Japan luxury ice wins bars abroad as exports grow

Japanese premium ice makers are finding customers in bars abroad, with Kanazawa-based Kuramoto Ice saying its total sales have more than doubled since it began exports in 2019.

Kuramoto Ice, a century-old company in Ishikawa on the Sea of Japan coast, is one of dozens of Japanese firms producing ultra-clear ice for cocktails. It is also one of the country's few international exporters of the product.

Bars from the United States to Australia pay as much as 200 yen, or $1.25, per cube. Native, a Singapore bar that appeared on this year's Asia's 50 Best Bars list, imports about 900 kilograms of ice from Kuramoto each year.

Kazuhiko Kuramoto, the company's fifth-generation head, said the firm freezes water slowly while keeping it moving. Specialist Japanese ice makers use a process lasting 48 to 72 hours, compared with a few hours for homemade ice or about 30 minutes for industrial ice machines.

The method pushes impurities toward the center as the water freezes. The tainted water is removed and replaced, while constant stirring helps remove air bubbles, producing transparent ice known in Japanese as “junpyo.”

People in the industry say the ice melts more slowly than regular blocks, although the account says there is little scientific evidence for the claim. Native co-owner Yong Wei said local ice is cheaper, but Kuramoto ice is clearer, denser and melts more slowly.

Kuramoto acknowledged the environmental cost of shipping ice over long distances but said small goods like his have a relatively low environmental impact.

At a Hilton Hotel bar near Tokyo, bartender Shingo Miyachi said ice has a major effect on cocktail taste and that Japanese bartenders treat ice handling as an essential skill.