mugwort?

Nitta: Yes. Extracting with cold water brings out the flavor of the mugwort that has been aged for a year. For this drink I used the tips of the mugwort plant. 

Fujita: I didn’t know that mugwort was slightly spicy.

Nitta: The common mugwort that we find in Japan is not very spicy. I think this spiciness is unique to this variety (Artemisia monophylla) of mugwort. 

Fujimoto: You can also taste the sweetness of the water. 

Nitta: It is not only the water, but I also chose to serve the drink in this specific glass because it has a wide top. Our taste buds that sense sweetness are concentrated on the sides of the tongue so this glass makes it easier to taste the sweetness. 

The Second Drink: Expressing a bountiful harvest with a blend of mountain and forest ingredients

Nitta began preparing her second drink. 

Nitta: Water is the key to a bountiful harvest. I wanted to also express the blessings we receive from the forest and mountains. At first I thought about using figs, but I decided on pairing it with Queen Nina grapes (a large red grape variety) which I came across in Katsunuma, Yamanashi Prefecture. I think it is more like a princess than a queen because it has a purity and freshness to it. I thought it would be a perfect match for the goddess of bounty. 

In order to squeeze out the juice I froze the grapes once to break down its cells. Then I thawed it and squeezed it to extract a clear juice. 

Nitta uses a cocktail measure and a syringe to measure out the drink.

Nitta: I considered using the juice to make a sweet dessert-like drink, but I wanted to put the focus on the quality of the water so I only used a little juice. I have squeezed both the skin and fruit of the grapes. The skin gives the flavor more fullness and volume and the pink color it adds makes it look nice and pretty. 

Fujita: The skin adds a bit of astringency. I think astringency is good when pairing a drink with food, but it can be a difficult decision for a drink. 

Nitta: For this drink, the Queen Nina is sweet so I decided that the astringency of the peel would give the drink more body. 

The first drink represented the flow of spring water through herbs and water and how water flows down a stream to water the mountain forest. The second drink represented the rich bounty brought by water through fruits and plants. A half cut grape decorated the bottom of the clear glass cup. 

Nitta: I intentionally kept the serving size small so that it can be had in one sip. I want you to drink the water first and then eat the grape. I think the first taste you will experience is very faint. 

Oda: Do I taste a faint marigold leaf in the drink? I can smell the aroma. 

Fujita: Wormwood, grapes and marigold are not necessarily a go-to or “safe” combination. I think it’s great that this combination emerged from today’s theme. 

Fujimoto: It has a very delicate flavor and is so soft to taste. 

Nitta: I experimented a lot to reach a right balance of fruit juice so as not to erase the presence of the water. This drink diluted the fruit juice 4.5 times. I hope the drink allowed you to experience the faint presence of botanicals. 

—— Drinking the first drink and second drink was like traveling down a stream from the source of the spring water and enjoying the changing scenery. Thank you. 

Lyie Nitta’s Drink Recipe

Ingredients 
・Mugwort (Artemisia monophylla) from the sacred mountain of Daisen in Tottori Prefecture
・Chrysanthemum tree from southern Kyushu
・Leaves from a camphor tree from southern Kyushu
・Queen Nina grapes from Katsunuma, Yamanashi Prefecture
・Spring water from Kyoto City

Features of the recipe
・The use of the special mugwort that is distributed to worshippers who attend the Ogamiyama Shrine ritual 
・Ice made from the spring water on the tip of the mountain was used in the first drink to slowly extract the botanicals
・The spring water becomes a flowing current that waters the plants as it travels down the mountain and eventually creates the bounty of fruits and plants below. For the second drink, enjoy the ripeness of the fruit bounty

The terroir of Wuyi Mountain, a tea that grows between mountain rocks

Certified sommelier and tea artisan Marina Fujimoto was next to present her creation. Her theme was Wuyi Mountain, a famous mountain in Fujian Province of China.

Fujimoto: I became hooked on tea when my senior sommelier took me to a Chinese tea shop and I tasted the tea there. The oolong tea that was served there in a tea set called 蓋椀 (gaiwan) was completely different to the teas I had tasted before. 

From there, my interest in tea grew. When I was attending tea classes I came across a tea called daikouhou, which is a rock tea from Wuyi Mountain. 

Wuyi Mountain is located in Fujian Province in western China, across the sea from Taiwan. The mountainscape is like a traditional Chinese ink painting. It’s river called the Kyukyokukei runs between the steep mountains and the scenery and terroir is very unique there. 

Fujimoto: There is a very special oolong tea that can only be grown in this special region. This region grows a medium leaf variety of tea. In Japan, most tea leaves are small leaf varieties. The name rock tea comes from the fact that this tea tree grows between rocks. 

Today, I will brew tea using rock tea and various ingredients that come from Fujian Province. 

