Japan is not expensive 03
Today we went to Cainz Home and I decided to continue my report on how living in Japan isn't expensive.
You can read my previous posts Japan Isn't Expensive 01 & Japan Isn't Expensive 02.
Jack Daniels ￥1850 ($18.50)
When I left Sydney a bottle of Jack was about $35.
Suntory Hokuto Whisky 600ml 50% ￥980 ($9.80)
Suntory Pure Malt Whisky 600ml 40% ￥945 ($9.45)
Nikka Malt Club 600ml 40%￥925 ($925)
And all three of these Whiskeys are very nice indeed!
Johnny Walker Black Label ￥1980 ($19.80)
Johnny Walker Red Label ￥1080 ($10.80)
These are the usual prices and I haven't seen them change in 4 years. When I left Sydney A bottle of Black was about $40 and Red $26.
Now we come to cheap Sake. When you have a large family gathering (and there are plenty of those) and you have many mouths to feed and men to get drunk and put to sleep so the women can talk, cheap 4L bottles of Sake are the trick.
These range from ￥1600 - ￥2160 ($16-$21.60)
And of course you can't forget your martini necessities! (Spoona, this one is for you!)
Smirnoff Vodka ￥1080 ($10.80)
Beefeater Gin ￥1000 ($10)
When I left Sydney a bottle of Smirnoff Vodka & BeefEater Gin was $26 each.
For those of you who might have noticed that the Australian Dollar prices are at parity with the yen, and that's because they are! According to XE.com $1 = ￥103.188 today.
A little later I plan to write about Beer prices in Japan.
4 comments:
Living in Japan is not expensive.
Varying your routine, however, is.
Traveling in-country via plane... shinkansen... And lord help you if you're planning to move into a new apartment.
However, one of the things I love about Japan is that alcohol is cheap, available everywhere, and can be bought during any of the 24 hours afforded us. Rock.
Oh Yes.
24 hour alcohol service, even on Christmas Day! Unbelievable.
But you are right, changes to your lifestyle will cost an arm and a leg!
What the post proves is not that Japan is inexpensive, but that Australia is expensive.
The prices quoted are about the same for the U.S.(it varies a bit by state), the Beefeater seems a bit cheap.
I'm in Kyushu, and I've found that the selection for anything other than shochu, sake and whisky is poor.
"Not expensive" doesn't equal "inexpensive". They are synonyms but without a direct relationship to each other.
There are many points to consider as to why shopping in Australia is more expensive than in Japan or The US.
But regardless, I am happier to be here in Japan and enjoying the bounty of affordable alcohols on offer rather than paying through the nose back in Oz.
As for selection of Alcohol, between CainzHome, Besia and CostCo I have a cornucopia of alcohol to choose from. Sorry to hear that you aren't happy with the supply in your neck of the woods.
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