INDEX
The depth of root beer connected to folklore and cultural anthropology
Celeina： Earlier, I heard about the original root beer syrup that you make, and I also heard that you have visited other countries to enjoy root beer in various ways.
Takada：I drank 50 glasses of root beer a day while traveling across the Americas and other places.
Celeina： Is there any root beer that you have encountered so far that has left a strong impression on you?
Takada： Vietnamese root beer is interesting; even the foam is black. It tasted out of this world, and there were root beers that were so black that no matter how much research I did, I couldn’t tell what they were made of. When I introduce root beer on Instagram, I also introduce songs and movies that go with root beer, and the movie that went with this root beer was “Apocalypse Now” about the Vietnam War.
Takano: Is there a sweetness to it?
Takada：There was some sweetness, but I was a bit disoriented. Also, it tasted like water that had accumulated under a cowshed, and the smell was fermented.
Celeina：That’s amazing (haha). So you are saying that root beer can be enjoyed in many different parts of the world, each with its own local flavor?
Takada: It’s not terroir, but what is interesting about studying root beer is that it is rooted in the land, so it goes into the realm of folklore and cultural anthropology. It’s a drink that got its name in America, but I believe it really started when humans invented earthenware and boiled something. That is a fascinating area to study.
Takano: It is very interesting to dig into.
Celeina: Interesting. Is there a root beer that you would like to drink again?
Takada：There are many root beers that I would like to drink. I would like to drink the root beer that the Amish still make in the pioneer days of the United States when there was no electricity or gas. Also, Taiwan is called the root beer capital of the world, and there are about eight different kinds of root beer. There is a very exotic Taiwanese flavor with salt in it, but there are also root beers with a lot of octagonal flavor. There are root beers all over the world that I haven’t tried yet, and I would like to drink them as I travel.
Takano: That sounds great.
Celeina：When I was listening to you talk about root beer, we could even talk about the history, root beer is very deep.
Takada：Thank you very much.
Celeina： “FIST BUMP”, today we welcomed Yu Takada of THE ROOT BEER JOURNEY, the only root beer expert in Japan. Thank you very much.
GRAND MARQUEE
J-WAVE (81.3FM) Mon-Thu 16:00 – 18:50
Navigator: Shinya Takano, Celeina Ann
