Today's the third Thursday in November, which means the corks come out of the world's most overrated vino today. Beaujolais Nouveau has already touched down in Japan, where true wine fans aren't just drinking the stuff, their swimming in it.

The Yunessun Spa Resort in Hakone is one of many hot springs-fed resorts in Kanagawa. Its aptly named wine spa is stocked with Beaujolais, and the on-duty sommelier would be happy refill your glass. (Please don't drink directly from the pool.) If you're teetotaling on your Japan trip, Yunessun also offers a coffee spa and a green tea bath.

And it seems those non-alcoholic options are a good hedge. Though Japan consumes a quarter of the world's Nouveau, taste for the seasonal wine is dwindling. In ever trendy Japan, not even a pool full of booze can't catch on for long.

Related Stories:
· Yunessun Spa Resort [Official Site]
· Japan Tepid on Pricier Beaujolais Nouveau This Year [Reuters]
· Japan Travel coverage [Jaunted]

[Photo: REUTERS/Toshi Maeda]]]> pbb 2007-11-15T10:45:01-05:00 http://www.jaunted.com/story/2007/10/11/2819/4889

A recent report from our Osaka embed suggested that visiting a hot spring--and acquainting yourself with a dozen naked Japanese strangers--is the way to get ahead in Japan. But we're going to raise the bar higher. Don't go to just any hot spring: make it one filled with beer.

From now until December 31 the Hakone Kowakien Yunessun hot springs amusement park and spa resort in Hakone, a short distance from Tokyo, has a beer bath installation. Now the bath itself isn't filled with beer, but rather with heated amber-colored water and white foam, infused with the aroma of hops and barley. But three times a day staff pour beer into the bath and over the lucky customers who happen to be bathing at the time. The extra good news? The beer bath moisturizes and cleanses the skin.

If you're a tee-totaller, don't worry, the spa also offers tea and coffee baths. But the beer bath concept will probably be of interest to the politicians traveling to Japan's Lake Toya for the 2008 G8 Summit--though perhaps the Russian delegation might prefer a vodka bath.

Related Stories:
· Hakone Kowakien Yunessun [Official Site]
· Sloshed in Beer, Japanese Style [AFP]
· Osaka in 60 Seconds [Jaunted]
· Japan's Lake Toya Entices Politicians [Jaunted]

[Photo: AFP]]]> amandak 2007-10-11T09:00:01-05:00 Search Jaunted string http://www.jaunted.com/search/