Guest blog post: California Sake gaining prominence

By Yuji Matsumoto
Master Sake Sommelier

In California there are more than 4,000 Japanese restaurants operating which are the largest numbers in the U.S. Due to the popularity of Japanese foods, related foods such as rice, soy sauce, miso, Japanese beer and sake consumption has grown dramatically. Major Japanese beer companies produce their beer here or in Canada for mainly economic reasons, and other main ingredients, such as rice, miso and soy sauce, are mostly grown or made in California.

Sake, which is made from rice also are depending on California grown rice. Major sake companies, such as Takara, Ozeki, Yaegake and Gekkeikan, are increasing their production capacity in order to meet the demand here locally. In fact, in the latest fiscal year, more than 15 million pounds of California rice were used to make sake, an increase of more than 15 percent. For a very long time, they have developed their skills and brewing facilities to make better sake. Logistically (sake from Japan takes at least two months from its production) and economically (the Japanese Yen has appreciated 20 percent from last year) California Sake has a big advantage compare to sake made in Japan. Still the variety of California sake is limited, the quality has improved so much in the past five years. I am confident that the California sake will be as famous as California wine in near future.

Some of California’s best sake will be featured at the 10th annual Cherry Blossom Festival in the Little Tokyo area of Los Angeles. You will find more information about this exciting event at CherryBlossomFestivalsocal.org.

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As the first Master Sake Sommelier from Japan, Yuji Matsumoto has the knowledge to bring Sake to the forefront of alcoholic beverage choices in the USA. As a former restaurant owner, founder of the California Sushi Academy and Strategic Marketing Manager for a major Japanese Food & Beverage distributor, Yuji is able to demonstrate a superior technical knowledge of Sake and bridge the gap with Western Cuisines & cultures through the “ism of Sake.”

Matsumoto is currently the President of the Sake Institute of America and plans to share his passion & knowledge of Sake with Mainstream America. On October 15, 2010, Matsumoto was awarded the honor of Sake Samurai by the Japan Sake Brewers Association Junior Council as the great pioneer of spreading Japanese sake culture in the USA. He is one of the first honorees as a Japanese living in the US.

Yuji Matsumoto first came to the US in 1988.