It was time to lay the groundwork for our up-and-coming explorations into the worlds of shochu and awamori. Welcome to Shochu 101 – class is in session.

After picking the brains of a few bartending alchemists on the subject, we decided to put the Shochu Pro himself, Mr. Christopher Pellegrini, in the hotseat for 60 minutes in order to break down the fundamentals of both shochu and awamori. For those unacquainted the Japan’s indigenous distillates, this is a great place to start. Hopefully by the end we’ll have your interest piqued enough to inspire a shochu-filled holiday to come!

What (can) shochu and awamori be made from? What are the 4 geographical indications for shochu and awamori and why? Is the word “honkaku” important? How did California pave the way for shochu’s market penetration in the U.S. while simultaneously setting communication around the beverage back a generation (or more)?

It’s all of this (and more!) that we’ve got lined up for this semi-holiday edition of Sake On Air. We’re all hoping to get some much-needed rest and respite over the holidays, so while we plan to keep content flowing intermittently, if it feels like we’re a bit quiet in the coming weeks, it’s because we just need a bit of time in order to brew up some great things for 2019.

A HUGE thanks to our listeners for all of your support in 2018. You are what make this all worthwhile and inspire us to do better each and every time in the studio. It’s only been about three months since we really got this show off the ground. We have a lot in store and we can’t wait to share more sake excitement in the coming year.

As always, @sakeonair is where you can find us on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook. You can also follow along on Soundcloud.

If you have time over the holidays as you soak up some tasty sake beverages, please do reach out to us at questions@sakeonair.com. Of course, a nice review is always welcome, as well.

Sake On Air is broadcast from the Japan Sake & Shochu Information Center located in Tokyo and made possible with the generous support of the Japan Sake and Shochu Makers Association. The show is a joint production between Potts.K Productions and Export Japan, with Mr. Frank Walter making this audio journey possible.

Happy Holidays & Kampai!

Our theme is “Younger Today Than Tomorrow” composed by forSomethingNew for Sake On Air.

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In recent weeks we’ve had the opportunity to sit down with some exciting guests for special events and interviews, and this week is no different.

First, we’re finally giving some much-deserved attention to the world of shochu this week. Better yet, we were able to round up an amazing group of bartenders, mixologists and all-around beverage specialists that have been resetting the standards for quality and innovation in some of the world’s most recognized and lauded drinking and dining establishments across New York, London and Sydney. For those following the cocktail scene, everyone on the show this week likely needs little-to-no introduction.

We’re joined by Thomas Waugh, bartender and director of bar operations for Major Food Group in New York, overseeing establishments such as Dirty French, ZZ’s Clam Bar, The Pool Lounge, and others; as well as heading up the bar operations at Karasu, the izakaya-style Japanese restaurant and cocktail bar.

We also welcome Mike Enright, owner and bartender at Sydney’s famous gin bar, The Barber Shop, often popping up on many Most Influential Bar and Bartender lists, both in Australia, as well is internationally. He’s even taken his mastery of gin to a new level with a line of gin-infused/inspired grooming products – a rather perfect pairing for a Barber Shop.

Then we have Ryan Chetiyawardana, likely better known to everyone as Mr. Lyan. He’s the man responsible for White Lyan in London, the cocktail bar that shook up the industry when it opened in 2013, as well as Dandelyan, voted World’s Best Bar 2018, Cub, and Super Lyan. He might very well be one of the busiest men in the business.

And last but certainly not least, we have Matthew Hunter, head bartender at the renowned Eleven Madison Park, ranked best restaurant in the world at 2017’s World’s 50 Best Restaurant awards.

A huge thanks to these gentlemen who were kind enough to join us for a quick chat, and a shochu tasting, following a whirlwind week-long journey throughout Kyushu, Japan’s southern island and motherland of shochu.

And, to top things off, for the second segment we travel to France to get our sake fix! Or shall a say, France comes to us! Right after successfully wrapping up another Salon Du Sake in Paris, Sake Samurai and organizer of France’s largest celebration of all-things-sake, Mr. Sylvain Huet, popped in to chat with us during his recent visit to Japan, where he was also organizing the first annual CMB-hosted Sake Selection awards in Mie Prefecture. We catch with Sylvain on what he’s been up to, the evolution of Salon du Sake, and what he’s excited about with regards to sake in Paris.

Sebastien and Justin guide you on this densely packed episode that traverses the globe, as well as bridges the worlds of sake and shochu. We hope you enjoy.

– 03:24 Interview with Matthew Hunter and Thomas Waugh

– 15:04 Interview with Mike Enright and Ryan Chetiyawardana

– 32:13 Interview with Sylvian Huet

@sakeonair is where you can find us on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook. You can also find us on Soundcloud and YouTube (hopefully) very soon.

Send your questions, comments, praise, criticisms, show ideas, and kind words to questions@sakeonair.com

A nice review is always welcome, as well.

Sake On Air is made possible with the generous support of the Japan Sake and Shochu Makers Association and is a joint production between Potts.K Productions and Export Japan, with Mr. Frank Walter making it all sound lovely.

Thanks for listening.

Kampai!

Our theme is “Younger Today Than Tomorrow” composed by forSomethingNew for Sake On Air.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | RSS | More