Sake On Air

Since hosting Sake Future Summit 2020 back at the end of November, we’ve since gone and spliced up that nearly 30 hours of dialogue and nearly as many programs into individual videos to help make topics, speakers and conversations easier to find and enjoy.Having been conducted with a visual component, viewing these on the official Sake On Air YouTube channel is arguably the best way to take in a lot of these discussions, however there are a lot of great ideas and conversations that we felt ought to translate just as well to an audio-only format. That’s why this week we’ve decided to weave together segments from some of those sessions into a podcast.For our listeners that have already exhausted everything from the actual Summit, this will likely be revisiting familiar territory. But for those that missed out on a lot of the programming, hopefully this will serve as a meaty digest of the depth and breadth explored, as well as prompt you to go back and visit or revisit the great conversations that are all archived over on our YouTube channel.It’s worth noting, however, that a little more than half of the programming for the Sake Future Summit was comprised of interviews, tours, presentations and discussions conducted with individuals entrenched in the Japanese side of the industry, and as a result, were conducted in Japanese. On YouTube, all of those discussions have been translated, subtitled and made available and accessible. However, due to their nature, that means that roughly half of the programming is still tethered to YouTube. If you’re so inclined, we highly recommend checking those out, as well. It’s material that we feel uniquely privileged to have been able to organize and deliver, and offers a great deal of insight into the topics and conversations permeating the Japanese sake and shochu industries. In this episode you’ll hear from hear:- A convincing argument for selecting sake over wine with local Taiwanese cuisine with Wolfgang Angyal (President & CEO of Riedel Japan Co. Ltd.) and Michael Ou (Owner/chef of Hanabi Izakaya; President of Ho-Wei Sake Imports in Taiwan).- How dedication to the craft of imo (sweet potato) shochu rises above all with Stephen Lyman (Author and Shochu Specialist), Tekkan Wakamatsu (Master Brewer-Distiller at Yamato Zakura Shuzo), and Maya Aley (Shochu Expert).- About the true motivations behind saving a sake brewery through unprecedented partnerships with Marcus Consolini and Yasutaka Daimon of Daimon Brewery.- Tips for getting the most out of Imo, Kome, and Mugi shochu with your food, both at the bar with Shingo Gokan (Founder of SG Group) and Joshin Atone (Brand Manager for SG Shochu), as well as at home.- Why the future expansion of koji outside of Japan is potentially more exciting and dynamic than here in the homeland, with Jeremy Umansky (Chef/owner of Larder Delicatessen and Bakery; Author) and Koichi Higuchi (Director of Higuchi Matsunosuke Shoten Co., Ltd.)- How music legend Richie Hawtin took what he’s built through ENTER.Sake and brought a new vision to life in the midst of a global pandemic with Sake 36.- About ways to interpret and untangle the increasingly confusing relationship between mugi (barley) shochu and Japanese whiskey with renowned author and journalist, Brian Ashcraft. With the Sake Future Summit, we recognize that we tried to thread the needle a bit, by hosting a mix of rather industry-centric discussion, alongside a good deal of more light-hearted entertainment focusing on the simple enjoyment of sake and shochu. Our thought was that, the people, places, processes and activities surrounding these amazing drinks are just inherently. Our hope then is that, whether you’re just getting to know what sake and shochu have to offer, or have long been committed to these koji-born beverages, you’ll agree.If you enjoy Sake On Air, help new listeners discover the show by leaving us a review on Apple Podcasts or whatever service you depend upon for your podcast enjoym...

