This is the last episode of 2023 and this time our hosts are keeping it within the SU family. Giulia recently moved from brewing craft sake in Tokyo at Konohanano to going back to  Izumo, Shimane Pref., like every winter, to brew sake at Itakura Shuzo and  Cindy is taking up the occasion to dig more into the difference between these 2 breweries. In this episode our hosts are taking us virtually into the world of sake breweries, comparing traditional and modern styles of brewing, and what...

This episode is all about a very special and unique sake brewery: Gozenshu!  Cindy and Giulia visited (separately) the brewery and they are excited to exchange stories and to share them with us.  Tsujii Honten, the brewery behind Gozenshu, is unique as they are focused on promoting Okayama and everything local, starting from the rice that they use to brew ALL of their delicious sake: Omachi.  Get yourself a cup of your favourite Gozenshu and follow along on this virtual brewery...

After Sake Day, our hosts are celebrating another festivity regarding the sake world: Doburoku Day! Doburoku Day is October 26th and our hosts are sharing with us all about this amazing day, how it came to be, and all the fantastic news about it! The world of sake, or at least part of it, is literally fermenting with new products and amazing people who are shaking the industry, and Cindy and Giulia are thrilled to share all this with us!  This is a biweekly podcast so make sure to...

This year Sake Day came with lots of surprises and our hosts are thrilled to share their new discoveries in the sake world! Cindy joined the JSS amazing workshops and learned cool sake tricks that she'll share with us, and Giulia flew all the way to Hong Kong.  Cindy and Giulia are sharing with us their favourite Sake Day insights and more about their next adventures so check it out! This is a biweekly podcast so make sure to subscribe and tune in on Thursdays and follow Sake Unplugged on...

It's that time of the year again! Sake Day is coming and our hosts couldn't be more excited! October 1st is Sake Day and for sake lovers is like an early Christmas! Lots of delicious sake and events all around the world are ready to celebrate the most famous Japanese drink of all time. Cindy and Giulia are sharing with us their favourite Sake Day tips and wisdom and, of course, they have plenty of recommendations in store for everybody. They have wonderful plans for Sake Day, and you?...

In this week's episode of Sake Unplugged,  Cindy and Giulia are doing a sake review! It's been a minute since our hosts shared their thoughts about the sake they love and 3 y.o. aged Daruma Masamune is perfect for this occasion! Our hosts were so happy to have a chill session to talk about Daruma Masamune which comes from Shiraki Shuzo in Gifu Prefecture, in the heart of Japan.  It's obvious by listening to the episode how passionate our hosts are about this sake. Not only it's delicious...

In this week's episode of Sake Unplugged,  Cindy and Giulia are welcoming fellow podcast hosts Andy Russell and Jim Rion from Sake Deep Dive!  Andy is a sake brewer, currently working at Kenbishi in Hyogo Pref. and author of the website Origin Sake, where he uncovers the many fascinating and complex aspects of sake. Jim is a freelance translator and a passionate sake expert, especially when it comes to the sake from the Yamaguchi Pref., for which you can find all info on his website Yamaguchi...

In this week's episode of Sake Unplugged,  Cindy and Giulia are exchanging stories on their latest sake adventures! Cindy, being a sake nomad, is constantly traveling to unveil all the sake secrets and to discover new breweries and projects, and Giulia recently ended the brewing season in Izumo.   Our hosts were so happy to have a chill session to talk about what happened in the last 6 months or so, and they are sharing what they have in mind for the future, so grab a cup of sake and listen...

In this week's episode of Sake Unplugged,  Cindy and Giulia are welcoming Alex, a sake lover and owner of Omu Nomu in Singapore! Alex has always been fascinated by Japanese cuisine and studied it avidly. A few years back opened Omu Nomu craft sake and raw bar, where the sake list here is always changing, so Alex's customers can try every week new sake!    Our hosts were also really intrigued to hear about the concept behind Omu Nomu and all the amazing events that Alex hosts. Cindy, being a...

In this week's episode of Sake Unplugged,  Cindy and Giulia are chatting about koji. Our hosts started the conversation about rice in the previous episodes, and in case you missed those, go listen to them after hearing all about koji! When talking about rice in sake making, our hosts couldn't miss the chance to talk about koji and the koji-making process in sake. First of all, what is koji? What it's used for and how does the koji-making process really impact the final flavour of sake?...

In this week's episode of Sake Unplugged,  Cindy and Giulia are welcoming Alex, a fellow sake blogger and podcaster, and founder of Sugidama. Alex made London his home about 20 years ago and from there he promotes sake and helps understand sake's world with his blog and podcast.  Our hosts were also really intrigued to hear about his work as an IWC sake judge so make sure to listen until the end to Alex's stories about the sake challenges he joined so far! This is a biweekly podcast so...

