Nihon Chomiryo Tabi
Takarafukuichi Kenko-su Sweet Vinegar (宝福一 健康酢)
The story behind it
This vinegar is made by Takarafukuichi, founded in 1947 in Nishikurayoshi-cho, Kurayoshi City, Tottori Prefecture.
Around 1975 they set out to make a vinegar that was easy to drink, and after a good deal of trial and error, Kenko-su was the result. It keeps the faint aroma of apple vinegar and takes its sweetness from fruit sugar. There is no salt in it.
Because the sweetness is already there, you do not have to build the flavor up with sugar and salt yourself. Think of it as a vinegar that saves you the step of mixing a seasoned vinegar.
Tottori grows rakkyo shallots, and Takarafukuichi itself sells prefectural rakkyo pickled in apple vinegar. Locally this is a vinegar closely tied to pickling.
How to use it
Use it for sweet-vinegar pickled rakkyo or cucumber, and for vinegared side dishes. It also works as the marinade for nanban-zuke with chicken or fish. Diluted with water or sparkling water, you can drink it as is.