Back in Episode 65 during our discussion with the president of Sohomare, Mr. Jun Kono, another interesting name popped; that of Gautier Roussille.An agronomist and oenologist by trade, Gautier’s exposure to sake back in 2006, followed by years of proactively exploring and researching the category, eventually lead him to a brief foray as a kurabioto at Sohomare, which then inspired one of the most thorough examinations of the sake-making process to be outlined in print in a language other than Japanese. His book, Nihonshu: Japanese Sake, first published in French in 2016, with a Kickstarted English version appearing in 2018, has come to serve as an invaluable resource to the world’s ever-curious sake aficionados and budding sake brewers.With a professional background rooted in the science and related practices of winemaking and the agriculture supporting it, the lens through which he explores and communicates the world of sake is rooted in relatable, analytical, and practical experience. Currently co-manager of Domaine Guillemot-Michel, a celebrated winery that transitioned to biodynamic agriculture back in 1991, his experience in the field, in the winery, and through research, has informed his perspective on sake, a category that he now regularly educates for and consults on, also serving as judge for both the International Wine Challenge and Kura Master.Gautier shares his rational, logical and well-informed perspective on our favorite drink with Sebastien Lemoine and Justin Potts this week. It’s a thoughtful and inspiring conversation from which we think all of our listeners can find something that speaks to them and furthers their passion and interest in this fermented beverage we all love. Feel free to leave us a review on Apple Podcasts or whatever service you rely upon for your podcasting needs. You can contact us at questions@sakeonair.com with any thoughts about the show, and feel free to follow us on  Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook. Everything from Sake Future Summit 2020, as well as a number of other recordings, are all archived over on our YouTube channel, as well.We’ll be back in two weeks with more Sake on Air.Until then, Kampai!Sake On Air is made possible with the generous support of the Japan Sake & Shochu Makers Association and is broadcast from the Japan Sake & Shochu Information Center in Tokyo. The show is a co-production between Export Japan and Potts.K Productions, with audio production by Frank Walter. Our theme, “Younger Today Than Tomorrow” was composed by forSomethingNew for Sake On Air.

Sake On Air

Interview with Gautier Roussille

Along with a general interest in sake expanding globally, the number of homebrewers curious to try their hand at sake making and professional brewers setting up formal production operations around the world continues to grow year-on-year at an ever-increasing rate.At the same time, as the population committing themselves to sake both personally and professionally across a range of activities - from sales and distribution to education and evangelism - more and more people are looking for ways to get a little bit closer to the process and craftmanship of sake in order to further develop their understanding from a more personal and experiential angle.The need to fill the gap between “brewery tour” and “full-on brewer” for a growing number of sake-curious and sake professionals has been growing for years. Thankfully, Gakkogura appeared.Officially operating in limited capacity since 2014, Gakkogura (literally, “Brewery School”) is the work of Obata Shuzo, makers of Manotsuru brand sake on the beautiful and historic Sado Island in the Sea of Japan off the coast of Niigata Prefecture.The project began, not with the intention of constructing a brewing school, but with a desire to save a piece of personal history on the island. Due to population decline and decreasing number of children on the island, the beautiful Nishimikawa Elementary school had already been committed to closure by the local government, ending more than a century of youth education that spanned multiple generations of islanders.Wanting to develop a means of saving the school and preserving it as a place for learning and connecting in the local community, president of Obata Shuzo, Mr. Ken Hirashima, along with his wife, Mrs. Rumiko Obata, the non-stop powerhouse leading the charge of the family business, together they settled on a community-centric, educationally-driven micro brewery as the means of breathing life into the historic structure.Brewing only a small number of batches each year from late-Spring through the end of Summer, each batch of sake made is crafted with a specific goal in mind for a specific group of individuals, with the hands-on component of the brewing process timed and organized to fit the needs of the small group of people that have committed to attending the school on Sado Island for a pre-determined week in the summer.Designed to be more than just a technical training establishment, each group of participants selected for each program are each attached to a single batch of sake, through which they are introduced not only to the production process, but also to life and culture on Sado Island and the role that sake plays in the lives and livelihoods of the people. Each group is taking part, not only in making sake, but in becoming a contributor and ambassador to the majesty of the island and the unique role that each batch of sake is crafted to play upon being introduced to the world at large.Due to some peculiar legal regulations surrounding the production of sake in Japan, it wasn’t until 2020 that Gakkogura was finally able to really open up its operations and promote and share the fruits of their labor in a more outward-facing capacity. Having obtained that additional bit of freedom amidst the COVID pandemic, it’s really just now that Gakkogura is beginning to transform and grow into a new phase of community development and brewing education.For this episode, in the first half we’re joined by Mrs. Rumiko Obata, representing five generations of Obata Shuzo and the communicative force behind Gakkorua. In this short interview, Obata-san shares with us some insight into the origins of the brewing school, the values driving the project, and the relationship between the unique brewery and the special place that is Sado Island.For the second half, to offer a bit of an experiential perspective, we have a short roundtable discussion between this summer’s final group of brewing students, who were assigned to help craft the brewery’s first ever at...

