So “wine lottery” is not really an official term, but the translation is rather appropriate. Fukubukuro 福袋 means “lucky bag” in Japanese; often this is seen during the New Year Sales at stores. So, wine lucky bag, or wine lottery as I refer to it is when a store sets out a number of sealed paper bags, each with a wine inside, and sells each bag for a set price (for instance 2000円). Now the thing is, they put up a sign with the various wine that could be inside and the number of chances, but it is random luck which you choose! Usually these wines range from the minimum price of the bag and up… sometimes as much as a 20000円 wine could be inside. Basically, it is a lottery… you never lose per se, but sometimes you can win big. I will admit, sometimes I will weigh various bags, or try to feel the bottle shape to help determine what it may be. This has probably never helped, but one time we ended up with a 6000円 bottle of wine, so I was pleased. Obviously, most people will get one of the bottom tier wines, but… some people get lucky. Sometimes stores will even have Awamori lottery (awamori is the local Okinawan liquor).

Anyway, as silly as it seems, I really enjoy this type of thing. It is kinda thrilling not knowing which one you will get up and opening it up when you get home. I admit, I will buy one of these wine lottery bags whenever they are for sale…

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