Coca-Cola Set to Release First Alcoholic Drink in Japan

For the first time in its 132-year history, Coca-Cola has announced that they will be releasing a new product which contains alcohol. Japan will be the first country to test out these new alcoholic cola drinks, which are being based on the Japanese ‘Chu-Hi’ trend.

Chu-Hi is a canned alcopop which is rapidly rising in popularity in Japan. The name ‘Chu-Hi’ comes from a merging of the words ‘highball’, a popular mixed drink in Japan, and ‘sochu’, a Japanese spirit made from distilled rice barley and potatoes, which is similar to vodka. Made from this sochu spirit and sparkling water, these canned drinks often come in a variety of fruity flavours, although there have been some experimental flavours such as yoghurt on offer too! The alcohol content of these chu-hi beverages typically ranges between 3 and 8 percent. With this lower alcohol content than many other alcoholic drinks, these cans tend to be cheaper, as they are taxed less. The chu-hi drinks can be served freshly mixed at a bar, but are more commonly found in cans at supermarkets or in vending machines.Japan is renowned for being a place for brands to try out their most innovative flavours and products, with KitKat being a prime example of the ways in which food and drink industries with wild product ideas boom in the country. Coca-Cola already has a similarly massive presence in Japan, with over 100 new drink flavours and products introduced to the market each year!

However, with chu-hi, Coca-Cola will be attempting to step into an already pretty big market, with Japanese alcoholic drink leaders, such as Suntory, already having similar products on the market. Other drink experiments in Japan from Coca-Cola come in the form of attempts to market the drink to the increasingly ageing population of Japanese people. One such drink has added fibre, while another has coffee mixed in for an added boost.

With the chu-hi trend so specific to Japanese culture, it is unlikely that these alcoholic coca-cola products will be making their way over to the UK for the time being, so why not try some other oriental alcohol while you wait!?