Sake Brewing School at Gakkogura

This week at Sake On Air we tackle a wide range of sake and shochu-specific topics based upon questions submitted by you, the listeners!Even though we’re always available and eager to engage with our listeners, viewers and followers across all of the online spaces you can find us on, we also recognize that there’s still a great deal more that we could be doing to facilitate that dialogue. This episode is just one small piece of a larger initiative in-the-works to help make that happen.In order to help improve and expand the flow of communication between our listeners and everyone here at SOA, we’ve actually welcomed a new partner-in-crime to the crew!It was thanks to Cindy Bissig that we were able to make this episode happen, and if you happened to submit a question or interact at all with us here on social media over the past couple of months, chances are it was Cindy that you were talking to.A talented, ambitious, sake-loving and ever-traveling documenter of the Japan experience, we were incredibly lucky to have our world collide with Cindy’s despite a year of limited interaction and travel. For the past few months she’s been keeping a close eye on the world of sake to share up-to-date info with our listeners, while also going out of her way to create more opportunities to dialogue with the people that make this show a joy to create: you.On this week’s show, Cindy joins a handful of your regular hosts, Rebekah Wilson-Lye, Justin Potts and Chris Hughes, to tackle your questions and offer perspective from our position over here on the fine island of Japan. Consider this “Part 1”, as we still have many more questions that we weren’t able to get to and we’re always accepting your thoughts and questions. It’s an ever-expanding, never-ending quest that we’re on. Be sure to send along a big “Kampai!” to Cindy and welcome her to the show! And while you’re at it, let us know what you think of this week’s format and if you’d like to hear more of this type of discussion-based Q&A from your hosts and guests. You can go ahead and leave us a review on Apple Podcasts or whatever service you rely upon for your podcasting needs, as well. Contact us at questions@sakeonair.com with any thoughts about the show, and feel free to follow us on  Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook. Everything from Sake Future Summit 2020, as well as a number of other recordings, are all archived over on our YouTube channel, as well.We’ll be back in two weeks with more Sake On Air.Until then, Kampai! Sake On Air is made possible with the generous support of the Japan Sake & Shochu Makers Association and is broadcast from the Japan Sake & Shochu Information Center in Tokyo. The show is a co-production between Export Japan and Potts.K Productions, with audio production by Frank Walter. Our theme, “Younger Today Than Tomorrow” was composed by forSomethingNew for Sake On Air.

Listener Questions: 2021 Edition

Continuing this month’s series examining the world of sparkling sake, this week we bring you a pair of interviews with sake makers that have been instrumental in both evolving and improving the sparkling sake category.Regular host Chris Hughes first sits down with Mr. Hitoshi Suzuki, president of Ichinokura, and sales representative Ms. Erina Nakamura, to discuss what’s largely considered to be the industry’s first commercialization of a naturally fermented sparkling sake product, the Miyagi-based brewery’s beloved Suzune, along with the sake’s roots in their other popular Himezen line of sake.Following that discussion, Chris then invites CEO of leading sparkling sake producer, Yamanashi Meijo, makers of Shichiken, Mr. Tsushima Kitahara, to discuss not only the technical evolution of their sparkling sake, but also how committing to the style as a core of their business has resulted in sparkling sake now making up more than 30% of their overall sake production, with a dedication to ever-improving quality and communication around the style leading to opportunities and partnerships that are opening new doors for the wonderful world of sake.If you have more questions about the fascinating world of sparkling sake, please do reach out to us. We welcome both your questions, as well as stories of your own experiences and discoveries with the style. We’ll be revisiting this topic again down the road, so any thoughts and feelings you’re willing to share now will serve as fuel for developing a future episode of Sake on Air. You can always help us out by leaving us a review on Apple Podcasts or whatever service you rely upon for your podcasting needs. Contact us at questions@sakeonair.com with any thoughts about this week’s show, and feel free to follow us on  Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook. Everything from Sake Future Summit 2020, as well as a number of other recordings, are all archived over on our YouTube channel, as well.We’ll be back in two weeks with more brand new Sake On Air.Until then, Kampai! Sake On Air is made possible with the generous support of the Japan Sake & Shochu Makers Association and is broadcast from the Japan Sake & Shochu Information Center in Tokyo. The show is a co-production between Export Japan and Potts.K Productions, with audio production by Frank Walter. Our theme, “Younger Today Than Tomorrow” was composed by forSomethingNew for Sake On Air.

