Nikon D4 + Voigtländer 125mm f/2.5 — ¹/200 sec, f/8, ISO 6400 — map & image data — nearby photos
“Rugby: Agony and Exhilaration!”
Japanese dry saké rice wine
— in commemoration of the Rugby World Cup in Japan later this year —

Nikon D4 + Voigtländer 125mm f/2.5 — ¹/200 sec, f/8, ISO 6400 — map & image data — nearby photos
“A Song of Praise for Rugby”
the non-dry version

The Rugby World Cup will be held in Japan for the first time later this fall, an event of much pride and excitement for the Japanese rugby enthusiast. One of the biggest such enthusiasts is a friend who as a side job sometimes does play-by-play commentary for national television, but whose main job is as an alcoholic-beverage wholesaler here in Kyoto.

The two spheres of his life combine to create a pair of commemorative saké (Japanese rice wine) products. I and some friends helped him with the English on the label.

Nikon D4 + Voigtländer 125mm f/2.5 — ¹/500 sec, f/8, ISO 5000 — map & image data — nearby photos
My Best Contribution

Besides helping to make the English natural, we had some other ideas on the label. The Japanese bit shown above (which translates as “this is alcohol”) is required by law, but I suggested a more-helpful English version. 🙂

Nikon D4 + Voigtländer 125mm f/2.5 — ¹/500 sec, f/8, ISO 3200 — map & image data — nearby photos
Rear

Nikon D4 + Voigtländer 125mm f/2.5 — ¹/500 sec, f/8, ISO 2800 — map & image data — nearby photos
Open Here
now that I think about it, we should have had some English to that effect

Damien's main contribution: making the barcode into a rugby ball.

Nikon D4 + Voigtländer 125mm f/2.5 — ¹/500 sec, f/5.6, ISO 2200 — map & image data — nearby photos
Saké Cup Included

It's a nifty design: the top part of the label separates to reveal a saké cup, while the rest of the label remains, allowing it to be a commemorative keepsake even after enjoying the contents.

Nikon D4 + Nikkor 85mm f/1.4 — ¹/500 sec, f/3.2, ISO 1800 — map & image data — nearby photos
Ready to Enjoy

At first it was available only in high-end department stores and Japan-Railway kiosk stores, but availability will likely expand as we get closer to tournament in the fall.

I mentioned this product to the owner of the 7-11 convenience store near me, and he was intrigued. He eventually not only started offering it for sale, but gave a huge amount of shelf space:

iPhone 7+ + iPhone 7 Plus back camera 3.99mm f/1.8 at an effective 28mm — ¹/40 sec, f/1.8, ISO 25 — map & image data — nearby photos
At the 7-11 Near the Heian Shrine
in Kyoto Japan

Later still, I found out that they devoted an additional shelf to it in the cooler. It seems to be selling well. At only 648 yen (~US$6) each, it's a pretty good value.

We eventually had a little release party for it...

Nikon D4 + Nikkor 14-24mm f/2.8 @ 24mm — ¹/10 sec, f/5.6, ISO 6400 — map & image data — nearby photos
Cheers!
Naoto, the brainchild behind it all, is at left
(trivia: Naoto's mom did the calligraphy for the label)

Nikon D4 + Nikkor 14-24mm f/2.8 @ 14mm — ¹/60 sec, f/2.8, ISO 6400 — map & image data — nearby photos
Demonstrating Proper Pouring Technique
to Kelley, who happens to be an apprentice master brewer at an unrelated saké brewery

Nikon D4 + Nikkor 14-24mm f/2.8 @ 20mm — ¹/40 sec, f/2.8, ISO 6400 — map & image data — nearby photos
Best To Keep His Day Job
not the smoothest product model 🙂