Anyone who has heard of a little country by the name of “Japan” has probably heard of “Kyoto”. Anyone who has sat through a formal sake education program has probably heard of “Fushimi”, the small region of Kyoto often touted as one of the historically defining regions of the entire category. Nine times out of ten, when referring to Kyoto in the context of sake, that person is probably commenting on the historical role and influence of Fushimi in some form or another.Here at Sake On Air we’ve yet to dedicate an entire episode to any specific sake-producing region: until now.While we could have started with any one of hundreds of the unique and fascination regions across Japan, kicking off this new experiment with Fushimi came about for two reasons. The first, it’s a region that gets emphasized more than just about any other (aside from maybe Nada, in Hyogo Prefecture), but also seems to get glossed over rather quickly. The region’s “significance” is praised, but the examination into what that significance is often leaves a bit to be desired.The second reason is that we were able to connect with a well-qualified individual that was up to the challenge. This week we welcome a very special guest, sake educator, writer and researcher, Ayuko Yamaguchi. Being a resident of Kyoto, Ms. Yamaguchi’s commitment to doubling-down on the sake stories close-to-home has led her on an endless journey scouring Fushimi’s contributions to the world of sake, both historically, as well as in the present.Joined by Christopher Hughes, Sebastien Lemoine, and Justin Potts, this week the team takes a deep dive into what’s largely considered to be one of the industry’s most influential sake-producing regions and ask the question: Does it live up to the hype? If you enjoy Sake On Air, you can help new listeners discover the show by leaving us a review on Apple Podcasts or whatever service you depend upon for your podcast enjoyment. You can contact us at questions@sakeonair.staba.jp with any thoughts, feelings or kind words about the show. Go ahead and follow us on  Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook as well, if you’d be so kind, and don’t forget to subscribe to us over on YouTube.We that hope everyone’s 2021 is off to a sake and shochu-fueled happy and healthy start. Japan is still under a State of Emergency as of the recording and release of this episode, which means that we’ll be continuing to conduct our recordings at a distance, with “on the road” updates kept to a minimum. That being said, we’re going to continue to do what we can to keep all of our listeners updated and in-the-loop. If there’s a topic you’re keen to hear us explore amidst the current climate, do let us know. While we can’t make any promises, we like to do what we can to deliver.Thanks for listening, and 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.

How many of our listeners are familiar with amazake? Despite having clear progenitor qualities to this show’s favorite beverage, this non-alcoholic, koji-fermented drink hasn’t quite amassed the international mindshare of its intoxicating cousin – yet.Although the core principle and function in preparing and making amazake shares a great deal with the early stages of sake-making, probably one of the biggest reasons it has taken a while to reach the global stage is the fact that Japan more or less forgot about it themselves. For a number of reasons (discussed in the show), over the past few generations amazake in Japan has largely come to be equated with a sake-kasu-based drink pumped with sugar and served warm for a small handful of ceremonial or celebratory occasions. While plenty delicious in its own right, it’s also entirely different from “traditional” koji-fermented amazake of the kind that has reclaimed space across Japan’s supermarket shelves just in the past decade.The producer largely credited with helping to re-create and prove the viability of the incredibly delicious, yet largely-forgotten amazake market, is Hakkaisan.Regular listeners and those hovering in the sake sphere will most likely be familiar with Hakkaisan brand sake. Despite being one of Japan’s largest sake producers, their dedication to small-batch production, high-quality in their most affordable lines (futsushu, honjozo), along with truly exceptional ginjo-styles, has made them a mainstay both in Japan, as well as in countless markets across the globe.What many of our listeners may not know is that Hakkaisan also has separate operations (known as, Sennen Koujiya) that create all sorts of fermented food and beverage products of incredibly high quality emphasizing local jobs and ingredients. The merging of the craftmanship and competencies from across these multiple endeavors came at a perfect time, resulting in a venture into amazake production that was transformative both for the company, as well as national mindshare surrounding this traditionally and culturally significant beverage.For this week’s show we’re joined by Shoko Baba, who is the International Marketing & Sales Section Chief with the team at Hakkaisan based in Japan. Both a teacher and a student of the wide world of Japan’s fermented foods and beverages, her role at Hakkaisan extends far beyond sake or any one specific market. With a hand in the many ambitious frontiers of both Hakkaisan’s international and domestic project development, along with being a relentless advocate of Japan’s culture of fermentation, Shoko has seen Hakkaisan’s amazake frenzy at its peak and is gearing up for its future in new markets outside of Japan. This week Marie and Justin join our fantastic guest to discuss the cultural and functional relevance of amazake in Japan, its evolution over time, its perceived health benefits, relationship to sake, popular uses, and the process through which Hakkaisan made Japan a believer in the importance of this incredible beverage all over again.You can help more listeners discover Sake On Air by leaving us a review on Apple Podcasts. Feel free to also contact us at questions@sakeonair.staba.jp with any questions, comments, or insights. You can follow us on  Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook, or subscribe to us over on YouTube.We’ve got a lot in the works for 2021 that we can’t wait to share with you all. Here’s to a great deal more sake and shochu love in the year ahead.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.