Sparkling Sake Interviews: Ichinokura & Shichiken

Of all the requests that we get for various show topics, an episode focusing on “Sparkling Sake” is probably one, if not the most requested topic filling our inbox. So this week, we (finally) bring you the first of two episodes that we’ve put together to help provide a bit of context and perspective for this rapidly expanding style that’s showing no signs of slowing down.This week Chris Hughes, Rebekah Wilson-Lye and Justin Potts break down the range of sparkling sake styles – from the classic kassei styles, to CO2-infused staples, to bubbly derived through secondary fermentation, and the relatively new Awasake – outlining how they differ, what makes each unique, and a providing bit of context for how each are developing and evolving in the market, particularly as the style exists in Japan.A couple of weeks from now we’ll be bringing you a follow-up episode featuring interviews with a pair of sake breweries that have been instrumental in developing, proliferating and expanding the style, pursuing ever-improved quality while carving out their own interpretation of this exciting category.Listeners, when you ask, we deliver. We hope you’ll enjoy this month’s exploration into a style of sake poised to rapidly gather the mindshare of a world of sake lovers while transforming the perception of sake for a new world of drinks-curious. Let us know what you thought of this episode of Sake On Air by leaving us a review on Apple Podcasts or whatever service you rely upon for your podcasting needs. Contact us at questions@sakeonair.com with any thoughts about this week’s show, and feel free to follow us on  Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook. Everything from Sake Future Summit 2020, as well as a number of other recordings, are all archived over on our YouTube channel, as well.We’ll be back in two weeks to dive even deeper into the world of sparkling sake here at Sake On Air.Kampai! Sake On Air is made possible with the generous support of the Japan Sake & Shochu Makers Association and is broadcast from the Japan Sake & Shochu Information Center in Tokyo. The show is a co-production between Export Japan and Potts.K Productions, with audio production by Frank Walter. Our theme, “Younger Today Than Tomorrow” was composed by forSomethingNew for Sake On Air.

Deconstructing Sparkling Sake

This week we have a rather special story to tell, as we’re joined by Katsura Sunshine, the second non-Japanese master Rakugo-ka in the history of the craft.The nuanced, playful, dramatic, and at sometimes outright hilarious art of Rakugo storytelling carries over 400 years of historical and cultural significance, passing down universal messages and timeless life lessons that have helped shape how Japan enjoys and appreciates its stories.While sharing in a bit of sake, Katsura Sunshine opens up to us about his ongoing life journey through the largely untrodden (outside Japan) world of Rakugo and his steadfast dedication to endlessly honing his craft while bringing honest and faithful depictions of the artform’s beloved stories to international audiences, whether it be Off Broadway, or on YouTube. At Sake on Air, after having been away from our regular home at the JSS Sake & Shochu Information Center amidst a turbulent and challenging year, our guest brought a much needed bit of Sunshine to our short-lived return to our sake sanctuary. While this week’s show isn’t entirely sake (or shochu) specific, together with our very special guest, your regular hosts Chris Hughes and Sebastien Lemoine explore the shared qualities of both the sake and rakugo experience, while being treated to a few performances – and resulting laughter – along the way. Sunshine's next show is on the 7th of August at the Yoshimoto Yurakucho Theatre, tickets are ¥1,500 in advance or ¥1,800 at the door. Doors open at 12:30 and the performance will begin at 13:00. Tickets can be purchased at https://yoshimoto.funity.jp/search/?kaien_date_type=2021%2F08%2F07&kaijyo_code=999230&kaien_time=13:00 If you enjoyed this week’s (or any week’s) episode of Sake On Air, you can help new listeners discover the show by leaving us a review on Apple Podcasts or on whatever service delivers you all of your podcasting needs. Contact us at questions@sakeonair.com with any thoughts about this week’s show, and feel free to follow us on  Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook. Everything from Sake Future Summit 2020, as well as a number of other recordings, are all archived over on our YouTube channel, as well.We’ll be back in two weeks’ time with more Sake on Air.Until then,Kampai! Sake On Air is made possible with the generous support of the Japan Sake & Shochu Makers Association and is broadcast from the Japan Sake & Shochu Information Center in Tokyo. The show is a co-production between Export Japan and Potts.K Productions, with audio production by Frank Walter.

