Japan's quintessential chocolate stick snack has often strayed from its old mainstays of chocolate and strawberry, but over recent years Glico's flagship treat has ventured into alcohol flavored Pocky sticks. In the past we've seen fancy amber whisky Pocky, sakura and champagne Pocky, and even "Goddess Ruby" Pocky meant for wine pairings. They're latest in a series of region limited releases that focuses on local ingredients packs a little less punch, but a unique sweetness and crunch with Amazake-flavored Pocky.

Amazake is a Japanese traditional sweet type of sake made from fermented rice, which is usually low in alcohol or completely alcohol free. It has a gentle sweetness and mellow flavor, and the warming drink is often served during colder seasons at festivals and Shinto shrines. It also has a reputation as a hangover cure or "human IV" as it contains 9 amino acids not produced by the human body.

This time the regional release will be limited to the Tokyo Metropolitan Area, Kanagawa Prefecture, Saitama Prefecture, and Chiba Prefecture. It's a collaboration with Tokyo Port Brewery, a venerable sake brewery that was revived in 2011, while its predecessor flourished from the end of the Tokugawa Shogunate to the end of the Meiji restoration.

The amazake coating these Pocky sticks uses only local rice, kome-koji, and highly purified water from the Tokyo area. The high quality amazake is said to have a rich fragrance and lingering sweet aftertaste. Boxes of Tokyo Amazake Pocky will be available in the aforementioned areas starting February 5th, 2019.