I keep hearing about the wonders of Artificial Intelligence (usually from Common during Microsoft commercials) and how it will one day be used for everything from medical diagnosis to self-driving cars. But what can real world A.I. do that can improve life today?
How about pairing the right flavored sake with the right flavored KitKat candy bar for my specific pallet!
For anyone that has never been fortunate enough to visit the incredible ‘Land of the Rising Sun’, the Japanese people take a number of things very seriously. High on this extensive list of serious topics is their favorite alcoholic beverage, sake, and their love for unique flavors of Kit Kat candy bars.
The regional KitKat flavors, called “Gotouchi no KitKats”, which are made using locally sourced ingredients to taste like regional specialties from all across the country, and include flavors such as Okinawan Purple Sweet Potato, Tochigi Strawberry, Hiroshima Momiji Manju, and many more.
As part of Craft Sake Week (which is exactly as awesome as it sounds), a temporary stand called “Gotouchi no KitKat Pairing Bar”, will be in Roppongi Hills (Tokyo) until April 29th. What makes these stands even more unique is that they are “manned” entirely by robots, who will give you a sake and KitKat pairing based on your own personal preferences!
Each day, the robots will have 15 kinds of KitKat and 10 different kinds of sake to pair with them, with 150 possible pairs available per day. You could go every day, or go back multiple times a day, and get a totally different pairing each time! There will be 110 different kinds of sake offered over the 11-day event, and each brand was carefully hand-picked by former Japanese soccer player and current sake connoisseur Hidetoshi Nakata, who oversaw last year’s KitKat Bar pop-up, so you can rest assured that there will be good sake on hand.
Per Sora News, It works like this: “When you approach the bar, you pay two “Craft Sake Week Coins”, which you will purchase at the event entrance along with your tasting glass for 3,500 yen (US$31.25). Then, the AI will ask you five questions to determine what you like, and it will select one of the 10 types of sake available for the day to pair with a regional KitKat flavor.”
It has been over 3 years since my last trip to Japan and the tiny Asian nation keeps finding new and creative reasons to entice me to return!
Soon my far eastern friends. Soon.
Portions of this article been borrowed from our friends at Soranews24.com
Geeky Daddy 
I love Kit Kats and Sake! Interesting combo!
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Wow – sounds like such an interesting combo!
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This sounds amazing. I watch Emmy Loves Japan and she’s done some KitKat tastings. They’ve always looked so good and unique. I wish we would get them over here.
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This is pretty exciting! Also — I had no idea THAT many flavors of Kit Kat existed!
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