Rakugo Storytelling (and Sake) with Katsura Sunshine

We’ve been way overdue for an episode highlighting one of Japan’s many inspiring sake breweries. When your hosts Sebastien Lemoine and John Gauntner line up a sit-down with Mr. Jun Kono, who represents five generations of award-winning Sohomare sake, you know you’re in for a treat.Located in Tochigi prefecture – a bit of a hot-spot in the world of sake these days – Sohomare’s stretch of consecutive gold medals over the past decade at the National Sake Appraisal, along with top honors at the Kanto Regional Appraisals in both the ginjo and junmai ginjo categories in 2020 – a rather unheard of achievement – the brewery’s recognition has more than solidified the accumulated efforts of Mr. Kono and the team at Sohomare throughout his tenure.In this episode, Mr. Kono shares with us the story of his family’s lineage that was kept a secret for centuries, how intricate blending sensibilities and a return to kimoto-style sake making have grown to define Sohomare, the behavioral quirks of different yeast types, how they’ve managed to acquire yamada nishiki from Hyogo’s most prized growing sites for so long, and how for Mr. Kono, “making sake he wants to drink” takes precedent over everything else.If you enjoy Sake On Air, you can help new listeners discover the show by leaving us a review on Apple Podcasts or on whatever service delivers you all of your podcasting needs. Contact us at questions@sakeonair.com with any thoughts about this week’s show, and feel free to follow us on  Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook. Everything from Sake Future Summit 2020, as well as a number of other recordings, are all archived over on our YouTube channel, as well.We’ll be back in two weeks’ time with more Sake On Air. Kampai! Sake On Air is made possible with the generous support of the Japan Sake & Shochu Makers Association and is broadcast from the Japan Sake & Shochu Information Center in Tokyo. The show is a co-production between Export Japan and Potts.K Productions, with audio production by Frank Walter. Our theme, “Younger Today Than Tomorrow” was composed by forSomethingNew for Sake On Air.

Sohomare Sake With Brewery President Jun Kono

We’ve been relatively quiet on the shochu front in recent months, but we’re looking to remedy that this week by serving up an episode that should inspire our listeners to begin procuring their shochu and awamori selections for the weekend and beyond.This week Christopher Pellegrini welcomes frequent collaborator, author and co-host of the Japan Distilled podcast, Stephen Lyman. Stephen took us on a detailed tour of Yamatozakura Distillery for the Sake Future Summit back in 2020, joined us to talk about his book, Guide to Japanese Drinks, back on Episode 26, and also appeared on Episode 14 to discuss some of the finer nuances of our favorite koji-crafted distillates.While shochu and awamori can be served up wonderfully any myriad of ways, this week Stephen and Christopher drill down into the basics. How are shochu and awamori most commonly prepared, served and consumed in Japan? Why would you select one style over another and how does it influence the sensory experience? What styles of shochu naturally lend themselves to certain serving and drinking styles?As shochu and awamori expand their reach across the globe, drinking and service styles are diversifying at a dizzying pace – which is incredible. But for this episode, our hosts inform as to not only ‘what’ the common and established drinking styles are, but also ‘why’. There’s a reason this beloved beverage holds market share and mindshare in Japan on-par with (and occasionally eclipsing) sake. If you’re looking to explore those reasons, this week’s episode is the perfect place to start. Thanks for once again tuning in to Sake On Air. You can help new listeners discover the show by leaving us a review on Apple Podcasts or on whatever service delivers you all of your podcasting needs. Contact us at questions@sakeonair.com with any thoughts about this week’s show, and feel free to follow us on  Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook. Everything from Sake Future Summit 2020, as well as a number of other recordings, are all archived over on our YouTube channel, as well.We’ll be back in two weeks’ time with more Sake On Air.Have a happy and healthy week, everyone.Kampai! Sake On Air is made possible with the generous support of the Japan Sake & Shochu Makers Association and is broadcast from the Japan Sake & Shochu Information Center in Tokyo. The show is a co-production between Export Japan and Potts.K Productions, with audio production by Frank Walter. Our theme, “Younger Today Than Tomorrow” was composed by forSomethingNew for Sake On Air.

