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Big in Japan: Japanese energy drink makes Red Bull look like apple juice

by Matthew Firestone (RSS feed) on Dec 27th 2007 at 10:00AM

Life can be unbelievably stressful, which is why every one of us needs a quick boost from time to time.

Whether your preferred liquid energy comes in the form of a double skim latte, a bottle of Jolt cola or a red bull and vodka, life is so much easier with caffeine and taurine surging through your veins.

Of course, if you think that we have stressful lives in the West, you should spend some time in the Land of the Rising Sun, where eighty hour-plus work weeks are the norm, and sleep is for the weak and the dead.

So, it should come as no surprise that the Japanese are partial to their energy drinks.

With that said, allow me to introduce you to Yunker Fanti (??????????), a powerful concoction by Sato Laboratories that makes Red Bull look like apple juice.

I'm not kidding!

From Royal Jelly and liquid-based nicotine to complex vitamins and herbal extracts, this stuff will put some serious spring in your step.

Want to know more about this invigorating elixir? Click below to learn the secret behind Japanese efficiency.

In Tokyo, you can buy a 50 milliliter bottle of Yunker Fanti for 1,700 yen or approximately US$15. The product is even endorsed by the legendary Seattle Mariner Ichiro Suzuki, so you know this stuff has got to be good!

Remarkably, you don't even have to go to a health food store to buy the product.

Instead, just simply walk out of your apartment, head into the first convenience store you see, and knock your socks off for the price of a large cappuccino and a pastry at Starbucks.

So what is exactly in Yunker Fanti that makes this stuff so damn good?

For starters, this tiny bottle is jam-packed with caffeine and taurine, which probably isn't the best thing for those with fragile hearts. But, think of this little baby as a mix of a double espresso and a red bull on ice.

Here's the clincher.

Yunker Fanti, along with several other Japanese energy drinks, is packed-full of nicotine, which isn't exactly the greatest thing to be putting into your body.

But, if you want to sharpen your senses, stave off hunger and punch the clock for a few more hours, you can't beat this liquid gold.

Yunker Fanti is also brimming with a variety of natural and herbal remedies for fatigue, depression and sickness, such as royal jelly (think bees), complex vitamins, ginseng, guarana, garlic, ecinachia and a whole bunch of Chinese herbs that don't translate into English.

Seriously - this stuff is the cure for what ails ya'.

If you're still interested in trying Yunker Fanti, sadly you're going to have to make the trip out to Japan.

Unfortunately, I'm fairly certain that there strict import restrictions in the States regarding liquid-nicotine based products, though perhaps I'm wrong. With that said, please chime in if you've seen this product in a health food store near you.

Filed under: Food and Drink, Asia, Japan, Big in Japan