Excitement barely describes my anticipation for this 14-hour lux-fest aboard a Japan Airlines 777-300. I boarded Japan Airlines flight 9 from Chicago to Narita a few weeks back- here was the experience.
First things first- I stopped by the American Airlines International first class lounge that JAL shares with their OneWorld partner. Tucked right near JAL's gate all the way in the back corner of the terminal, the lounge was only steps from my boarding area. Super convenient.
The drinks area was well-stocked with serve-your-own beverages. Pretty consistently mid-to-top shelf stuff.
There was even a small plate of maki rolls. Not terribly fresh-looking, but charming nonetheless.
I headed back to the boarding area, and then onto the plane itself. They gave first class passengers a ludicrous amount of time to board. I stepped on more or less by myself (the first class cabin was definitely not full) and was greeted by this beauty:
Your seat comes loaded with goodies. First up- you get a custom pair of JAL Bose QuietComfort 15 noise-reducing headphones that plug into your seat's audio connection.
Inside the Loewe bag are a pretty broad variety of fun staples.
This is actually the nicest lip balm I've ever used. I would buy it if I ever saw it in a store, which I'm fairly confident is the nicest thing you can say about free stuff.
Earplugs. Probably cost an entire $0.35. Stop spoiling me, JAL.
Interestingly, the seat storage compartments came stuffed with luxury goods from another brand- Shiseido. This skincare kit was tucked into one of several in-armrest containers.
The 21" entertainment screen is controlled by a pretty capable touch-enabled controller. The system, called Magic-V, had a distinctly 2007 feel to it, but extremely useful.
As in any good first class cabin, you're given an extreme amount of control over the shape of your seat.
The champagne selection was fantastic, but here was a high point:
A classy 99-point bottle of 2002 Blanc de blancs from the house Salon in Mesnil-sur-Oger, their reputation is to only release wines in years when the weather and conditions were just perfect. Their previous vintage was in 1996, and this vintage has a near-flawless structure with great depth and density of fruit. Strong notes of lilac, minerals, citrus, with a nice foundation of acidity. These bottles are in the mid-$300 range retail.
Next, you are handed a pretty extensive folio of travel documents, declaration forms, and menus.
I won't go nuts posting every square inch of this thing, but here's a description of their Salon champagne. There were a handful of others that I shan't mention, but let's just say they were awesome.
The first course came with three small bites- pickle on white bread and foie gras, caviar, and pickled vegetable with a nice pesto cream sauce. The caviar was actually not terribly fresh but overall a pretty good start.
Four small chips made of beets, green beans, etc. Extremely bizarre, but salty and tasty.
Next, the incredible and attentive flight attendant began setting up my pod for the main courses. they laid out a full dressing of silverware along with a pretty awesome salt/oil/butter side plate.
I did more than just drink champagne, I swear. This William Deutz 2002 was also really amazing.
Even the silverware came lovingly hand-ribboned. An extremely cool touch.
This appetizer of red bell pepper soup with sea urchin tasted like a creamy bell pepper yogurt. The fois gras mousse with eggplant jam in the middle was rich and pretty amazing. The tandoori lamb on the right was dry but well spiced; the tomato chutney that it came with danced it up quite a bit.
This next course was served with a lovely 2011 Les Charmes Meursault from Burgundy that is perfect- light, dry, sophisticated, with a long floral finish.
Next up- caviar with tiny pancakes and a small slice of potato. A lovely small salad of chopped red onion, chive, and hard boiled egg. The caviar this time around is absolutely perfect.
For the main course, a lovely fillet of USDA prime beef with black truffle sauce, and a small side of starchy vegetables.
This came paired up with a 2012 bottle of Kenzo Estates' Rindo. Interestingly, Kenzo is an estate grower that exports 75% of their production to Japan, but they have an incredible tasting room that's worth a visit. The name comes from the Japanese Bell Flower, and the wine is a blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Cab Franc, and Petite Verdot. Flavors of apricots, figs, leather, cocoa. Solid and graceful, retails for about $100/bottle.
Finally, a charming dessert of raspberry mousse with fresh blueberries and a freeze-dried raspberry or two. Extremely good, and a satisfying finish.
After I wrapped up my meal, the flight attendant offered me a pair of pajamas that I was invited to change into in the oversized lavatory. When I returned, the seat had been converted to a full bed, which I sank into an immediately fell asleep for the next 9 hours. When I woke up- French-pressed coffee, a slice of Chicago-style pizza, and a small dish of fruit in a sugary broth.
14.5 short hours later, we landed at Narita airport in Tokyo. I landed feeling refreshed and energized. Easily one of my top 10 coolest life experiences so far.