Serving Up Shochu

This week we continue our conversation with the multi-generation family of rice (and sake rice!) farmers at Isbell Farms in the heart of Arkansas. For those of you just now joining, we highly recommend you make time to give Part 1 of this conversation a listen before diving in, as it provides a great deal of context for this week’s discussion, is referenced occasionally throughout the show, and more than anything, it introduces you to this inspiring family.This week the family kicks things off by talking about the transition from their early work with Takara Sake USA to connecting with Blake Richardson of Moto-I and Minnesota Rice & Milling via Norway, which lead to further expansion into a range of sake-specific rice varieties in support of North America’s craft sake breweries, along with the recent development of their own sake rice variety, known as Somai.From there we get into the creation of sake rice sample kits (and post office shenanigans!), the experience of opening up and sharing family life on the farm through YouTube, tackling sustainability and conservation issues surrounding rice farming while selling carbon credits to Microsoft in the process, and a great deal more.We hope that this pair of episodes not only contributed to our listeners’ appreciation of sake and the hard work and passion involved in bringing that magnificent beverage to life, but also helped to further your interest in the world of agriculture in North America – and anywhere, for that matter. All of our futures hinge upon the people and means through which we grow food. If that food being grown contributes to beautiful sake, and if that beautiful sake contributes to a healthy and sustainable future, all the better. In that capacity, we here at Sake On Air can’t wait to see where the Isbell Family takes us next.For more about Isbell Farms:- Website- Instagram- Facebook- Twitter- YouTube Thanks for once again tuning in to Sake On Air. You can help new listeners discover the show by leaving us a review on Apple Podcasts or on whatever service delivers you all of your podcasting needs. Contact us at questions@sakeonair.com with any thoughts about this week’s show, and feel free to follow us on  Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook. Everything from Sake Future Summit 2020, as well as a number of other recordings, are all archived over on our YouTube channel, as well.We’ll be back in two weeks with a bit more Sake (and Shochu!) on Air.Until next time.Kampai!Sake On Air is made possible with the generous support of the Japan Sake & Shochu Makers Association and is broadcast from the Japan Sake & Shochu Information Center in Tokyo. The show is a co-production between Export Japan and Potts.K Productions, with audio production by Frank Walter. Our theme, “Younger Today Than Tomorrow” was composed by forSomethingNew for Sake On Air.

North American Sake Rice & Agriculture with Isbell Farms Part 2

When it comes to producing sake outside of Japan, still one of the most significant hurdles to crafting the sake of a brew-master’s dreams is access to the ideal resources needed in order to realize the vision, and included in those resources are the raw materials.Sake specific rice varieties from Japan are in high demand from sake makers across the globe–and for good reason–but there’s also something to be said for being able to craft an incredible beverage from the resources available close to home.While consistent access to a good number of sake brewing tools and resources still remains rather elusive for a significant number of international sake breweries, when it comes to sake rice in the U.S., the family at Isbell Farms is on a mission to make Japanese rice and sake rice varieties an accessible, quality, and viable option for a new world of sake breweries.After a successful foray into the production of koshihikari, a Japanese staple table rice variety that put the family’s rice (and faces) on televisions and convenience store shelves across Japan in the 80s, demand from the rapidly growing number of Japanese restaurants across the U.S., along with a handful of major sake breweries setting up operations on North American shores led to opportunities to double-down on a then relatively niche market. Since then, they’ve grown and evolved to become a go-to supplier of established sake rice varieties, including yamada nishiki and gohyakumangoku, amongst others, to breweries large and small across the U.S.This week (and next) we speak with the Isbell family as we explore the origins of cultivating Japanese rice varieties in the heart of Arkansas, the expansion to sake rice varieties, and just what it means to be a grower in the U.S. today.We’ll be back with Part 2 of this special look at sake and rice growing in the U.S. next week, as we join the family at Isbell Farms once again to more closely examine the nature of sake specific rice varieties, as well as the future of rice farming and agriculture in the U.S. Stay tuned. For those of you interested in following the work of the Isbell family online:- Website- Instagram- Facebook- Twitter- YouTube Thanks for once again tuning in to Sake On Air. You can help new listeners discover the show by leaving us a review on Apple Podcasts or on whatever service delivers you all of your podcasting needs. Contact us at questions@sakeonair.com with any thoughts about this week’s show, and feel free to follow us on  Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook. Everything from Sake Future Summit 2020, as well as a number of other recordings, are all archived over on our YouTube channel, as well.Wishing all of our listeners happiness and health in a (hopefully) sake-infused week ahead. Take care out there.Kampai! Sake On Air is made possible with the generous support of the Japan Sake & Shochu Makers Association and is broadcast from the Japan Sake & Shochu Information Center in Tokyo. The show is a co-production between Export Japan and Potts.K Productions, with audio production by Frank Walter. Our theme, “Younger Today Than Tomorrow” was composed by forSomethingNew for Sake On Air.

