By Yuji MatsumotoIn the past twenty years, Japanese beer, sake and shochu sales have expanded according to the increasing number of Japanese restaurants opening. There is plenty of growth potential for the Japanese restaurant industry in the U.S., which constitutes only two percent of the scale of t...

By Kosuke KujiHidetoshi Nakata, former professional Japanese soccer player representing Japan, is serving as executive member and judge for the contest “SAKE COMPETITION 2018” that judges the most delicious commercially available sake in the world. During this competition, Japan ranked No. 1 in the ...

By Yuji MatsumotoIt would be a waste to enjoy distilled liquor, honkaku shochu and boutique sake as cocktails. While drinking them straight will not necessarily expand the flavors nor add body, sake with the distinct rice odor can be surprisingly delicious as cocktails when mixed with fruits and / o...

By Kosuke KujiThe International Wine Challenge (IWC) started the Japanese Sake Division since 2007, with one “Champion Sake” selected every year from around the world. The first champion sake “Kikuhime” from Ishikawa prefecture to the 2017 winner “Nanbu Bijin” all gathered at the high-end casino hot...

By Yuji Matsumoto I was blessed with an opportunity to attend a lecture targeting salesmen for a wholesaler of Japanese food products in the U.S. The attendees handle various Japanese food products including sake. The theme of the lecture was not so much about the consumer’s question of “Which sake ...

By Kosuke KujiThe Annual Japan Sake Awards announced their winners: Nambu Bijin Brewery, and Nambu Bijin Brewery – Basenkyo that simultaneously won the Gold Medal two consecutive years. The Nambu Bijin Brewery won the Gold Medal 12 times in the last 13 years, while Nambu Bijin Brewery – Basenkyo was...

By Elli Sekine “Yume Sushi”, a famous popular sushi restaurant located in the Alameda District, which is on the east side of the bay across the Bay Bridge of San Francisco, closed its doors last fall and is still being missed by many people. Yume’s owner entrusted the next phase of his dream to Chik...

Experience and knowledge are indispensable for sake tasting, but doing many tastings absent-mindedly does not help.Many tend to think that a person must have an excellent sense of judging taste (to have people think that way is very flattering), but that isn’t necessarily so. Also, those who wish to...

By Kosuke KujiThis February, sake from ten member breweries of the Japanese Sake Export Association arrived in containers at a port in Myanmar to be sold in restaurants. To commemorate this event, a Japanese Sake Sampling Event was held with JETRO’s cooperation at a hotel in Yangon. Eight breweries ...

By Yuji MatsumotoI often see breweries and wholesale dealers recommending their sake to local American diners at sampling events, saying, “This sake goes with any food,” “We use 100% Yamadanishiki rice,” “This is Junmai Daiginjo,” and “This is a traditional kimoto sake,” etc. However, most people (i...