Oxford meets Japanese Sake Makers

On 28th June at the Saïd College Business School in Oxford, a delegation representing Japanese sake makers gave a talk on sake followed by a tasting reception. This prestigious and popular event offered students a rare opportunity to meet sake makers in person.
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Japanese hospitality at Oxford University Ball

On a mid-summer’s night of the 27th June at the St John’s College Commemoration Ball in Oxford, Japanese ‘omotenashi’ hospitality was extended to a distinguished party of guests. Founded in 1555, St John’s College is one of the oldest and most prestigious colleges of the University, with notable alumni including Japan’s own Prince Fumihito.
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IWC 2014 Sake Trophy

IWC 2014 Sake Trophies have been announced on the 14th May. The best sake of each category is awarded the Category Trophy. The runner-up sake are awarded the regional trophies with the name of prefecture or city. The overall Champion of IWC Sake 2014 will be announced on the 16th July at the IWC Awards dinner.
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IWC 2014 Sake Judging

In London, on the 14th and 15th April, IWC 2014 sake judging was undertaken with a staggering new record of 725 entries in 7 categories. This year, two new categories of sparkling sake and ordinary sake were added to the original repertoire of Junmai, Junmai Gijo/Daiginjo, Honjozo, Ginjo/Daiginjo and Koshu.
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Sake evening at the Sainsbury Institute, Norwich

As a part of the Friends of the Sainsbury Institute programme, a Sake Tasting and Talk event was held on 8 April, giving the Institute’s supporters an opportunity to learn about sake from an expert in an informal and friendly atmosphere, and to enjoy tasting different kinds of sake, which is becoming increasingly popular in the UK.
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IWC 2014 Sake Competition

In partnership with International Wine Challenge (IWC), the Sake Samurai Association is pleased to announce the IWC 2014 sake competition schedule.
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Sake Seminar gives brewers’ insights to local staff

Following the Sake Evening at the Houses of Parliament on March 26th, the Embassy of Japan in the UK hosted a sake seminar for key Japanese expat staff working in the London branches of Japanese government agencies. The aim of the seminar was to provide up-to-date information and brewery-perspective insight to staff tasked with support the import and marketing of sake to British audiences.
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Sake Flows at the Palace of Westminster

Sake Samurai UK is pleased to report that on March 26th five of Japan’s most commercially and critically successful sake makers presented a selection of their most exceptional sake at a special Sake Evening hosted by the British-Japanese Parliamentary Group in association with the Sake Samurai Association.
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Top Chefs and Restaurants Celebrate UNESCO Inscription of Washoku

The Embassy of Japan in the UK hosted three-star Michelin chef Yoshihiro Murata from Japan and the UK’s very own Heston Blumenthal, as well as nine outstanding restaurants and culinary associations, to celebrate the inscription of washoku on the UNESCO list of intangible cultural heritage. A selection of sake was showcased as a unique national drink and an important ingredient in Japanese culinary culture.
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WSET Prepares to Launch New Qualification in Sake

The Wine and Spirit Education Trust (WSET), in anticipation of the launch of a new sake qualification in August 2014 has run a series of sake seminars for sommeliers and distributors, supported by the Japanese Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries to educate WSET sake instructors.
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Discovering Sake at BlackRock

In collaboration with the Japan Society and BlackRock, Sake Samurai hosted a screening of Discovering Sake, the MAFF-sponsored series of films introducing sake, following by a tasting.
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Dassai to Open Retail Outlet, Restaurant in France

Award-winning brewery Asahi Shuzo will be opening its first overseas retail outlet, in Paris, France, in spring 2014. The outlet will also feature an outlet. The brewery established an overseas office, Dassai France, in August 2013 and having selected a location is now conducting training for local staff.
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UK’s Largest Japanese Food Distributor Purchased by Takara Shuzo

Japanese brewery Takara Shuzo announced on 19th September that it had purchased Tazaki Foods, the UK's largest distributor of Japanese food and drink, on 24 September. Tazaki Foods has been supplying authentic Japanese ingredients, including rice, sake, and mirin, to Japanese restaurants and other trade customers since 1978.
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Kitaya Win Brings Joy to Fukuoka, Kyushu

Daiginjo Gokujo Kitaya was crowned 2013 IWC Champion Sake at the IWC Awards Dinner this July, and the Kitaya brewery has been celebrating its success and enjoying the enhanced media profile befitting of the winners of the most prestigious sake competition outside of Japan ever since.
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BlackRock Sushi and Sake evening

For the second consecutive year, the Sake Samurai Association UK team lead by Rie Yoshitake and sake experts supported the multicultural network evening at global investment manager BlackRock's headquarters in London.
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Susanne Rost-Aoki, IWC 2013 Sake Contributor Award Winner

Susanne was born in Giessen, in Hesse state, Germany. She first discovered sake during a trip to Japan in 2004, when she was shown her first glass of daiginjo. In October of the same year, she launched Sake Kontor, a German-based company involved in the import, wholesale, online sales and consulting of premium sake.
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Kuramoto Dinner at UMU

The annual Kuramoto Dinner, in partnership with the Sake Samurai and the IWC, was hosted by Michelin-starred restaurant UMU. It was attended by trophy winning sake brewers in London to attend the IWC Awards Dinner.
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