North American Sake Rice & Agriculture with Isbell Farms Part 1

Despite a rich and storied history spanning millennia, in certain terms, sake has yet to unequivocally prove its ability to stand the test of time.If you’re in some way associated with the sale or service of sake, likely one of the most common questions you get is, “How long can I keep my sake before it starts to go bad?” or, “How long does sake stay good after it’s opened?” As a buyer, these are both logical and very important questions. As an industry, having clear and concise answers to those questions is equally important. In order to keep things simple, as well as to help assure an overwhelmingly positive experience for as many sake drinkers as possible, the general message adopted suggests that sake should be consumed within 6-12 months from purchase, refrigerated both prior to and after opening, and then consumed within several days to a week once it’s been opened. This is sound advice that’s relevant to a great majority of the sake being produced and sold both domestically and internationally.There is, however, a paradigm that exists entirely outside of the above logic; where a greater element of time isn’t only a factor, but a necessity.Welcome to the world of matured and aged sake.Often referred to as koshu – literally “old sake” – often translated as “aged sake”, or jukuseishu, commonly translated as “matured sake”, bottles of sake referencing these qualities were crafted taking time into account. That amount of time can be anywhere from a few years to a few decades depending on the style of sake and the intent of the brewer, and in many cases the results are astounding.Yet despite plenty of beautiful examples of aged or matured sake on the market and countless historical texts singing the praises of what time can do to a bottle of sake, a rather perfect storm of circumstances coalesced to nearly erase aged sake culture, production, and consumer appreciation from the collective understanding of sake for about a century.Thankfully, a relatively small, but thoughtful, proactive and coordinated effort from a growing number of sake makers and sellers has been hard at work seeking to rebuild and redefine what time can mean (and cost) when factored into a bottle of sake. Whether it be the collective rebranding efforts of the Toki Sake Association, the Muni line from Kokuryu used in the first ever sake industry auction in 2018, the dedication to long-term aging in ceramic storage vessels by Tsuki no Katsura, or a handful of specialty bars dedicated to the unique and treasured style, awareness surrounding the magic that time can work on a bottle of the right kind of sake is slowly building.This week, Sebastien Lemoine, Marie Nagata and Justin Potts gather to discuss the historical and modern context of matured and aged sake, the formal definitions (or lack thereof) in place, the typical qualities that time imparts on a bottle of sake, what maturing sake could mean from a service standpoint, and more.For those of you that missed our special interview on the topic for Sake Future Summit 2020, Aged Sake and the Test of Time, that’s a great primer (or follow-up) to this episode. Prior to this episode Sebastien actually sat down with Nobuhiro Ueno, while Justin paid a visit to Tokubee Masuda of Tsuki no Katsura, to help us get a bit more insight into this fascinating sake category. Those interviews will see the light of day in some form a bit further down the road, but for now, we hope you’ll pour yourself a glass of sake and settle in with us for an exploration into the one thing that proves nearly impossible to attach a price tag to no matter what the context: time. Thanks for once again tuning in to Sake On Air. You can help new listeners discover the show by leaving us a review on Apple Podcasts or on any of your favorite services that deliver you all of your podcasting needs. Contact us at questions@sakeonair.com with any thoughts or feelings, or go ahead and follow us on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook.

Matured Sake, Aged Sake

In an ideal world we’d bring you listeners a brand-new episode each and every week. While we can’t see that happening in the immediate future, in the process of creating or preparing for many of our episodes we end up with a lot of fun and insightful conversations that sadly just don’t make it into a final episode.Whether it be interviews conducted in attempt to broaden our perspective and gain further insight into a specific topic before attempting to tackle it, or an unanticipated tangent during a regular recording that we just can’t bring ourselves to carve up, but also can’t force into the overall show structure, we’ve continued to amass quite a bit of material that we would love to share with our listeners at some point and in some capacity.That’s what we’re testing the waters with this week, in our first (but hopefully not last) episode of “Okawari”.In Japanese, the term okawari refers to ordering “another round”. Essentially, if you’re asking for okawari, you want to keep the party going. That’s what we hope this week’s show (and future okawari installments) can bring to the table.As part of the process of examining the world of Nigori Sake for episode 60, we thought it would be interesting to get a bit of insight into the U.S. market’s unique attachment to this special style. In order to do that, we called up sake expert, certified Sake Samurai, and self-declared Sake Ninja, Chris Johnson, to share with us the evolution and status of the style in the U.S.One thing for sure is that we’ll be coaxing the Sake Ninja to reappear in future episodes, as there are dozens of topics that we’d love to pick his brain on, and he deserves a feature all his own. That’s one of the reasons we’re giving this week’s conversation okawari status. Our chat with Chris is both great supportive material for our previous episode, while providing more than enough substance to be fully satisfying as a stand-alone episode in its own right. We’ve got lots more material in the vault that we could use to pour you all “another round” of your favorite past topics, guests, and even entirely new snippets and insights. Let us know what you think of the concept and we’ll see what we can do to develop the format in the future.You can send those thoughts to questions@sakeonair.com or message us via Instagram, Twitter, or Facebook. Note that you’ll also help out the show by leaving us a review on Apple Podcasts or on whichever service you rely upon for your podcast needs.Thanks for supporting us here at Sake On Air. We’ll be back with more sake and shochu-infused goodness in just a couple of weeks.Kampai!Sake On Air is made possible with the generous support of the Japan Sake & Shochu Makers Association and is broadcast from the Japan Sake & Shochu Information Center in Tokyo. The show is a co-production between Export Japan and Potts.K Productions, with audio production by Frank Walter.Our theme, “Younger Today Than Tomorrow” was composed by forSomethingNew for Sake On Air.