Any of our listeners that tuned into Sake Future Summit 2020 will likely already be familiar with the brilliant work of this week’s guest, Hotel de Crillion Chef Sommelier, Xavier Thuizat. In that session, together with Marco Pelletier (of Vantre), we looked at what it will take to insert sake into the upper echelon of the French dining experience.One crucial topic we didn’t touch upon, however, is the unprecedented sake competition Xavier established which thrust him into the sake industry limelight. That competition, as likely many of our listeners are familiar, is Kura Master.Having been wooed by the world of sake, and then for years worked painstakingly in order to integrate it into some of the world’s most illustrious wine programs, in order to further raise the bar and expand the reach of the category he saw a need to create a standard that spoke to the individuals at the front lines of the French dining experience–sommeliers–thus gathering mindshare for sake on France’s strictest stage: the dining table.For this episode, our eloquent and thoughtful in-house Frenchman Sebastien Lemoine takes the reigns, while Chris Hughes and Justin Potts co-pilot a fascinating conversation exploring what it takes to create a world class beverage competition from the ground up, along with the decisions and reasoning that led to Kura Master taking the form that is has today, and what we can expect in the years to come. You can find our previous interview with Xavier from Sake Future Summit 2020 inside the event’s playlist on our official YouTube channel, along with an additional 30 hours of sake and shochu-inspired exploration. Whether you’re settling in for a long, quiet holiday, or cracking a celebratory bottle of sake to ring in the New Year, you should be able to find something amidst that sake marathon to enhance your appreciation of what went into that special bottle of koji-inspired alchemy. If you find a moment this holiday, please leave us a review on Apple Podcasts. We’d also love to have you reach out to us at questions@sakeonair.staba.jp to share with us what you thought of the show in 2020. You can follow us on  Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook, or subscribe to us over on YouTube.Wherever you may call home, the wildness that defined 2020 surely touched all of our listeners in some capacity. With eyes on the year to come, we’re going to keep seeking out and creating ways to help make sake and shochu a more meaningful and enjoyable element to define good times ahead.Thanks so much for all of our listeners and supporters for sticking with us – and with sake – throughout this turbulent year. We can’t wait to do our part in boosting the number of reasons to “Kampai!” in 2021.Here’s wishing you all a very Happy and Healthy New Year from the team 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.

An exploration into the various types of drinking vessels and related wares that have for centuries shaped the service and enjoyment of sake is one of the most frequently requested show topics that we get.That’s why this week we’re thrilled to (finally!) welcome Robert Yellin to the show.Owner and curator of Robert Yellin Yakimono Gallery in the heart of Kyoto, over the past 30+ years Robert has dedicated himself to the exploration of the world of yakimono – literally “fired things,” referring specifically to Japanese pottery and ceramics – a life’s work that has made him one of the world’s leading non-Japanese experts in the field.Robert’s expertise extends far beyond just the world of sake-related wares, however this week we hone in on an array of enthralling (and largely) sake-specific works, discussing history, types, regional styles, and more.Conducting our interview at a distance via ZOOM, entirely by chance Robert was visited by an artisan colleague packing a suitcase of extraordinary works just as we began recording. If you notice a bit of banter in the background, that’s it. (We may have to try and get a short video segment from this recording up on our YouTube channel sometime in the coming weeks, as well…!)When it comes to drinking, serving, and enjoying sake, there really is no “right” or “wrong” way to go about it. However, if you have the curiosity and access to explore, experiment and integrate the world of yakimono into your experience, it opens up an entirely new world as deep and enriching as the liquid itself. If this week’s visit with Robert doesn’t spark that interest, we don’t know what will. Sebastien Lemoine, Rebekah Wilson-Lye and John Gauntner are piloting this week, with Justin Potts occasionally playing the role of the annoying backseat driver. Ready your tokkuri and settle in.  We now have almost all of the sessions from Sake Future Summit 2020 conveniently compiled into a playlist on our official YouTube channel for your holiday enjoyment. If you missed out (and there are a few that YouTube cut from the primary recording), we’ve got you covered. The remainder should be up in time for the holidays.Please leave us a review on Apple Podcasts, and reach out to us at questions@sakeonair.staba.jp if you have any questions, comments, thoughts, suggestions, or messages for us here at the show. You can follow us on  Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook, or subscribe to us over on YouTube.We’ll have a bit more Sake On Air for you before we close out 2020. Until then, have a happy and healthy sake and shochu-filled holiday. Thanks for joining us this year.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.

