Our guest for the 16th installment is Susumu Koyama, a chocolatier and pâtissier from Kyoto Prefecture. Koyama's meticulous craftsmanship, fully leveraging Japanese sensibilities, is currently drawing attention, including winning the highest accolades for two consecutive years at the "C.C.C. (Club des Croquers de Chocolat)" awards, where chocolate connoisseurs from around the world gather. What is the source of his creativity that has astonished the world?

No Overseas Training Experience!

Reika Ito (hereinafter, Ito)First of all, congratulations on your double award for two consecutive years (※).

Susumu Koyama (hereinafter, Koyama)Thank you. When I first entered, I thought only about five people would participate, given that someone like me would win an award (laughs). It seems there were actually around 300 participants.

ItoThat's a wonderful achievement. When did you seriously start focusing on chocolate?

KoyamaI entered the world of confectionery at 19, and at 39, I opened my own shop, "Pâtissier es Koyama," in Sanda City, Hyogo Prefecture. Originally, it was a shop that handled a lot of chocolate, but the main focus was on fresh pastries like cakes, and I wasn't deeply immersed in chocolate.

Contrary to my expectations, the shop became so popular that queues of customers caused inconvenience. At that point, I realized I had to create a shop where people could buy products without waiting in line. If I were to open another store, I decided it would be for chocolate. This was about six years ago.

ItoWhat prompted you to exhibit at "SALON DU CHOCOLAT"?




I had been hearing from various sources that Japan was gradually weakening even before the earthquake. So, I wondered what was weakening. While Japan has many strengths now, compared to the good old days when people other than parents and teachers raised children, we've gone too far in some aspects. I believe there are things we need to return to.

The timing of their invitation coincided with when I was starting to think about taking action on these matters. So, I decided to accept the invitation, hoping it would serve as a guide for my next steps. Then, by chance, the competition was included.

ItoI understand that the competition brings together chocolatiers from around the world. What kind of preparations did you make for it?

KoyamaResearching European standards at this point would be like trying to warm a stone. I felt it would be meaningless unless my creations, which customers tell me are delicious at my shop, were also recognized in their homeland. I approached it naturally, as an extension of what I had been doing all along.

ItoAnd as a result, you won the highest award. Amazing!

Exploring the Sensation of "Delicious"

KoyamaI enjoy exploring the sensation of what I find delicious through experimentation. For example, there's "Koyama Roll," which represents es Koyama. From the perspective of Europeans, Japanese roll cakes, or genoise as they call the sponge cake, are simply filled with fresh cream. However, with recent awards, many people have begun to realize that Japanese craftsmanship might actually be based on very deep considerations. Just the other day, a famous French pâtissier visited our shop solely to try the Koyama Roll and repeatedly exclaimed, 'Incredible, incredible!' (laughs).

Some say, "This recipe is definitely something a European couldn't conceive." I don't know about Europe, but perhaps for those in Japan who create truly delicious things, winning an award there might not be that difficult. That said, it's not something anyone can do. You have to be meticulous and consistently delve deeply into your craft.



More than that, the most enjoyable part is brainstorming new product ideas while debating this and that. I don't create products in the kitchen. While I do make prototypes there, the seeds of inspiration can be found anywhere, 24 hours a day. Hints can come from meeting and talking with people, or from eating something I've never tasted before. Sometimes, I feel a pang of regret, thinking, 'There are people this free, what am I doing?'

The reason I chose Sanda when I decided to go independent was that I feel more comfortable in natural surroundings. I thought it would be easier to transform various things into different outputs while recalling my childhood memories.

Creating a Shop for Adults

ItoHas it become easier to express your ideas since opening your shop in Sanda?

KoyamaNot particularly, but when I'm working while thinking, "What a great environment," various ideas come to mind. In fact, this February, I opened a new shop on the same premises.A chocolate specialty shop called "Rozilla"It's a realization of my desire to create a shop for adults.

ItoWhy did you decide to create a shop for adults?



