The Origin of Calpis I Encountered in Mongolia

Four years ago, I visited Mongolia for work.

The first thing that surprised me in Mongolia was the abundance of meat. Mutton and goat meat were served at the table as a matter of course, to the point where I wondered, 'Is meat their staple food?'

Once, I was even treated to a goat's head. The lady at the cafeteria held the goat's head down with her bare hands and skillfully carved the meat with a large knife. Just watching that scene, I felt the dynamic nature of a continent so different from Japan.

Meat, meat, and more meat.

One day, while continuing such a diet, a local recommended that I drink sour milk, saying, 'This is good for you.'

I learned later that it was also the root of the drink that inspired the birth of Calpis.

Since it was a rare opportunity, I decided to try it.

To be honest, it was very sour.

For me, having grown up familiar with Calpis since childhood, the taste was quite a shock.

However, deep within that sourness, there was a sense of nostalgia.

Over 100 years ago, Kaiun Mishima, the creator of Calpis, encountered a similar taste in this land. It is said that from that experience, he thought, 'I want to bring this drink to the people of Japan.'

Thinking about that history, I looked around.

The Mongolia I saw when I drank the sour milk was not the vibrant green seen in tourist brochures. The land in November was entirely brown, and a dry wind was blowing through.

Even so, the sky was surprisingly blue.

Standing in the vast land that stretched as far as the eye could see, I felt that humans are truly small beings.

Thinking that the sour milk I tasted in that place was the root of the Calpis I had been drinking since I was a child, I felt a mysterious connection.

I never expected that I would encounter the origin of a drink I had been familiar with for many years while visiting Mongolia for work.

A single encounter born in the distant land of Mongolia led to a drink that is loved all over Japan.

After returning to Japan, I looked up the origin of Calpis again.

Then, I learned that 'Cal' comes from calcium, and 'pis' comes from the Buddhist term 'sarpis'.

In Buddhism, it is said that as milk is boiled down, its flavor deepens through stages known as "shoso," "jukuso (sarpis)," and "daigo." The ultimate flavor among these is called "daigomi" (the best part).

Ever since I learned that story, the taste of Calpis I drink in the summer has changed a little.

I come home after sweating under the blazing sun. I put ice in a chilled glass and pour in the Calpis.

The cloudy white liquid slowly spreads out.

I take a sip.

A gentle acidity spreads within the sweetness.

Then, strangely enough, I am reminded of that sour milk I tasted in Mongolia.

Of course, the taste is completely different. That sour milk had a wild, powerful flavor, while Calpis has a familiar, gentle taste.

Even so, the two are connected by a single thread.

And I think to myself.

That the Calpis I drink during Japan's hot summer must surely be a taste worthy of the name "sarpis."

Or rather, in that very moment when I drink chilled Calpis, it might not just be one step away, but already the very essence of "daigomi" itself.

Drinks have a power that goes beyond just quenching one's thirst.

They evoke memories of working in a distant land and take me back to the summer vacations of my childhood.

For me, Calpis is a drink that transports me to such times.