Yuichiro Kawahito, president of Kawatsuru Brewery in Kagawa, is the epitome of the word genki – he is full of energy and life. He took on the brewery in 2004 after his father, making him the 6th generation owner. I visited Kawatsuru Brewery on a sunny day...
My love for sake can be traced back to a winter night in 2006 when I had my first sip of Shinkame junmai. After that night, I was hooked. Shinkame had revealed to me the potential for sake that I had never known. I wanted to...
Since opening in 2015, Sequoia Sake Brewery has been a gem in the heart of the Bay Area. Located just south of Portrero Hill, founders Noriko Kamei and Jake Myrick use their space as a full-scale sake brewery, as well as...
The first time I tried an Imada Shuzo (brewery) sake was in 2014 when we opened our bottle shop in Oakland. The savory acidity of the Fukucho Forgotton Fortune junmai made my mouth water, and I have been...
We visited Kitaya Brewery in Kyushu, Japan, where we met the brewers, workers, and got a tour of the sake-making facilities.
We took a field trip to the Bay Area's very own sake brewery – Sequoia Sake in San Francisco, which specializes in 3 sakes: Nama, Genshu, and Nigori.
The makers of beloved Japanese Hitachino craft beer (Kiuchi Brewery) will distill whisky next!
It was our true pleasure to visit the Hitachino Brewery in Japan last week where Hitachino Nest is brewed.
We visited Oregon sake brewery, Sake One. Operating since 1998, Sake One produces all Momokawa sakes.
Sake is one of those things that really makes you appreciate locality. It's like the meyer lemons in Berkeley. It's totally cliche and played out, but local food traditions are a sight to behold. The fact that they are native to their land, makes...
In 2011, we visited Hakkaisan, a sake brewery in Niigata. As one of the most well-known breweries in Japan, it was a wonderful experience to walk through the vast facilities, hosted by the production master, Mr. Nagumo. You can read about our visit here. Yoko and...
During our visit to Aoki Brewery in Niigata, we were told that the three most important factors of brewing sake is the rice, the water and the people. The rice that breweries use for sake-making are not the usual grains you find at the grocery...
Kayoko and I go to Niigata every February. Our friends in Tokyo gasp in horror, "Why would you go somewhere so cold? In the middle of February?" The reason is kind of simple: it's low season and getting around is cheap and less crowded. And...
Our Japan trip last month was a jam-packed, 5-city tour with barware factory tours, sake brewery pit-stops and a visit to a craft brewery! Niigata Beer has been around for 17 years now, brewing beers for the local market, and also making beers for other...
I recently spent a month visiting my family in Tokyo. I had so many great meals, went to an onsen (hot springs), a winery, and paid my respects to my family's gravesite. Many places to visit. I also had an opportunity to meet my new Instagram friend,...
2010 was an excellent year for beer! Here are my top five beer experiences of the year. Avec Les Bons Voeux (Brasserie Dupont) Avec Les Bons is French for, "With best wishes." This beer is a Saison (or...