Last January Sebastien and Justin travelled to Shodoshima, the island of kioke, shoyu, and olives, located off the coast of Kagawa Prefecture of Shikoku Island in Western Japan.The purpose? To take part in the Kioke Summit hosted by Yamaroku Shoyu. Why are we visiting a shoyu (soy sauce) maker for an episode of Sake On Air? A quick internet search for any combination of the key words above will tell you why, but here’s the gist: With almost no one left in Japan (which means, in the world) that possesses the skill and knowledge for crafting large-size kioke (wooden tanks) used for the fermentation and storage of sake, soy sauce, miso, vinegar, and occasionally other fermented beverages and flavorings, Japan is at risk of losing a massive element of its microbial DNA. That includes the character, quality and originality that makes Japanese regional cuisine—and Japanese cuisine in general—the delicious wonder that it is.Owner of Yamaroku Shoyu, Yasuo Yamamoto, took it upon himself to develop a means of reversing that trend. For years he and a dedicated team bound together both locally and across Japan have been honing those woodworking skills themselves and then training others around Japan that are in a position to reinstate kioke into their production. The future of Japan’s kioke (and if you haven’t caught on yet, the flavors that define Japan) is at risk of being lost and Yamamoto-san and team are close to being the last bastion.For years Yamamoto-san and team have been hosting what they call a “Kioke Summit,” where those in the industry come to learn the craft and share the culture of kioke. Back in January, for the first time they opened the event up a bit more to those on the periphery of the industry and hosted something more akin to an actual summit, with guest speakers, panels and lectures spread across several days with kioke construction serving as an ongoing backdrop.The incredible work, energy, passion and sense of community is something above and beyond what any of us could have imagined. Sadly, we can only transmit a fraction through the airwaves, but I think our sense of awe of the entire ordeal shines through in our discussion.And fret not, as we are indeed discussing sake and shochu as well, in the context of kioke. We touch on the input from participating breweries and distilleries, including Kenbishi, Aramasa, Satsuma Shuzo, Yamanashuzo (makers of Okutamba) and more. Plus, Sebastien pays a visit to the island’s only sake brewery, Morikuni, and shares a bit of his experience.We’re lucky to be joined again this week by Jamie Graves, Japanese Beverage Portfolio Manager for Skurnik Wines & Spirits and previous guest from Episode 16, who made the trek to the island with us. He tells us about his trip to Kenbishi the week prior and the unexpected discoveries and chance meetings from throughout the Summit. Speaking of Summits, for those of you that missed out on, Sake Future Summit 2020 back on November 21-22, we’ve begun to upload and archive the various sessions from that informative and inspiring weekend into a playlist on our official YouTube channel. The remainder are scheduled to go up over the next couple of weeks, so do check back occasionally and shareDay 1 YouTube Archive: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zqP_2k2S7iEDay 2 YouTube Archive: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lQu2XcwtxpY*Note that due to YouTube’s streaming and archiving restrictions five sessions did not get included in the Day 1 archive. Some of these have been uploaded to the playlist already, with the remainder scheduled to go up in the coming weeks.We somehow managed to produce more programming over a weekend than we do in an entire year for the show. That being said, the podcast is where our home is! If you appreciate what we’ve put out into the world, please do leave us a review on Apple Podcasts, or reach out to us at questions@sakeonair.staba.jp. You can follow us on  Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook,

Thank you. Two years ago Sebastien, Big Chris, Justin, John and Little Chris huddled around some microphones after-hours at the Japan Sake & Shochu Information Center and tried to sort out how to approach an episode of Sake On Air. We stumbled our way through a year with all kinds of amazing guests and inspiring events. Along the way, we were incredibly lucky to be able to welcome Rebekah and Marie into the fold. Over the next year, things got a bit smoother and more polished.And then COVID happened, and for the first time in the show’s history we started doing shows from a distance. We had always really enjoyed that the show was conducted entirely in-person, however with new challenges brought new opportunities. We were able to welcome guests to the show we wouldn’t otherwise have been able to convene with, and we put in a great deal of work gathering information for our listeners during these unprecedented times.And here we are, exactly two years and 50 episodes later. Thanks to the blessing and support of Imada-san and the Japan Sake & Shochu Makers Association, along with one of the luckiest chance encounters imaginable in crossing paths with Frank, the man who really makes it all work, we were able to get the entire