Japan’s JT Inc. is unveiling a new energy drink. Called Unagi Nobori, it tastes like broiled eel. Yum.

From the UK Independent:

The fishy drink Unagi Nobori – which translates as “Surging Eel” – contains eel extract and vitamins found in the fish. The fizzy yellow liquid is believed to be the first mass-produced drink of its kind made in the country. It has a similar taste to broiled eels and sells for about 140 yen.

The launch of the drink this month coincides with the start of Japan’s annual eel-eating season, which peaks this year on 5 August.

Yummy.

Kazunori Hayashi, spokesman for Japan Tobacco Inc, the makers of the drink, said it is “mainly for men who are exhausted by the summer’s heat”.

Unagi Nobori isn’t the only drink with an unusual flavour to be sold in Japan. Last year – for one summer only – you could buy Pepsi Ice Cucumber, concocted to taste like the cool green vegetable. Not to be outdone, Coca-Cola also has its own vegetable-based soft drink – Water Salad.

Water Salad.. marketed primarily to women…tomato extract yumminess!

From Japan Marketing News:

This year July 24 marked doyo no hi, a day on which Japanese traditionally eat unagi, a.k.a eel, to combat natsubate, or the lethargy that many suffer when Japan’s daily temperatures run 30-35 C (low to mid 90’s F), and the humidity bears down at over 90%. Despite the unsavory image that eel congers, ahem, conjures for those who’ve never had it, it’s fantastically tasty—and loaded with vitamins too.

Unagi Nobori is being shilled as a “nutritional supplement carbonated beverage.” The cartoon character represents one of the cooks you’d commonly see at a traditional eel barbecue restaurant. The fan he’s holding is used to keep the charcoal hot; if you look closely you can see that it’s imprinted with an illustration of an eel. Very loosely translated, the copy to his left reads “Don’t get beat by the heat. Boost your energy with effervescence.”

By the way “unagi nobori” means something like “sudden spike” in Japanese (as in, say, “stock prices saw a sudden spike yesterday”). Presumably this implies that the drink will give you a sharp spike of energy.

Pepsi Ice Cucumber. Sorry folks.. you missed it.