In the summer of 2021, a new specialty product "Gifu Cola" was born in Gifu Prefecture. Three men and women, all born in Gifu Prefecture in 1991, are working on the project. They want people to know more about Gifu Prefecture! They are creating a craft cola using ingredients from all over the prefecture in order to pass on the culture of Gifu Prefecture in a new form.

This time, we went to the birthplace of Gifu Cola, the former Kasuga Village in Ibigawa-cho, Gifu Prefecture, and heard a lot of stories about the birth of Gifu Cola, its charms, and how to drink it deliciously.

Packed with treasures, specialties and culture of Gifu
What is Gifu Cola?

Gifu Cola is a craft cola made mainly from medicinal herbs grown in the former Kasuga Village in Gifu Prefecture. Ingredients are 4 medicinal herbs of Mt. Ibuki (Mugwort, Dokudami, Kakidooshi, Yabu Nikkei) that have been protected and handed down for about 400 years, and the rare medicinal herb Thymus regia, spices such as cinnamon and cola nuts, citrus fruits, and sugar. It is a boiled down health medicinal drink.

When you open the lid, you can smell the sweet scent of cola and the gentle scent of mugwort. Dilute it with carbonated water. Although cola has an image of being unhealthy, it is said that it originated as an energy drink developed by an American pharmacist by mixing spices.

In recent years, there has been an increase in the number of manufacturers promoting the original goodness of cola, and it is gaining popularity as one of the healthy drinks that can be expected to have nutritional tonic and beauty effects.

A Treasure Trove of Medicinal Herbs “Former Kasuga Village”

The former Kasuga Village of Ibigawa Town, Gifu Prefecture, is said to have been the site of a medicinal herb garden cultivated by Oda Nobunaga, a Portuguese missionary, about 300 years ago on Mount Ibuki, which is said to have contained some 280 varieties of medicinal herbs.

Since ancient times, people have protected their health by drinking medicinal herbs by infusing them, and each household blended them and drank them as "Hyakuso tea" on a regular basis. The area, which was once a sacred place for medicinal herbs, has been known as "Mother Mountain Ibuki," and has been harboring a mysterious power since ancient times.

The birth of Gifu Cola

Gifu Cola is made by three people who live in Gifu Prefecture: Samu, Kaori, and Tomonori.

Osamu runs the organic restaurant “to U” in Gifu city. Kaori is active as a member of the Ibigawa Town Regional Revitalization Cooperation Corps. Tomonori is the manager of the medicinal herb restaurant “kitchen marco – Ibuki medicinal herbs to enjoy with the five senses” in Ibigawa-cho, Gifu prefecture.

Why did the three people, who usually work separately, decide to work on "Gifu Cola"?

Osamu Katayama, who runs the organic restaurant “to U” in Gifu City. It all started with Osamu.

Osamu: "Before I started my restaurant in Gifu, I lived in Tokyo. When I told people that I am from Gifu, they often asked me where Gifu is.

Every time I was told so, I felt somewhat frustrated. The only souvenir that came to mind was ayu (sweetfish). When I was vaguely thinking of something that could be a souvenir of Gifu Prefecture, I noticed a craft cola "Tomo Cola" that was sold at a store where I was working at the time. I thought, since there was no other region that specializes in craft cola, why not make something like this with ingredients that are unique to Gifu?

After doing some research, I found out that Mt. Ibuki is a treasure trove of medicinal herbs. However, at the time I didn't have any knowledge about it, so I was looking for someone who was familiar with medicinal herbs to make craft cola. At that time, I met Tomonori."

Tomonori Yotsui, the manager of the medicinal herb restaurant "kitchen marco" in Ibigawa Town, Gifu Prefecture. His family has been a medicinal herb farmer for generations.

Tomonori: "My relatives have been herb farmers for generations. I myself studied about medicinal herbs while helping with the cultivation and sales of medicinal herbs. It was during this time that Osamu came to visit me at the store.

When we listened to their stories, we found that we had a lot in common, such as age, returning to Gifu making a U-turn, and wanting to create something new.

Here in the former Kasuga Village, medicinal herb culture has long taken root as a "treasure house of medicinal herbs" with nearly 300 medicinal herbs growing thickly. However, with the aging of the population, there are fewer opportunities for young people to come into contact with medicinal herbs, and I have always wondered if there was some way to make use of them. Then, Osamu came on the scene, and the conversation quickly expanded."