cast together – in true, physical space – to celebrate this special occasion.As sake (and shochu) are still relatively niche in the grand scheme of things, conversations and perspective on the categories tend to get boiled down to the lowest common denominator – the love for the beverage itself. With this cast, crew, and our incredible community of listeners and supporters across the globe, we feel so incredibly honored and proud to be able to share and contribute to the wider, ever-expanding dialogue growing with the world of sake. For us, these beverages represent much more than merely liquid in a bottle. It’s something that has resonated with us and changed our lives in all kinds of incredible ways we never could have imagined. With Sake On Air, being able to continue to grow and develop our excitement, perspectives and relationship with sake and shochu together with such a vast population of sake-lovers and sake-curious has been rewarding beyond words. We can’t thank you enough.So, in order to celebrate two years and 50 episodes…we celebrated. Last month we got the entire cast together for a two-hour live Q&A, while welcoming previous guests Dave Joll (Zenkuro), Andre Bishop (Sake Master), Natsuki Kikuya (Museum of Sake), and Pablo Alomar Salvioni (S&A) for live discussions and debates, and delving into some of the most heated conversations we’ve had to-date here at Sake On Air. It’s unquestionably a sake-fueled session, but if it’s any indication of what’s to come in year number three, we’re already very excited. Maybe most important of all, Sake Future Summit 2020 is happening on November 21-22. That’s next weekend. There’s more programming scheduled over a single weekend that what we’re able to produce in an entire year at Sake On Air. This is an entirely new endeavor for us. We don’t know how it’s all going to go, but we’re as excited for this as we were when we first started the show. We certainly hope you’ll join us for this very special event.Day 1 YouTube Stream: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zqP_2k2S7iEDay 2 YouTube Stream: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lQu2XcwtxpY Feel free to leave us a review on Apple Podcasts, or reach out to us at questions@sakeonair.staba.jp. You can follow us on  Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook, or join us over on YouTube, as well.Thanks for an incredible two years, everyone.Here’s to the next two.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” is composed by forSomethin...

The role of the “kurabito” – one who works in a sake brewery – is incredibly varied. While the traditional image is that of a team of brewers hunkered down for a long brewing season of focus and isolation, nowadays the term has come to encompass the diverse range of tasks at the brewery involved in seeing a bottle of sake through from start to finish. That being said, for the most part, having a physical hand in the process of crafting sake, in more cases than not, is often central to the role.New sake breweries are popping up right and left internationally, creating opportunities for ambitious brewers to experience the craft closer to home, however the role as it exists in Japan is very much something unique to beverage’s relationship to the livelihoods, people, communities and culture that it has been central to for centuries. This makes the role of working in a sake brewery in Japan incredibly special and intriguing, yet equally demanding and challenging.As sake’s prevalence has grown internationally, so has the number of non-Japanese investing a significant part of their time and energy to the act of making sake here in Japan. While those cases are still few and far between, you can only expect it to become more common.This week we invited three gentlemen from very different backgrounds with different motivations; their common thread being that they have all found themselves making sake as kurabito here in Japan, each at very different breweries of very different scale, style and philosophy.We’re joined this week by Andy Russell at Imada Shuzo in rural Hiroshima, makers of Fukucho, Jorge Navarrete of Matsui Shuzo in the heart of Kyoto, makers of Kagura, and J.J. over at Imanishi Seibei Shoten in Nara, makers of Harushika.Together with Sebastien, Chris and Justin, the group explores the nature of this truly invaluable, yet incredibly demanding, and equally rewarding career path. Grab a glass, sit back, and travel with these inspiring gentlemen to their respective locales for a taste of life in the kura. If you haven’t heard, Sake Future Summit 2020 is happening on November 21-22! Imagine more than a year’s worth of Sake On Air on steroids, with visuals, packed into a single weekend. A lot of the sessions have been announced, but we still have lots of exciting announcements to come. Stay tuned!Feel free to leave us a review on Apple Podcasts, or reach out to us at questions@sakeonair.staba.jp. You can follow us on  Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook, or join us over on YouTube, as well.Thanks for tuning in with us this week and we’ll be back with more Sake On Air in 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” is composed by forSomethingNew for Sake On Air.

