Cover Dr Walker and Chef Kobayashi enjoying the fruit of their labours
Dr Walker and Chef Kobayashi enjoying the fruit of their labours
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Chef Kei Kobayashi of three-Michelin-starred Kei restaurant in Paris and Dr Emma Walker have come together to create the limited-edition Johnnie Walker Blue Label Elusive Umami
Not that many years ago, most of us didn’t know what “umami” meant. Our general unfamiliarity with the term was not unlike Ross Geller’s famous misuse of another Japanese food term in that famous episode in the sixth season of Friends. Who can forget when the bumbling paleontologist tried to convince his friends that the art of awareness of danger was called “unagi”!
While the neologism was first coined in 1908 by a Japanese chemist, and only recognised as a scientific term in 1985, the term “umami” really surfaced into foodie parlance only in the 1990s. At the time, use of the word was promoted heavily by food company Ajinomoto. This was a brilliant tactical move by one of the world’s leading manufacturers of Monosodium Glutamate (MSG). In many countries, MSG was getting a very bad reputation. Convincing thousands of chefs and food writers to use the term “umami”, instead of saying it tasted of MSG, made the food mouth-watering and addictive and unctuous and savoury, instead of being labelled unhealthy.
Since then, umami has become a globally recognised way to describe that often indescribable, perfect savouriness you find in certain foods that contain natural elements of Monosodium Glutamate, such as miso, shiitake mushrooms, Parmesan cheese, meat, and sun-dried tomatoes.
For many chefs, it is a flavour sensation they chase and often use as the building blocks in fashioning new dishes. At a dashi workshop I once attended, led by three Michelin-starred L'Effervescence’s chef-owner Namae Shinobu, he said that umami was at the heart of all of his dishes—that each combination started with an umami element upon which he layered additional flavours. Similarly, I remember clearly a conversation between legendary Singaporean restaurateur and sommelier Ignatius Chan and Julien Royer, chef-owner of three Michelin-starred Odette. This was when Julien had first started working at Jaan at the top of the Swissotel Singapore. After tasting his initial menu, Iggy advised Julien to amp up the umami in his dishes, telling him that Singaporean customers generally crave umaminess and the best way to satisfy and wow them is to add these pops of savouriness in his dishes.
Don’t miss: Johnnie Walker launches new umami-infused whisky with chef Kei Kobayashi
Above Chef Kei Kobayashi helms one of just nine 3 Michelin-starred restaurants in Paris
Chef Kei Kobayashi helms one of just nine 3 Michelin-starred restaurants in Paris
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While levels of umami is something now commonly played with in cuisine, it is less common in alcohol. In fact, the only drink I can think of in which umaminess is commonly used as a descriptor is sake, which makes sense given its chief ingredient is rice. So, the creation and launch of a whisky that is designed around capturing the essence of umami is quite unique.
As Johnnie Walker master blender Emma Walker admitted, “When Chef Kei and I set out to capture the essence of umami, we knew we were taking a step into the unknown by embarking on an exciting journey of flavour exploration. Together, we wanted to push the boundaries of what scotch could be and bring a truly innovative offering to the world of whisky and flavour.”
Chef Kei is Kei Kobayashi, the first Asian chef to earn three Michelin stars in France. His eponymous restaurant is just one of nine three-star restaurants in Paris and the only one that is not 100 per cent French. For Johnnie Walker, collaborating with this celebrated cook made perfect sense when it came to exploring a taste sensation that was first identified and articulated by the Japanese.
Having been introduced to Kobayashi through the Johnnie Walker global team, Dr Walker began the process of creating a whisky that captured not just the fifth taste but the chef’s own personal vision. As he articulated, “What I was looking for with Johnnie Walker Blue Label Elusive Umami is not only the taste but an emotion—think of the forest at 5am as the scents rise after the rain. It should be a feast for the senses.”
Above Dr Emma Walker is Johnnie Walker's first female Master Blender
Dr Emma Walker is Johnnie Walker's first female Master Blender
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For this renowned chef, aroma was the key. “Aroma and fragrance were the first thing I thought about,” he further explained. “When it comes to the food, fragrance comes before taste. So I thought we needed to explore that first. Only after that could we begin to look into creating a unique taste. It was also important to think about how we can make this whisky stimulate you mentally, how can I tap into the memories in your head.”
For the chef, the memories that he was drawing upon were memories of his home in Nagano prefecture, and the forests and mountains there. For Dr Walker, this was an exciting challenge, as she explained: “Working with Chef Kobayashi pushed us to take Johnnie Walker Blue Label in a different direction. Johnnie Walker usually makes you think of the ocean but the chef, because he wanted to pay homage to his roots in Nagano, wanted us to reflect the land, the forests and mountains of his homeland.”
