How to make a good cocktail　-Murakami radio-

       Back in the day, before I became a novelist, I ran a sort of bar for seven years. Naturally, I made cocktails a lot. Shaking a shaker. At that time, I realized that there are people who are good at making cocktails and people who are not so good. When someone is good at making a cocktail, it tastes good even if they are rather lazy with the formulation(and sometimes they don't even drink), but when someone else makes it, it doesn't taste so good even if they are very careful and serious about it. I think I myself was in the 'not so bad' category. There is a film called Citizen Kane made by Orson Welles. An American millionaire wants to turn his young mistress into a great singer, so he brings in a first-class teacher from Italy to train her. However, the woman has no talent, to begin with. Finally, the teacher looks up to heaven and says. There are people in the world who can sing, and there are people who can't." With that, she goes back to her country. It's a strange story, but it's the same with sex. Those who are good are born good, and those who are not good are not born good. It is not something that can be learned. Uh ------Well, let's not talk about this. What are we talking about? I'm talking about cocktails. When I was running the shop, every time an employee came in, I taught them how to make cocktails, and no matter how much they practiced, some of them were useless, while others could make a tasty cocktail right from the start. I can only say that this is something you are born with.

I wrote about this in my novel South of the Border, West of the Sun. I wrote that to make a good cocktail, there must be something innate on the maker's side. One critic criticized me, saying that such a thing could never actually happen. I don't write about actual events in my novels, but when I do sometimes write about the truth, I often get accused of lying. I wonder why. Maybe there is something wrong with my character. But from my modest life experience, I know that such things do happen. There is no logical explanation for it, but it does happen. to make a cocktail that impresses people, you need to have the right qualities that you were born with.

That is a fact. And that kind of small but irrefutable fact can only reach the bottom of your stomach by spending your life's savings. Personally, I don't particularly like cocktails. Daily, I usually just drink beer, wine, or whisky on the rocks. But when I go to a real bar, I go to the trouble of ordering a cocktail.
My favorite cocktails are vodka-based. The vodka itself has almost no flavor, so it's easy to tell if a cocktail is good or bad. Balalaika, Bloody Mary, Vodka Martini ....... Even a simple long drink like the Screwdriver, for example, can taste strangely different with or without a subtle flair. It's the same with writing. I don't mean to advertise the shop, but I think the Brady Mary at Bar Radio in Aoyama is still worth a drink.

Murakami this week.

Surprisingly many people swim while singing. My favorite song is 'Yellow Submarine'. glub-glub