Akita's Asamai Shuzo looks to the UK after exporting to 15 countries

A regional brewery delivering sake to 15 countries

In May 2026, a seminar was held in Akita, the capital of Akita Prefecture in northern Honshu, to teach small and medium-sized businesses how to approach overseas expansion. According to the local newspaper Akita Sakigake Shimpo, around 30 people took part, mainly from companies in the prefecture. Firms already engaged in exporting presented their experiences, and the prefecture explained its subsidy scheme.

One of the companies to present was Asamai Shuzo, a sake brewery in Yokote, in the south of Akita Prefecture. Reiki Kakizaki (34), head of corporate planning, took the stage and reported that the company exported sake to 15 countries in the last financial year. That a single regional brewery trades with so many countries is remarkable.

The next challenge: the UK market

In addition to the countries it already supplies, Asamai Shuzo has also set about developing the UK market from scratch. The seminar’s theme was the idea that “prior analysis and market research are the key”.

When a small brewery sends its sake to a new country, it first has to work out which sake to send, at what price point and to whom. Rather than shipping on impulse, it studies the market before making a move. This seminar shows that small and medium-sized Japanese producers are trying to build each export as a deliberate strategy. The prefecture’s explanation of its subsidy scheme can likewise be seen as a sign of its intention to support such efforts across the whole region.

How to find and enjoy it in Europe

If you want to find sake from a Japanese regional brewery in Europe, the quickest way is to check the region and the brewery name on the label or in the importer’s description. “Junmai” on a label indicates a sake made only from rice, rice koji and water. “Ginjo” refers to sake brewed with rice that has been polished, with the outer layers removed, to 60% or less of its original weight. As the UK rollout progresses, you may see the Asamai Shuzo name more often in London’s sake shops and restaurants. If you get hold of a bottle, try it lightly chilled first and check the aroma in a white wine glass; a junmai can also be tried at room temperature or as nurukan (warmed to around 40°C). Changing the temperature shows just how wide the range of flavour in a single sake can be.

参考・出典

• 秋田魁新報「海外展開「事前分析や市場調査が鍵」　秋田県内企業向けにセミナー」