Last year, Asahi Breweries unveiled its new canned cocktail called Mirai no Lemon Sour. Who better to market than the one-winged angel himself? This is apparently a thought that crept into the head of a member of the brewing company’s marketing team, and all I can say is, “Hell yeah.”
Asahi’s new collaboration with Square Enix was revealed by Famitsuand it comes with the Final Fantasy VII villain using his very long Masamune to chop lemons for the shochu cocktail. Here’s the full 20-second commercial, which is way cooler than those NÜTRL Vodka Seltzer “Keep It Tasty” Anheuser-Busch commercials subjected everyone to last year.
And unlike most canned cocktails, the Mirai no Lemon Sour has a secret waiting under its lid just waiting to be revealed every time you open one: a real lemon slice. It’s not a joke. Asahi reportedly spent nearly four years developing this technology.
“Canning solid foods was the first challenge” wrote THE Yomiuri Shimbun in 2025. “A machine for inserting lemon slices into cans was developed from scratch. Through trial and error, including dented cans and ill-fitting lemons, the team spent two years improving the machine’s accuracy by sealing 600 cans in one minute.”
If anyone knows how to work patiently for years to bring a master plan to fruition, it’s Sephiroth. Bravo to the one and only. He deserved it.