The first tea blend will be a blend of rock tea called nikkei and chaju mushrooms. It is said that the chaju mushrooms that grow under oolong tea trees are the most delicious and they are locally known as phantom mushrooms because they are so rare. 

I will also use wood ear mushroom and kinsa hatomugi which is also from Fujian Province and grows in the south region of Wuyi Mountain. This mushroom is known to be a gift for the emperor. 

Finally, I will use lotus seeds. I decided to include this ingredient because many local dishes in the region around Wuyi Mountain use lotus seeds. I also include some fruits. Wuji has a tropical climate so they often eat longan and jujube (chinese dates) fruits raw. I used only the skin of a lychee fruit and chose not to include the fruit. 

Fujimoto: The tea will be brewed in mineral water from the Southern Alps. I heard that many Chinese tea makers go out of their way to purchase imported mineral water from the Southern Alps. The water in China is hard water, so they either boil the water first or use mineral water. I chose to use a Japanese mineral water brand that is popular in China.

I soaked a barley rice stone in the water for 10 hours and boiled the water in a Nanbu iron kettle. This is not something we do in Chinese tea because the flavor of Chinese teas may change by using an iron kettle. However, this time I wanted to include a strong iron and mineral content in the tea so I chose to use an iron kettle. 

According to a Chinese tea master who has visited China over 200 times, Chinese people don’t drink fresh water. The only exception is the spring water from Wuyi Mountain where he was served fresh water and he told me it was very delicious. 

I wanted to express a mineral-rich water that would be similar to the spring water of Wuyi Mountain. 

Happo Tea is a local tea that tastes like a mother’s cooking

Fujimoto: I will serve my drink is a gaiwan cup. I brought a white porcelain cup which is distinctive to Fujian Province. 

Please use the lid of the cup to avoid swallowing the ingredients. I think you will be able to taste not only the oolong tea, but also the earthy presence that is unique to the region. 

Fujita: It really is earthy. 

Nitta: The oolong tea also has a strong presence. How many times can you brew these leaves?

Fujimoto: You can brew it as many times as you want. Each time will present a different nuance. It is a tea that can be enjoyed all day long. 

Fujita: It must have been hard to come up with this combination of eight ingredients. 

Fujimoto: That comes from experience. I used Happo (eight treasure) tea as a reference. The eight treasure tea originates in Northern China where tea tree leaves could not be cultivated. It was during a time when trade was abundant on the Silk Road. The tea was developed by combining various ingredients brought by merchants and drinking it like tea. 

As the name eight treasure tea suggests, the eight treasures are considered to bring good luck. From there it developed into something that is good for your health and you can change the blended ingredients to match your condition or preference. It is a tea that is still commonly enjoyed in China and is considered a tea that tastes like the mother’s cooking of each region. 

To demonstrate flavors that are unique to China, I tailored the blend to the theme of Wuyi Mountain. 

Marina Fujimoto’s Drink Recipe

Happo Tea with the flavors of Wuyi Mountain of Fujian Province

Ingredients: 

・ Rock Tea nikkei
・ Mushrooms that grow at the root of tea trees chaju mushroom
・ Wood ear mushroom 
・ Silver ear fungus
・ Lotus seeds
・ kinsa hatomugi
・ Lychee
・ Jujube
・ Longan

Features of the recipe

・Use of highest quality oolong tea, Rock Tea nikkei, which can only be produced in Fujian Province of China
・Expressing the Wuyi Mountain and regional flavors of Fujian by using locally sourced ingredients and serving in the local Happo tea (eight treasure tea) style
・An earthy flavor that makes one envision a mountain, natural umami, and a sweet aftertaste that is characteristic of Rock Tea

A non-alcoholic cocktail that features a 2,500 year old Jindai cedar tree

The final drink presenter was bartender Hiroaki Oda. His creation is called “The Jindai Cedar Fizz”. 

Oda: The previous drinks have used tea to present their experimental drinks. When I started making non-alcoholic drinks I wondered what the difference between tea and non-alcoholic spirits really was. It is still a big theme for me. 

Oda: I have come to find various differences, but the biggest one is the experience of taste when you drink it. A big characteristic of non-alcoholic spirits is that it has less flavor than tea when you drink it. 

This is why it is important to build on non-alcoholic spirits. We do not make the product with the assumption that it will be consumed on its own. It is like vodka or gin in a cocktail and rather than drinking it on its own, it is meant to be mixed. 

Oda began measuring the ingredients of the drink using a cocktail measure. 

Oda: I sometimes describe cocktail making as similar to making a cake. Just like a cake, a cocktail is layered with various flavors and the more flavors you add, the more steps there are in making a cocktail. 

Making cocktails to pair with food results in a drink that is more like tea. The flavor is completed when combined with food. However, I think in essence cocktails are not meant for this purpose and should be complete on its own. 

The drinks prepared by Ms. Nitta and Ms. Fujimoto today has intentional blanks in them. By contrast, the cocktail that I will make will be a “complete” drink. That is one difference between tea and cocktails. 