Dr Walker explained a little more of her process: “When we were asked to think about creating a scotch whisky that talks to umami, we immediately went to the inventory. We started thinking about whiskies like Mortlach that have that meaty richness, Talisker with that sea salt, but we knew that the heart was also meant to be something quite sweet and fruity. When we got to work with Chef Kobayashi, we actually went through the essential building blocks of flavour to say, here is what we're thinking. It was great because Chef Kei would tell us stories that would describe his vision. When he told us stories about the waters in the mountains, it was so multisensorial that it gave us a map to bring together those building blocks, those bottles of whisky that we had, to create something that the chef could try and give us feedback on.”
Above Chef Kobayashi and Dr Emma Walker at the Asia Pacific launch of their limited edition whisky
Chef Kobayashi and Dr Emma Walker at the Asia Pacific launch of their limited edition whisky
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Dr Walker continued, “What I loved most was that even though we were speaking in different languages because we come from different backgrounds, there was still that commonality. And it was that emphasis on aroma. When we create a whisky we start with the nose. We start thinking about that because that is what people think of the most when they think of a whisky. So we started building that story, building the liquid, through aroma. And then we make sure the whisky has some depth, and that the waves of flavour offer what people expect from Johnnie Walker Blue Label.”
As we got to experience the Johnnie Walker Blue Label Umami at the Asia-Pacific launch, we found the whisky truly delivering on the unique balance of sweet and savoury. On the nose, it is uniquely sweet and savoury—fresh apples, confections, cashews, but also salinity. In the mouth, you first taste apple and peach, then oranges and berries, but this quickly transforms into spice and smoked meats with a hint of salt and pepper. The finish evolves again, becoming sweeter and fruitier.
We asked Kobayashi how best to enjoy this special tipple. He advised, “I see this as a sipping whisky. I personally wouldn’t treat this as an accompaniment to food in the same way that if someone gave me a beautiful bottle of DRC (Domaine Romanée-Contti) I would rather drink it by itself and treasure it. In this world, we are always short on time. But when it comes to a wine like a DRC and a great whisky, you need to take time. You need to force yourself to slow down. It’s a wonderful ritual, taking the time to pour the whiskey, and letting it develop for a nice 20 minutes. While you are waiting, you get to relax and have a good time.”
Above The Johnnie Walker Blue Label Elusive Umami
The Johnnie Walker Blue Label Elusive Umami
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For Kobayashi, the collaboration is something he considers a once-in-a-lifetime experience. He expressed that he never thought he would ever be invited to participate in such a project and that it was a true honour. Similarly, Dr Walker was equally enthusiastic about the project. She said, “It was a truly collaborative experience and I’m so happy to be able to bring the chef’s vision to life through the scotch whisky.”
The Johnnie Walker Blue Label Elusive Umami, which went on sale globally on October 16, 2023, is truly a rare and special whisky. While the normal Blue Label is produced from just one in 10,000 casks, for this limited-edition whisky, only one in 25,000 casks in Johnnie Walker’s reserves of more than 10 million maturing casks made the cut. This is certainly a spirit worth exploring, if only to experience what happens when you bring a renowned Japanese chef and a master blender together.
About
Aun started his career in media, working at illustrious publications in NYC, Paris, and Hong Kong before launching his own Asia-regional lifestyle magazine, East, that was called "Asia's hippest magazine" by Asiaweek and "an Asian Vanity Fair" by Fortune. Committed to community service, Aun has helmed the visual arts and literary arts divisions for the National Arts Council in Singapore; led the marketing, communications, and corporate community investments teams at the National Volunteer & Philanthropy Centre; was the founding Chair of the Pangdemonium Theatre Company; and currently sits on the Board of the Nanyang Academy of Fine Arts. In 2006, Aun co-founded The Ate Group, a content strategy and communications agency specialising in F&B, hospitality, luxury and lifestyle. Aun has run the content and communications teams at Tripadvisor; similarly run content and communications at a sustainability focused tech start up; and run marketing and communications at a global BPO with over 17,000 employees worldwide. Aun has also been a consultant for Mediacorp and has produced and hosted two food & travel television series for them. In 2015 he began working on the creation of a private members club, Straits Clan, which he launched in 2019 and sold the following year. Returning to his roots, Aun joined Tatler Asia in 2023 as editor-in-chief in Singapore and is committed to telling great stories of change makers through Tatler’s online and offline platforms.
Work
As Editor-in-Chief of Tatler Singapore, Aun leads all the content teams: branded content, print, digital, and the creative teams. He works closely with the heads of each team to ensure that Tatler continues to cover the most important, inspiring and exciting stories that are affecting Singapore and our region. He also works closely with the events and commercial teams and is always excited to collaborate on new ideas and projects that the Tatler team can activate.
Follow Aun on Instagram at @aun_koh (primarily a food account) and on Linkedin here.
