Australia’s enthusiasm for Japanese sake is moving into overdrive, both local brewing operations and importation are booming. Kenji Iwa, one of the leading sake artisans in Australia, has noticed a dramatic increase on Aussie consumers’ willingness to adopt this age-old beverage. In recent years, Australia has emerged as one of the most dynamic markets for Japanese sake. This change represents the country’s increasing appreciation for the beverage’s distinctive taste and cultural importance.
According to Yoshi Honda, an Australian-based sake importer, the gains in demand are actually more dramatic on the ground. Ever since he first started importing Japanese sake more than a decade and a half ago, he’s seen a significant rise in clientele. In 2024, Australia imported an astonishing 677,962 liters of Japanese sake. This value was almost three times what Australia imported in 2011, positioning Australia as Japan’s eighth largest sake export market.
Rising Demand for Japanese Sake
Japan’s Chief Sake Samurai, Kenji Iwa, is quoted as saying that Australia is now the most sake-crazy place on earth. Most importantly, he shares what’s making Australians develop a growing attraction to the drink. Whether it’s in pies or sweetbreads, they’re eager to discover its distinct flavor and deep cultural heritage.
“I think that Australia has the most interest in Japanese sake at the moment.” – Kenji Iwa
This new dynamic interest in sake can be traced to numerous influences, including tourism and culinary fads. Eat your heart out Australia Australians are stampeding to Japan in record numbers. They return not just with amazing memories but a newfound passion for all things Japanese culinary and beverage!
Quentin Hanley, owner of Melbourne Sake, Australia’s first craft sake brewery, is in agreement with this view. He notes that top-tier restaurants are starting to use sake as a menu accent, sitting it alongside wines to deepen culinary experiences. This trend exemplifies a real excitement for sake that goes further than just drinking it in a more tsuji style way.
“We saw high-end restaurants doing sake and wine pairings, and that told us there was real interest.” – Quentin Hanley
In addition to increased restaurant offerings, major Japanese sake festivals have taken place in Melbourne and Sydney, attracting thousands of attendees and showcasing dozens of breweries from Japan. As a result, these events have fostered an inviting environment for consumers to discover and enjoy sake.
Local Craft Brewing Innovations
Quentin Hanley’s Melbourne Sake brewery is one of the biggest steps into local craft brewing. His facility blends a modern approach with foraged Japanese ingredients, and the enterprise is committed to using local rice grown in New South Wales. This delicate combination of indigenous ingredients and traditional practices are gradually fusing to create an undeniably Australian ‘terroir’ for Aussie sake.
Hanley is adamant about the need to expand the total market for sake. He figures it doesn’t matter if consumers go for local or foreign brands, every additional demand is a boon to the fledgling industry.
“If people drink more sake, whether it’s ours or from Japan, that’s a win for the whole industry.” – Quentin Hanley
As craft breweries like Melbourne Sake flourish, they further diversify the options available to Australian consumers while fostering a deeper connection to Japanese culture through food and drink.
A Cultural Shift in Japan
Interestingly, while interest is skyrocketing in Australia, the picture is much more muted overall in Japan. Kenji Iwa highlights a concerning trend: fewer young Japanese are consuming traditional sake. Instead, most are heading to the craft brewery, vineyard, and distillery.
“Not many people in Japan are drinking Japanese sake at the moment.” – Kenji Iwa
This momentous shift raises important questions about how sake will be consumed in Japan going forward. Younger generations associate it with being a drink only consumed by their mom and dad and/or grandma and grandpa.
Yet as Yoshi Honda of Melbourne’s @YoshiSake imports, since he began importing taste of sake to Australia, his customer base more than doubled in September. In fact, it has tripled since 2012! And with this rapid growth comes a tremendous opportunity for local, craft brewers. Importers, this is your opportunity to benefit from demand for this historic beverage booming!
“[The number of customers] has grown more than three times [since I started importing] … maybe five times the size.” – Yoshi Honda
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