Okawari: U.S. Love of Nigori with “The Sake Ninja”

There’s a fascinating schism that’s emerged between the domestic and international markets’ relationship with nigori-style sake over that past few decades.With its rather odd positioning landing it someplace between a more “traditional” style and at the same time a relatively “new” product proposition, a few distinct exceptions aside, nigori sake generally makes up an incredibly small portion of most makers’ product lineup.At the same time, in some international markets (the U.S. in particular), nigori sake has developed a life of its own as an ever-present and iconic style representing the sake category as a whole, resulting in relatively more common placement on drink menus and amidst distributor portfolios than you’d often find in Japan.Recent for creative and nuanced interpretations aside, for many years more “standard” offerings of nigori sake tended to be sold as (and as a result, perceived as) more budget products. However, the burdens of merely crafting a nigori sake are many and varied – arguably more demanding than a great deal of “clear” product – with the craft of producing a truly great nigori sake being in many cases a rather herculean task.Why the disconnect? Is there really a “typical” or “traditional” nigori-style sake? Is Japan slowly developing a newfound appreciation for new styles of nigori? Do international brewers have an advantage when it comes to indoctrinating new sake drinkers through nigori-style sake? Discussions around these topics and more this week with several of your regular Sake On Air hosts Sebastien Lemoine, Chris Hughes and Justin Potts. In preparing for this episode the team asked around different corners of the industry for various perspective and insight. You’ll get a bit of that here, but expect more from those interviewees in the coming weeks, as well.There’s a lot to love about nigori, an infinitely diverse and growing style poised for a renaissance in the global world of sake. We hope you’ll come along for the ride.Thanks for once again tuning in to Sake On Air. You can help new listeners discover the show by leaving us a review on Apple Podcasts or on any of your favorite services that deliver you all of your podcasting needs. Contact us at questions@sakeonair.com with any thoughts or feelings, or go  ahead and follow us on  Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook. Everything from Sake Future Summit 2020, as well as a number of other recordings, are all archived over on our YouTube channel, as well.Thanks for choosing sake and shochu. Be sure to pour yourself a bit of nigori this week, as well.Kampai! Sake On Air is made possible with the generous support of the Japan Sake & Shochu Makers Association and is broadcast from the Japan Sake & Shochu Information Center in Tokyo. The show is a co-production between Export Japan and Potts.K Productions, with audio production by Frank Walter.Our theme, “Younger Today Than Tomorrow” was composed by forSomethingNew for Sake On Air.

