This week, the World Whiskey Bible guide awarded its top prize to the Yamazaki Single Malt Sherry Cask 2013. Scottish brands didn’t make it into the top five. A frenzy ensued. The Atlantic asks “Is This the Golden Age of Japanese Whiskey?” Fox News says that new Japanese whiskys are inspiring the entire market, and perhaps our modern fascination with the drink. Time.com quickly responded in requisite listicle: “The 5 Things You Need To Know About Japanese Whisky.”

Well, here are the 5 things I know about Japanese whisky.

1. Japan has been whisky-obsessed for at least 20 years. In the mid-90s, I was living in a tiny town in northern Japan. The winters were so oppressive that during feudal times, the burakumin—prisoners, people who were ostracized or anyone working in an undesirable job (like executioners, undertakers, butchers) — were forced into exile there. Today, that part of the country is gorgeous, full of unspoiled hot springs, great skiing and, in part of because of its untidy origins, some absolutely amazing distilleries.

I spent many cold nights on the second floor of a treehouse bar called MozoMozo. The interior was all reclaimed wood, including the bar itself which the owner, Makoto, spent a year building with a high school friend. At any given time, MozoMozo had no less than 200 different bottles of whisky and sake to choose from. As was tradition at northern bars, Makoto also kept several large jugs of homemade umeshu, a delicious liqueur made of unripened plums, shochu and sugar. If pressed, Makoto would make a fancy cocktail. But mostly, people wanted to chat up Makoto, sample his latest finds and talk about the pure stuff.

2. Japan invented sake, which always took center stage…until whisky claimed the spotlight. Just down the street from MozoMozo is the birthplace of Nanbu toji, which is one of the three original sake brewing traditions in Japan. The local rice and water were both said to be among the very best in Japan; as a result, its sake became some of the most desirable throughout the country. After hundreds of years, the local sake breweries fell on hard times, in part because local interest in sake waned…in favor of whiskey. While that was happening, sake was actually making a resurgence (again) here in the U.S. A friend of mine became a certified sake master at the height of the trend. A sake bar opened in downtown Baltimore. Sake was offered just about everywhere, with or without raw fish on the menu.

3. Japan has been making whisky for 100 years. Suntory launched in 1929, and has been producing whisky since then. You undoubtedly know the Suntory Time commercial parodied in Lost in Translation. But there was a long string of famous celebrities who starred in the real commercials, including a very Scottish Sean Connery.

4. Only when Westerners “discover” a Japanese product or tradition, does it become newsworthy here. Even if that product, tradition (read: whisky) is very old. Newsweek once devoted a fair amount of space to Kewpie mayonnaise as a trend story, as if Japanese people were suddenly and inexplicably in love with Western-style mayo. That’s akin to publishing a trend story about American’s totally new fascination with Heinz Ketchup. It’s not a trend, it’s a condiment. A newly-discovered “cute” trend in 1988 reemerged as a newly-cute trend just a few years later. In 2002, BusinessWeek featured a story about Hello Kitty and the power of cute. So did Newsweek in 2010. Or, just look at the hundreds (and hundreds!) of New York Times stories on recycled cute themes throughout Japanese culture during the past few decades.

5. Japan = filler; Elsewhere in Asia = real news. In addition to its ongoing and endearing cuteness, Japan happens to be an economic superpower. Sure, it isn’t as strong as it once was, but however you want to slice GDP, Japan is in the top five. Japan is also home to some of the most interesting emerging technology around: gestural interfaces, bionic limbs, cameras that can see through walls. And political intrigue! Prime Minister Abe appointed a whole bunch of women to top cabinet positions (a first in Japan), then two high-ranking women mysteriously quit. We tend to cover China with weight and ferocity. We cover Korea with intrigue. Without whisky, would Japan be in the news?

Sadly, it takes a big disaster, like the one in Fukushima. Then yes, Japan does get our attention. The thing is that I covered Japan’s nuclear plants back in 2002 while I was still working at Newsweek. I found falsified records and safety inspections at Japan’s largest nuclear-plant operator, the Tokyo Electric Power Company or Tepco. I had experts talking about the threat of a meltdown due to cracks and leaks. Economists explained the economic disaster that might ensue if Japan’s nuclear plants had to be shut down for a proper inspection and for fixes.

But that story wasn’t deemed newsworthy or interesting enough for an American audience. It only ever appeared in the international edition.

I’m always curious as to what grabs our national attention and why. Japan beats Scotland in a whisky battle is interesting, sure. A headline like that generates clicks. Still, I’m hopeful that we might someday find a way to make gravity trump cute.