Drink Sake. Stay Soba. It’s this simple mantra that has made Seattle’s Hannyatou and its neighboring soba destination Kamonegi almost overnight mainstays for the sake-inspired community of the Pacific Northwest.It was almost exactly one year ago that Justin sat down with and renowned soba chef Mutsuko Soma and sake specialist partner-in-crime Russell King at their (then) newly-opened fermented creation-driven sake bar, Hannyatou. The pair’s appreciation for craft along with their fearless creativity have turned their co-creation just two doors down from Chef Soma’s soba haven into one of the most exciting sake stops, not just in the Northwest, but arguably in the country.In less than three years, how do you go about bringing to life, not one, but two hit restaurants able to maneuver right for that elusive sweet spot between tradition and free exploration, pushing the envelope for traditional Japanese food and beverage while making it feel like a completely natural progression? That’s what we went to find out.You might also be wondering why an interview conducted almost a year ago is just now making it to the airwaves. Originally scheduled for an early-Spring release, 2020 happened. We could have brought the interview out sooner, but given all that was happening and the surplus of challenges facing restaurants everywhere, we wanted to make sure we had a show that represented the dedication and hard work of Soma and Russell to the best of our ability. Not wanting to shower them with questions while they were scrambling to feel out their new format in the current reality, we decided to wait a bit.The good news is that the latter half of the show you get to hear Justin catch up with Russell as he tells us all about how the last 6 months have played out, their setbacks and successes, the evolution of both Kamonegi and Hannyatou, and their positive vision for the still unforeseeable future of sake dining and sales in Seattle.Grab your favorite ochoko or guinomi and settle in for a journey into Seattle’s sake heartland this week. While you’re sipping along,  you’re welcome to leave us a review on Apple Podcasts, or reach out to us at questions@sakeonair.staba.jp. You can keeps tabs on us on  Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook, or join us over on YouTube, as well.Thanks for tuning in with us this week and we’ll be back with more Sake On Air in a couple of weeks.Kampai! *Note: Since our follow-up interview with Russell King only a few short weeks ago, he has announced that he’ll be leaving Hannyatou to pursue other endeavors and focus on family. All of us here at Sake On Air wish him happiness, health and success on all of his adventures to come. 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 production and editing by Frank Walter.Our theme, “Younger Today Than Tomorrow” is composed by forSomethingNew for Sake On Air.

Lately it feels as though we’re teetering on the verge of shochu’s day in the limelight. Japan’s indigenous spirit with about as much market and mindshare as the beverage more commonly associated with the island nation – sake – has been gradually demanding more and more attention amongst some many of the world’s most prolific bartenders, mixologists and connoisseurs of fine spirits. However, despite the category’s all-too-common association at home, the incredibly diverse, distinct and delicious category has struggled to find a way to reach the masses.With The SG Shochu, internationally renowned bartender and arguably currently the world’s most successful bar owner, Shingo Gokan, and his team at the SG Group are setting out to change that. Should they manage to realize their lofty goals for the product line, and the category itself, shochu could become a staple behind bars around the world…maybe by the time you’re reading this.And the man responsible for helping lead that charge is long-time SG Group bartender, now The SG Shochu brand manager, Joshin Atone. For this episode, Joshin packed a bottle each of IMO, MUGI and KOME and joined Justin and Sebastien in the studio, where the trio sipped (and guzzled, as you’ll hear) their way through the process of developing a line of shochu from scratch that’s persuasive enough to claim a permanent spot both behind bars across the globe, while communicating what makes the category so unique and special in the first place.Oh, and Snarky Puppy fans might enjoy this week’s show (and shochu) as well. This week we’re (finally) back at the Japan Sake & Shochu Information Center, recording in the actual physical presence of one another for the first time in a long time. We missed this format! There will still be more online recordings coming down the pipe, but it was a nice reminder of how pleasant – and important – it is to be able to sit down together with our guest, and one another.Go ahead and pour yourself a glass (or several) and settle in with us on this week’s episode of Sake On Air.When you’re done, go ahead and  drop us a review on Apple Podcasts, or reach out to us at questions@sakeonair.staba.jp. You can follow our current limited movement on  Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook, or join us over on YouTube, as well.Thanks for listening and we’ll be back with more Sake On Air in 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.*Please note that the official theme song for The SG Shochu made by Snarky Puppy is not what is playing in this week’s show. You’ll likely have to wait just a bit more for that.Our theme, “Younger Today Than Tomorrow” is composed by forSomethingNew for Sake On Air.