The Murky Waters of Nigori Sake

Just a few episodes back we decided to revisit some of the highlights from Sake Future Summit 2020. In preparing for and editing that episode there was so much that we wanted to include but couldn’t in the interest of time, we devised a clever solution: we just did it again.As with the previous round, if you have the time to really pick through all of these on the official Sake On Air YouTube channel, the visual component adds a lot to these and there’s a great deal more fascinating and insightful material that we just couldn’t cram in. Also, seeing as how half of the programming for the Sake Future Summit was comprised of interviews, tours, presentations and discussions conducted with individuals from the Japanese side of the industry and carried out in Japanese and subtitled, a majority of the great programming is still stuck in a visual-only format. If you’re sipping sake or shochu over the weekend, firing those sessions up alongside your beverage-of-choice isn’t a bad way to spend an evening. You can find those all archived over on our YouTube channel. In this episode you’ll hear from hear:- How the pros of the U.K. sake market are looking to bring it to the next level in a discussion with Barry McCaughley (Restaurateur; F&B Development Consultant), Miho Komatsu (Sake Specialist for Marussia Beverage; Marketing and International Sales for Akashi-tai Sake Brewery), Akiko Konishi (Manager of Intl. Dept. at Konishi Shuzo), and navigated by Oliver Hilton-Johnson (Tengu Sake).- About how some unique approaches to the Spanish market could change the game for sake, together with Pablo Alomar Salvioni (President of Salvioni & Alomar), Francois Chartier (Aroma Specialist; Master Blender for Tanaka 1789 X Chartier), and Rubén Pol Ramon (Head Sommelier at Restaurant Disfrutar, Barcelona).- The ways in which shochu is poised to be woven into the future of the world’s best bars with Don Lee (Industry mentor; former partner Existing Conditions), Ryan Chetiyawardana (Founder of Mr. Lyan; Cocktail bartender), and Chikako Ichihara (CEO of Azix; Japan Sake and Shochu Makers Association US Liaison officer).- How French cuisine could pave the way for sake to be incorporated into the upper echelons of the epicurean experience, together with Xavier Thuizat (President of Kura Master; Chef Sommelier of Hotel Crillon) and Marco Pelletier (Vigneron at Domaine de Galouchey; Proprietor of Vantre, Paris).- About the fascinating ways that sake and shochu are being incorporated into some of the U.S.’s best restaurants in a dialogue between Nobuo Fukuda (Chef at Teeter House), Sachiko Miyagi (Sake Expert at Tippsy Sake), Mutsuko Soma (Chef at Kamonegi; Owner of Hannyatou), David Schlosser (Chef at Shibumi), and Christopher Gomez (Beverage Director at Shibumi). Thanks for tuning in this week. Please help new listeners discover the show by leaving us a review on Apple Podcasts or your favorite service bringing you your podcasts. Contact us at questions@sakeonair.com with any thoughts, feelings or kind words about the show, or go  ahead and follow us on  Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook. Don’t forget to subscribe to us over on YouTube, as well.Thanks for choosing sake and shochu. Kampai! Sake On Air is made possible with the generous support of the Japan Sake & Shochu Makers Association and is broadcast from the Japan Sake & Shochu Information Center in Tokyo. The show is a co-production between Export Japan and Potts.K Productions, with audio production by Frank Walter.Our theme, “Younger Today Than Tomorrow” was composed by forSomethingNew for Sake On Air.

Sake Future Summit 2020 Revisited (Part 2)

In the past we’ve hosted episodes with a handful of non-Japanese individuals that have dedicated themselves to the work and lifestyle that comes along with being a kurabito (brewer) in Japan. We’ve even had a guest that’s been so deep in the game for so long that he’s approached toji status.This week, however, we sit down for a sort of fireside chat with an inspiring and insightful young woman who not only committed herself to the rhythm of a sake brewery, but in doing so, made herself a part of the small mountain town that it resides in, and all that comes along with it.Lucky for us, in Water, Wood & Wild Things, accomplished writer, artist and food stylist Hannah Kirshner was kind enough to document it for all of us, as well.Scheduled to release on March 23rd via Viking, Hannah conveys her experiences in Yamanaka since 2015 in a manner that I’ve rarely experienced in books crafted to communicate an experience of life in Japan. Maybe it’s because the book isn’t really about Japan. While in Yamanaka, Hannah has set up shop in a sake brewery, in this case Matsuura Shuzo, makers of Shishi no Sato brand sake, committed herself to apprenticing behind the bar with a borderline-obsessed sake evangelist and service professional, relentlessly pursued the “way” of tea, dedicated her time and energy to the lathe with a woodturning artisan of national acclaim, insistently pursued the inherent warmth in the craft of charcoal making, grown indoctrinated into the world of wild game hunting, and all of the other things you might imagine (and many you wouldn’t) that would accompany such a lifestyle and commitment.Thankfully, there are a lot of books these days that focus with precision on what sake is. In Water, Wood & Wild Things, by shedding light on the ways in which the people of Yamanaka’s livelihood is interwoven into the fabric of their work, community, and hence their identity, we finally get a voice that shares with us why sake – and the ecosystem that it’s inseparable from – is important. You can help new listeners discover Sake On Air by leaving us a review on Apple Podcasts or your favorite service for podcast enjoyment. Send us your thoughts at questions@sakeonair.com and follow along with us on  Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook. There’s also a lot of great sake and shochu-inspired programming over on YouTube.We’ll be back with more Sake On Air very, very soon. March is going to be a busy month. You can thank us later.Kampai! Sake On Air is made possible with the generous support of the Japan Sake & Shochu Makers Association and is broadcast from the Japan Sake & Shochu Information Center in Tokyo. The show is a co-production between Export Japan and Potts.K Productions, with audio production by Frank Walter.Our theme, “Younger Today Than Tomorrow” was composed by forSomethingNew for Sake On Air.

Water, Wood, and Wild Things (and Sake!) with Hannah Kirshner

A bi-weekly podcast exploring the stories of sake. Brought to you by experts on the front lines of the industry in Japan.

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Sake On Air

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