As for my own childhood, my mother listened to me a lot. I think the reason I grew up without giving up on communicating is rooted in that experience. I still enjoy communicating with people. I don't think, "It's pointless to say anything," or "Nothing will change anyway."

ItoSo, you have a strong desire to "keep communicating until it gets through."

KoyamaExactly. It is with the desire to create a society where such "Look at this, listen to this" from children is not overlooked that I created this shop. The concept is "A secret base created by adults, with all their might." It's my way of asking adults, "Are you showing your children a dignified back?" I want them to recall, "When I was a child, I built secret bases, played pretend, and thought of many fun things. I thought of silly things. When did I forget that and leave it behind?"

From Musician to Dental Technician... So Many Things I Want to Try!

ItoSo, the shop's design is also filled with considerable dedication.

KoyamaI'm the kind of person who can't create anything without such passion. Conversely, if I could give form to that passion, there were many jobs I wanted to do besides being a pâtissier. Teacher, musician, ceramic artist, TV producer, film director, dental technician...

ItoA dental technician? (laughs)

KoyamaI wanted to try pressing silicone rubber into people's mouths (everyone bursts into laughter). I still think about it. When I go to the dentist, I watch out of the corner of my eye as they mix silicone rubber or cement and think, "Let me do it!" (laughs).

ItoThat's an interesting dream (laughs). Speaking of musicians, I heard you dabbled a bit in music?

KoyamaModerately. "Moderately" is just the right amount for me.




Then, recently, Kai-san asked me to do a talk for his tour pamphlet. I was absolutely floored (laughs). I also wrote the liner notes for his new album.

ItoWow, that's amazing!

KoyamaI felt like a music critic (laughs). Of course, I had to write something that only I could write. The song I was asked about was popular when I was in my second year of high school. My son, who is currently in his second year of high school, plays bass, so I had him listen to it once. He said, "This is so cool!" and started covering it. I wrote about that in the liner notes.

What You Want to Convey Through Chocolate

ItoThat's a wonderful story. In terms of giving form to your passion, you place great importance on "conveying" something through cakes and chocolates, don't you?

KoyamaYes. To do that, I believe I must convey it through taste, and that taste must be unique. Here, "taste" doesn't just refer to the taste of the confectionery itself, but also the surrounding elements that enhance the taste, including the shop's garden and the packaging of the sweets.



ItoWhat is the most important thing you want to convey right now?

Koyama"Isn't everyone having a blast?"

ItoYou mentioned earlier that you feel a need to "convey" things, and indeed, you are someone who was born into this world to communicate. Pâtissier, chocolatier, musician, dental technician. While you have had various professions, as you yourself said, any of them would have been fine. You possess the ability to receive messages descending from the universe, and you are a soul driven to realize the ideas that arise within you.

KoyamaOh!

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In this first part, Susumu Koyama's mission in this life is revealed. In the second part, we will delve deeper into his surprising past life, which has been consistent throughout, and his mission in this life.






Susumu Koyama | KOYAMA Susumu
Born in Kyoto Prefecture in 1964. After graduating from Osaka ABEno Tsuji Culinary Institute, he joined "Swiss Confectionery Heidi" in Kobe in 1983. He became the Head Pâtissier and Head of Product Development. After winning numerous confectionery competitions (including TV Champion and many others), he went independent in 2000. He established Pâtissier es Koyama Co., Ltd., and provided product development and technical guidance for over a dozen companies nationwide. In 2003, he opened "Pâtissier es Koyama" in Sanda City, Hyogo Prefecture. Without opening branches, his "Koyama Roll," which sells 1,600 units daily through direct sales alone, pioneered the concept of selling single rolls. In 2011 and 2012, he won the highest award at "C.C.C. (Club des Croquers de Chocolat)" for two consecutive years, generating significant buzz both domestically and internationally. In November 2012, he published the technical guide "chocolat japonais" (Shibata Publishing) and his first general book "Teinei wo Kizuna ni Suru" (To Make Politeness Your Weapon) (Gentosha).