Here, Oda pulled out a large silver bottle. He poured liquid nitrogen into the body of the cocktail shaker and a white mist overflowed as everyone gasped in delight. 

Oda:  Using liquid nitrogen is not just for show. It actually has a scientific purpose. 

I will be putting ice in the glass and pouring in the cocktail after this, so leaving the cups at room temperature will cause the ice to melt quickly and thin out the drink. Using liquid nitrogen to cool the glasses before pouring the drink will prevent this. 

I make the cocktails while thinking about how thick I want the drink to be. When I tried the drink from Ms. Nitta, who wanted us to fully experience the water in the drink, I felt we had opposite approaches. 

Oda: For this drink I used our non-alcoholic spirits 然仙 (Nenzen) of “miatina” which features Jinai cedar trees. 

The cocktail will be flavored with a cordial of lemon juice and green yuzu (citron). Cordial is a syrup which we make to match the seasons. For this season I wanted to add citrus flavors. 

The thought process of building a multiple layer cocktail

Oda stirred the ingredients using a bar spoon and the drink mixed with the ice in the glass. The steady sound of glass, ice and spoon are easing to the ear. 

Fujita: From what you told us, I imagine that this drink will have a robust flavor. There are not too many components so I think the flavor will be more pronounced. 

Oda: Botanicals can be used in tea, syrups or distilled water. Each method brings out different features of the plant. What’s fun about making cocktails is that we can extract 

the good qualities of the different methods and combine them together. 

Oda: For this drink, the combinations are green yuzu citrus syrup, and distilled cypress and cedar water. By layering these flavors, we build balance. Next I will add a little tonic water and soda. 

I will also add a few drops of bitters which is a common ingredient in cocktails. Bitters are a highly concentrated extract of various ingredients such as herbs, spices, tree barks, etc. It is used to add scent to finish off the cocktail. 

Most bitters are alcoholic, but for this drink I used a homemade non-alcoholic one. I think that using bitters helps bring out the tannin content of spices such as cloves and cinnamon. 

—— Perhaps there are a lot of people who assume that non-alcoholic cocktails will not have as much body and alcoholic ones?

Oda: It is important to compensate for a lack of body by adding concentrated aroma. Whether or not it has a concentrated aroma makes a huge difference. That aroma is what differentiates non-alcoholic cocktails from soft drinks. 

Not to sound conceited, but I want to create a definition of non-alcoholic cocktails for the future. I believe that the use of distilled water is the most vital part to define what a non-alcoholic cocktail is. Without the use of distilled water, it is just a soft drink. 

—— It’s true that definitions are important. The same is true in the world of music. 

Oda: That’s true. Lastly, I will add wood shavings on top of the drink and burn them to add a smoky aroma. This completes my drink. 

Nitta:  What a pleasant smell!

Fujita: The thought process of making a cocktail is indeed different from tea. I like the scent of the yuzu and the elegant taste. It’s perfect for summer in Kyoto. The aroma of the wood comes through in multiple layers with a lightness, astringency and thickness. 

Oda: I compared cocktails to cakes earlier. A cake is not only made from the sponge cake, but also includes ingredients such as mousse, jam and other layers. If you mash up and mix all the ingredients of a cake together, you won’t end up with the same flavor as a layered cake. 

The same is true and important for building layers in a cocktail. In cocktails, although I mix the ingredients, I think about the building of layers. 

Nitta: You can taste how the sweetness changes as you drink it. The changing flavors are really interesting. 

Oda: In that sense, this cocktail is not something to drink while you eat something. I can’t imagine that there is room for that. The cocktail is complete on its own. 

Hiroaki Oda’s Drink Recipe

The Jindai Cedar Fizz

Ingredients
・miatina  Nenzen (non-alcoholic spirits)
・Green yuzu (citron) cordial 
・Lemon
・Non-alcoholic bitters
・Tonic Water

Features of the recipe

・Use of wood shavings that are a byproduct of wooden barrel making
・Use of Jindai Cedar wood of a 2500 year old tree
・A drink that creates the experience of time

The experimental drinks presented at the event ranged from a tea with a delicate softness by Ms. Nitta, who specializes in herbs and utilized the freshness of natural spring water, a complex Chinese tea from sommelier and tea artisan Ms. Fujimoto and a rich cocktail from bartender Mr. Oda with a concentration of aromas. 

They expressed various local regions, the uniqueness of individual ingredients and maximized their expertise to create a very one of a kind drink. 

Topics such as the differences in tea and non-alcoholic cocktails, the existence and use of space in drinks, and the changes of flavors with time were all brought up by the individual professionals and showed us how deep the world of creating drinks can be. 

This event provided us with many hints for our future exploration of non-alcoholic drinks and the next era of luxury. 

Translation: Sophia Swanson

Follow us!  → Instagram / Twitter