Kaori Izumino from the Ibigawa Town Reasional Revitalization Volunteer. After working for a trading company specializing in coffee beans, she lived in Vietnam before returning to her hometown of Gifu.

Kaori: "I had been away from my hometown for about 10 years, and when I came back to Gifu, I wanted to learn more about the place where I was born and raised. I met Tomonori when I was participating in various workshops in Gifu Prefecture while concurrently looking for a new job. It was there that I also learned about medicinal herbs in Ibigawa Town.

Before returning to Gifu, I lived in Vietnam, and there is a culture of using medicinal herbs on a daily basis. When I learned about life in Ibigawa-cho, I was so moved that I thought, “Is this Vietnam?”

From there, the three of us connected and started making cola. At first, when I was told that I wanted to make cola as a new souvenir from Gifu, I was reluctant. I had an image of cola as being sweet and unhealthy... ”

Medicinal cola made by trial and error - Crowdfunding

Kaori: "At Osamu's restaurant, I had Tomo Cola, and it was surprisingly good, and my conception of cola changed. As I listened to the stories about medicinal herbs, I wanted to work with them from the bottom of my heart!"

Osamu “When we decided to make cola, we asked Tomo Cola to supervise it because we couldn’t figure out the balance of herbs and spices on our own. As a result of trial and error, the medicinal herbs were decided to be based on four types: Mugwort, Dokudami, Kakidooshi, Yabu Nikkei.

Then, we added several kinds of spices such as rare thyme and cola nuts, simmered them in a pot, and after many trials and tastings, we finally completed the product. In the future, we plan to change ingredients other than medicinal herbs depending on the season. ”

Tomonori: "When the project took shape to some extent, we started a crowdfunding campaign to raise funds. Our goal was 1 million yen, but we met it without a hitch, and we were happy to receive positive feedback from so many people."

-What was your impression of the locals?

Tomonori: "At first, people were skeptical about what Kraft Cola was, but when they actually tried it, they said it was "nostalgic" and "easy to drink." They also supported our activities, and more and more people approached us when they saw us in town. While preserving the medicinal herb culture, we would like to increase opportunities for young people to learn about it through colas."

Creating the future while inheriting the culture

Osamu: "Gifu Prefecture is divided into five areas: Gifu, Seino, Chuno, Tono, and Hida. From now on, each area will produce Gifu Cola with medicinal herbs unique to that area every year. We want to keep creating."

Kaori: "Making Gifu Cola has made me reconsider my hometown, where I was born and raised. In the future, I would like to hold workshops for making cola, and eventually I would like to build a factory in Gifu to produce it."

Tomonori: "By creating Gifu Cola, we were able to completely change the conventional image of medicinal herbs. Once the production gets on track, we can give back to the producers, so we can work together with the local people. I want to make it a product that people love.”

Delicious way to drink Gifu Cola

This time, we will introduce how to drink Gifu Cola from the standard way to the advanced version!

Gifu Cola is available in two sizes: 720 m (20 cups) on the left and 200 m (6 cups) on the right. Since it is undiluted and concentrated, it is served by being diluted when drinking.

① Let's enjoy it with carbonated water first!

After chilling the bottle of Gifu Cola in the refrigerator, add ice and pour in the Gifu Cola. The recommended ratio is 1 gif cola and 3 soda water.

The first sip of the cola is cold and tasty, but what is surprising is what happens afterwards. Although you are drinking a cold cola, your body gradually starts to feel warm! The taste and the aroma of the herbs are very delicious and addictive.

② Mix with milk, gin, or whiskey!

It's very delicious even if you mix it with something other than carbonated water!
Children can mix it with milk, and adults can mix it with gin or whiskey.

③ Great success as an all-purpose seasoning!

Gifu Cola, with its rich blend of spices, is not only good for a drink but also excellent in salad dressings and meat marinades!

A book full of original recipes is also on sale. Appetizers, main dishes, drinks, sweets, etc. are posted on how to use 10 items.
Please buy it together with Gifu Cola.

▼ Click here to purchase Gifu Cola
https://gifucola.shop/

▼Gifu cola arrangement recipe book
https://gifucola.shop/items/6045101f6728be485d4e14b7

"Gifu Cola" is completely different from the conventional image of cola. It is the perfect accompaniment to home time, a gift for a loved one, or a little luxury in everyday life.

Please enjoy a new cola packed with medicinal herbs and culture from Mt. Ibuki.