〈Brewer's Note〉Glacé

A mead born from the memory of three men digging carrots in the rain at Kiseki no Oyasai Hayaya in Kochi. The scent of rain, the powerful aroma from broken carrots, Hayato-san’s gentle nature, and the clean air of Kochi.

“That indescribable sweetness, just as the carrots are.”

With these words from Hayato-san as our keyword, we built the recipe.
Calm, gentle, and while there’s nothing particularly extraordinary about it, we thought it would be wonderful to have a daily ritual of drinking carrot mead at night.

That was the thought behind this creation. If you can discover the secret ingredient, cumin, you have excellent taste.

〈Hokkaido ⇒ Yasu ⇒ Kochi〉

With the Anpanman Museum off to the side, a little further down the national highway, you reach Hayato-san’s farm. Greens and yellows, yellow-greens and purples spread out under the drizzling rain. It wasn't exactly dazzling, but the crops seemed to be waiting impatiently for harvest, as if crying out that they were alive.

"It's good land," Hayato-san said with a smile that was so natural.
I think this is what it means to speak from the heart.

We were originally introduced by Nemoto Saketen in Hokkaido. They told us, "A carrot farmer friend is coming to your factory, so please take care of him." And we said, "We’d be happy to." That was the first day of the meeting, which started with that kind of give-and-take spirit. We tried the carrots raw and immediately said, "Let’s do this." Because they were just that delicious.

We brought the freshly dug carrots, still covered in soil, back to the factory and used them for the brewing process.
While we determined the general direction, we kept whispering to ourselves, "It’s delicious because the carrots are delicious," as we went through the process.

〈Tasting Note〉
We captured the faint sweetness of carrots and their nostalgic scent just as they are. The gentle acidity derived from honey is an essence not found in the carrots themselves, which is the fun part unique to mead. You might notice the secret ingredient, cumin, in the aroma as it wafts through your nose.
It's structured like a rappée, but in essence, it's a glacé. Please enjoy it with a hamburg steak.

ーーー

Style: Specialty

ABV: 8%

Carbonation: Yes

Volume: 500ml

Ingredients: Honey (Myanmar), Carrots (Kochi, Oyasai Hayaya), Cumin

Sweetness (10-point scale): 6 (Semi-Sweet)

Serving Temperature: Well-chilled (4-8℃)

〈Mead making〉
We boiled the carrots, used the cooking water for the mash, and roasted the peels. A bold approach possible only because of the trust we have in our farmer. A little cumin was added as a secret ingredient.

〈Naming〉
Many chefs told me they put cumin in carrot rappée, so I added a little bit to this Glacé, as I felt it was a crucial element to bring out the aroma of the carrots.

So, why is it a glacé and not a rappée?

Because we didn't thinly slice the carrots or use them raw. We boiled the carrots, mixed honey into the cooking water, and folded in the mashed carrots. If anything, it’s closer to a carrot glacé.

For the label, the sound of "Glacé" felt somewhat regal, so we chose a slightly feminine font and background color. We aimed for that "gap moe"—the contrast of the carrot existing so boldly.