Fukuoka brewery takes on SAKE made with Italian rice

LIBROM, a craft sake brewery in Fukuoka, has opened a SAKE brewery in Vercelli, in the Piedmont region of northern Italy. At the time of the announcement in June 2026, the building was already complete and the brewing licence was under review, with the aim of starting production in July 2026. It is an attempt to make SAKE from inside Europe, using European rice and water together with Japanese techniques.

Ten years of wanting to make SAKE in Italy

LIBROM is a small brewery that opened in Fukuoka in May 2020. Its founder, Mitsuto Yagyu, has held on to the goal of “making SAKE in Italy” since he was 23, about ten years ago, and has been preparing for it alongside his brewing in Japan. Vercelli, the place he chose, is known as one of the largest rice-producing areas in Europe. At the new brewery, the plan was to focus on SAKE made from just rice and rice koji, to be sold under its own brand, “ONDA Sake”. Under Japan’s rules, only sake made in Japan with Japanese rice may be called “Japanese Sake”, so this drink takes a new position as “SAKE from Italy”.

Italian rice and water, Japanese brewing

According to the announcement, the brewery will use “Baldo”, an organically grown rice that is the only rice in Italy to hold DOP (the EU’s Protected Designation of Origin) status. The brewing water comes from Vercelli, which is relatively soft by European standards. The brewing uses sandan-jikomi, the traditional sake method of adding koji, water and steamed rice to the tank in three stages, together with slow fermentation at the same low temperatures used for fragrant daiginjo sake. The aim is an “Italian sake” that suits the Italian table. A crowdfunding campaign offering the first batch as a reward ran on CAMPFIRE until 5 July 2026.

For readers in Europe

Until now, most of the SAKE drunk in Europe has travelled a long way from Japan. As more SAKE is made from European rice, the distances should shrink and there should be more scope for pairing it with local dishes. If you come across the name “ONDA Sake”, you might smell it in a wine glass and try it with a dish made from the same rice, such as risotto. Comparing it with sake from Japanese breweries could also be a chance to see how differences in rice and water show up in the taste.