Served At The Oscars And The Dodger Stadium, Japanese Sake Is Becoming An American Drink

Forbes

26-03-2025

The guests at the 2025 Academy Awards saw something new: Japanese sake.
It was the first time Japanese sake was selected as an official beverage at the Award reception and the Governors Ball, the post-awards party, along with other familiar beverages like champagne, wine and tequila.
Also this month, the Los Angeles Dodgers announced that they will make Japanese sake available at Dodger Stadium concession stands in collaboration with the 103-year-old Hakkaisan Brewery.
There is nothing more American than the Oscars and the Dodger Stadium. Is Japanese sake becoming an American beverage?
'I hope so. But we still have a simple challenge,' says Hiroshi Sakurai, chairman of Dassai, which is the brand that was selected to be served at the Oscars.
'When you drink champagne, you don't think of having French food with it. But when you think of sake, there is a strong association with Japanese food. We really want to change the perception of sake being only a part of Japanese culture.'
Except for a handful of non-Japanese restaurants, such as Michelin-starred Blue Hill At Stone Barns and Eleven Madison Park in New York, you don't normally find sake outside of Japanese restaurants' beverage lists.
However, there are signs that sake is more widely enjoyed, free from the image of the companion of Japanese food.
Akio Matsumoto, head sommelier at the Michelin-starred Restaurant Yuu in New York, says, 'Since we are a French restaurant, 90% of our beverage list is wine. But because our chef-owner is Japanese, we serve Japanese sake as well. Interestingly, 30% of the orders are Japanese sake.'
Matsumoto's guests often ask for sake out of curiosity; he also serves sake within a beverage pairing menu. 'After trying sake, quite a few guests ask, 'Where can I buy this?', which is a nice surprise but makes sense to me,' he says.
'Sake is uniquely harmonious with food. Its texture is softer and the taste is mellower than wine in general. Sake's subtle sweetness and rich umami work like a soft blanket on your palate. On the other hand, wine's acidity creates sharpness and clarity of flavor effectively. These are very different palate experiences and both are equally satisfying. You can easily amplify your food and beverage pairings if you add sake to your dinner.'
For example, a terrine of foie gras is classically paired with Sauternes, a sweet French white wine, but instead, he recommends serving elegantly rich, sweet sake called Kijoshu for a similar yet refreshingly new experience.
Keshonn Hatcher, beverage director at the New American restaurant Pretty To Think So in New York, also found sake's unique property and uses sake in his cocktails. One of his signature cocktails is "Inaudible", which is a martini made with Japanese sake, Symphony 6 botanical spirit, strawberry rhubarb gin, yuzu and lemon bitters.
'For this cocktail, I chose Dassai Blue 35, a Junmai Daiginjo sake made locally in New York. I find its floral and lightly scented fruit notes complement unique low-alcohol options in martinis.'
Hatcher serves sake on its own with food as well. 'It is uncommon to serve sake for New American restaurants, but different types of sake offer various approaches to expand the dining experience. Similar to how one might ask for a glass of wine with dinner, I have noticed sake has that same level of versatility. We recommend it to pair with dishes from our pan-roasted halibut to even the truffle baked potato. Our raw bar selection and caviar service go well with sake too, because it complements the brine and textures of seafood.'
Dassai's Sakurai had success in establishing his brand reputation in France through the recognition by renowned chefs, including Joel Robuchon, Alain Ducasse, Michel Troisgros and Yannick Alléno.
'These chefs approach food and beverages first and foremost for pure deliciousness, regardless of their cultural origins. They have introduced sake to a wider population in France outside the context of Japanese food. But we need to think of the mindset of American people differently, which seems more marketing-driven.'
However, he is not considering a major marketing campaign to promote his sake in the U.S. Instead, Dassai built a sake brewery in New York to make sake a local beverage rather than an imported product from far away.
In fact, the sake served at the Oscars was made in Dassai's New York brewery. Also, Hatcher at Pretty To Think So and Matsumoto at Restaurant Yuu chose Dassai's sake made in New York.
Dassai is not the only American sake producer. There are over two dozen American sake breweries, offering craft sake to their local communities and beyond and making sake slowly and surely a domestic drink.
One of them is Brooklyn Kura in New York, which was founded in 2018 by two Americans. This month, it will become the first U.S. sake producer to export its products to Japan, making sake effectively a borderless beverage.
On the other hand, the Dodgers Stadium will serve sake that is made in Japan.
Whether local or imported, Japanese sake seems to be taking root in the U.S. to become a part of American culture.