In this week's episode of Sake Unplugged,  Cindy and Giulia are chatting about rice polishing. Our hosts started the conversation about rice a couple of episodes ago, as they delved into rice varieties. This time they are exploring the polishing or milling of the rice.   What does it mean to polish rice? Why is it so important and how does sake change depending on the polishing ratio? Our hosts will try to solve some of these mysteries and more! Discover more about the importance of rice...

In this week's episode of Sake Unplugged,  Cindy and Giulia are welcoming Robin Sola, a sake promoter and owner of Sorakami in London! Robin was born and raised in the south of France but spend many years abroad, attended university in Tokyo, and now he lives in London where he opened his sake e-commerce called Sorakami to promote sake in the UK! Robin's story is really intriguing and our hosts are really glad he decided to share it with them. Learn more about the scenery of sake in...

In this week's episode of Sake Unplugged,  Cindy and Giulia are chatting about rice varieties. Rice is one of the main ingredients of sake and probably the most famous one, so it's time for our hosts to dive into it! It's been a minute since the last educational episode on SU so here you go! Discover more about the importance of rice in sake making and how much it can impact the final result. As you might know by now,  SU is now a biweekly podcast as your hosts are busy working in the...

In this week's episode of Sake Unplugged,  Cindy and Giulia are welcoming back Simone Maynard, better-known ad the Sake Mistress, and the first time on the show Maki Tanaka. They invited these fantastic ladies on SU to chat about a new chapter in the TwTT community: the TwTT Podcast! As a lot of you know, the Taste with The Toji project is going on since the beginning of the pandemic and it is now established in the sake community, so much so that we can't get enough. So our hosts were...

In this week's episode of Sake Unplugged,  Cindy and Giulia are chatting about Giulia's brewing life in Izumo, Shimane! Giulia is back to Itakura brewery and will be spending the whole season brewing delicious sake.  Let's hear what does it means to work in a sake brewery first hands and all the querks of the kurabito life! Big news coming to SU as this weekly podcast will become biweekly for a while as your hosts are busy working in the (sake) field! So make sure to subscribe and follow...

In this week's episode of Sake Unplugged,  Cindy and Giulia are welcoming Mayuko Sasayama,  a sake promoter and teacher based in Spain! Mayu was born in Japan but spend many years abroad and now she lives between Spain and Japan, promoting sake! She is so busy promoting sake, working in a sake bar in Madrid, sharing her passion on her youtube channel and now she is even writing a book about sake in Spanish! We are really honoured and happy to chat with her and can't wait to see what she...

In this week's episode of Sake Unplugged,  Cindy and Giulia are chatting about one of their favourite sake: aged sake! The history of aged sake is quite intriguing and it is awesome to see how more and more breweries are approaching this style of sake and reviving it. This episode comes also with some recommendations on how to enjoy aged sake and where to enjoy it too! Big news coming to SU as this weekly podcast will become biweekly for a while as your hosts are busy working in the (sake)...

In this week's episode of Sake Unplugged,  Cindy and Giulia are welcoming Sarika Sekihaze a UN official turned entrepreneur, sake lover and educator, doburoku ambassador, yogi and so much more! Sarika lives in Spain and, among other things, she is busy sharing her love and passion for sake. Her enthusiasm and energy are infectious and she is a true inspiration. Check it out on her website. During her UN time, she was working on the gender-quality issue and she is also focusing her...

In this week's episode of Sake Unplugged,  Cindy and Giulia are taking you guys to Viet Nam!  Cindy recently joined a sake event in Kyoto held by a Vietnamese sake brewery and Giulia will interview her to know more about it. The brewery is called HUE FOODS COMPANY LIMITED and they make also shochu and coffee liqueur, and their mission is to blend Japanese and Vietnamese cultures together   Their sake is the most unexpected and the host will tell you all about it so pour yourself a cup and...

In this week's episode of Sake Unplugged,  Cindy and Giulia are welcoming Arline Lyons, a translator specializing in sake as well as a sake educator and promotor, and all-around sake lover! Arline is Irish but lives in Switzerland, which makes her Cindy's reverse twin. Her story with sake started from a translator's point of view and became a passion and a mission.  She currently has multiple IG accounts and websites that are all about sake, a newsletter and she's constantly looking for...

In this week's episode of Sake Unplugged,  Cindy and Giulia are sharing their recent experience at Marie Chiba's new sake bar: Eureka! Marie Chiba is a household name and her sake and food pairing ideas and concepts are as delicious as intriguing. Visiting Eureka is an absolutely unique experience, as Marie is very attentive to tailoring the meal and the pairings for each of her guests.  Enjoy a cup of sake, or two, while the hosts share all about the menu and the sake that Marie carefully...

In this week's episode of Sake Unplugged,  Cindy and Giulia are welcoming back Kim Roxas from Setting Sun Sake in San Diego to chat about a very delicious topic: Sake Cocktails! At Setting Sun Sake they like to colour outside the lines, and play with sake to create delicious recipes. Kim in fact, isn't only a sake sommelier, she is a pastry chef so she definitely knows how to create recipes, and her creativity allows her to experiment with the most unusual ingredients. Kim prepared useful...