Originally published on metropolis.co.jp on March 2011

This year’s Academy Awards swag bag included both the covetable (a private island getaway to Belize, anyone?) and the random (a scale model of the Virgin Galactic spacecraft). It also included a bottle of the made-in-Japan antioxidant drink Kousanka. According to August Hergesheimer, whose company Albios makes the drink, it’s the first time a product from Japan has made it into the famous gift bag. Kousanka, whose name symbolizes “youthful, beauty, forever,” is a blend of wild-harvested acai extract, organic sour cherry concentrate, and lemon juice.

“I pushed the exclusivity part really hard. We don’t even sell it in the US,” said Hergesheimer, describing his efforts to get the drink approved as Oscars swag. “The fact that it’s an all-natural, chemical-free product helped, too.”

Not that he’s expecting Nicole Kidman to start raving about it on Oprah. Still, the buzz created by the celebrity connection has already translated into increased sales; Natural House alone quadrupled their order following the news.

Since Metropolis last talked to Tokyo-based Hergesheimer over a year ago, he has made exactly zero new products, which shows just how much faith he has in his existing lineup.

“You don’t need anything else,” he says emphatically, adding that to his knowledge, Kousanka has more antioxidant value than any other similar product on the market. Hergesheimer recommends mixing it with sparkling water.

“It makes a killer martini, too,” he says. “It’s a tradeoff, but at least you break even.”

Kousanka, ¥8,400 per 500ml bottle. Available via www.onlypureproducts.com.