Authent Hotel Otaru Begins Online Reservations for Its Winter-Only Stollen

Authent Hotel Otaru (2-15-1 Inaho, Otaru, Hokkaido) has begun taking online reservations for its stollen. The hotel has sold its stollen since 1999, and for a quarter century it has been loved by many customers. It is available only during the Christmas season.

Where to Reserve

Original Stollen

In Germany, stollen is a traditional sweet that people slice and enjoy a little at a time while waiting for Christmas. The flavor matures day by day. The rich aroma of brandy and the mellow sweetness that melts out of the dried fruit and fermented butter layer together, giving a deep taste that changes over time.

The hotel's pastry chef makes each loaf by hand, one at a time. The marzipan that is essential to stollen is ordered from Germany and gives the stollen a spicy, rich almond aroma.

Plenty of butter and cinnamon sugar, along with rice koji used as a secret ingredient, melt into the dough, making a luxurious treat available only at this time of year.

Premium Stollen

The Premium Stollen is made with close attention to both ingredients and method. It generously uses fermented butter from Akaigawa Village and aims for more richness and a more fragrant aroma than the Original Stollen. It brings together the pastry chef's skill and the bounty of Hokkaido.

Unlike the Original Stollen, it adds figs, pistachios, cranberries, and blueberries steeped in the hotel's own recipe, offering a variety of textures. The beauty of the cut surface is also part of what makes stollen special.

The baking is carefully controlled, and a different mold from the Original Stollen is used. The tall, square shape lets the loaf cook through just before it finishes baking, creating a soft, moist texture.

Hotel Information

The hotel was built with a symbolic design as a place to return to during a stay in Otaru. It faces the port and canal, overlooking the trading town. Blending in with the historic buildings that remain in Otaru, its design is classic yet still relevant today, capturing the "romantic Otaru" that modern travelers look for and expressing the atmosphere of the port town. Inside are four restaurants serving the flavors of Hokkaido's four seasons, along with a bar, a lounge, and a bakery.