{"id":176113,"date":"2026-06-17T19:34:24","date_gmt":"2026-06-17T10:34:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.allway-japan.com\/?post_type=specialpost&p=176113"},"modified":"2026-06-29T09:37:18","modified_gmt":"2026-06-29T00:37:18","slug":"%e5%b8%82%e8%b2%a9%e6%97%a5%e6%9c%ac%e9%85%92%e3%81%ae%e9%a0%82%e7%82%b9%e3%82%92%e6%b1%ba%e3%81%99%e3%82%8b%e3%80%8csake-competition%e3%80%8d%e3%81%ae%e5%af%a9%e6%9f%bb%e7%b5%90%e6%9e%9c%e3%81%8c","status":"publish","type":"specialpost","link":"https:\/\/www.allway-japan.com\/en\/specialpost\/176113\/","title":{"rendered":"Results Announced for SAKE COMPETITION, Japan\u2019s Premier Contest Determining the Best Commercially Available Sake"},"content":{"rendered":"

\u25a0 A Unique System Where Even Judges Are Evaluated Ensures Fair and Impartial Assessment<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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The \u201cSAKE COMPETITION,\u201d one of the world\u2019s largest sake competitions, is leading the trends in the Japanese sake industry. Guided by the philosophy of \u201ca competition designed to help consumers discover truly delicious \u2018commercially available sake,\u2019\u201d it has been held since 2012, organized primarily by Hasegawa Sake Shop, a Tokyo-based sake retailer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u25bc SAKE COMPETITION:https:\/\/sakecompetition.com\/<\/a>
\u25bc Hasegawa Sake Shop:https:\/\/www.hasegawasaketen.com\/<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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A key feature of this competition is the rigor of its judging process. To ensure evaluations are based purely on taste, free from any preconceptions, the competition employs a blind tasting format in which the brands are completely concealed. Notably, the judges themselves are also subject to evaluation; if their assessments are deemed inconsistent, they may be removed from the judging panel the following year. For this reason, industry professionals watch the judging results with bated breath every year. Top-ranked brands are known to experience a dramatic surge in sales, and in 2026, 1,139 entries were submitted from 367 breweries nationwide.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u25a0 \"Mimuro Sugi\" Claims Titles in Two Categories for the First Time Since 2014<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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On June 10, 2026, the awards ceremony for the \u201cSAKE COMPETITION 2026\u201d was held at TAKANAWA GATEWAY CITY in Tokyo. Approximately 300 people, primarily sake brewers, attended the ceremony. When the results were announced\u2014a moment that would determine the winners\u2014everyone held their breath and listened intently, and the entire venue was enveloped in a palpable sense of tension.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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\"Mimuro Sugi\" Imanishi Sake Brewery (Nara Prefecture)https:\/\/imanishisyuzou.com\/<\/a><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

At this year\u2019s awards ceremony, Imanishi Sake Brewery (Nara Prefecture), the brewery behind \u201cMimuro Sugi,\u201d made an overwhelming impression and took the venue by storm . Not only did the \u201cMimuro Sugi Roman Series Dio Abita\u201d take first place in the \u201cJunmai Sake Category,\u201d but the \u201cMimuro Sugi Roman Series Junmai Ginjo Yamada Nishiki\u201d also claimed first place in the \u201cJunmai Ginjo Category.\u201d This \u201cdouble victory\u201d in the competition\u2014a remarkable feat not seen since 2014\u2014sparked a stir among the audience.

President Masayuki Imanishi, who joined his family\u2019s business, Imanishi Sake Brewery, in 2011, is known for rebuilding the brewery, which was on the verge of closing due to massive debt. The driving force behind this turnaround was his unwavering commitment to producing high-quality junmai sake. Guided by the philosophy of \u201ccrafting light and delicious sake,\u201d the brewery\u2019s sake has a relatively low alcohol content of around 13%, yet delivers a fresh, juicy, and crisp flavor. It appeals to a wide range of people, from beginners to connoisseurs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u25a0 Days After a Devastating Fire, Sasa Masamune Brewery Earns Second Place in the Junmai Category to Loud Applause<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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From left: Kawakei Shoten (Miyagi Prefecture), Imanishi Sake Brewery (Nara Prefecture), Aihara Sake Brewery (Hiroshima Prefecture), Kiyasho Sake Brewery (Mie Prefecture)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

In addition, \u201cUgo no Tsuki Junmai Daiginjo\u201d from Aihara Sake Brewery (Hiroshima Prefecture) was selected as the top winner in the \u201cJunmai Daiginjo\u201d category; \u201cJikon Tokuto Omachi\u201d from Kiyasho Sake Brewery (Mie Prefecture) was selected as the top winner in the \u201cSuper Premium\u201d category; and \u201cTachibana-ya Junmai Ginjo\u201d from Kawakei Shoten (Miyagi Prefecture) was selected as the top winner in the \u201cModern Natural\u201d category.

The \u201cModern Natural\u201d category is reserved for sake brewed using one of the traditional methods: Kimoto, Yamahai, or Bodai-moto. All of these methods rely on natural lactic acid bacteria rather than added lactic acid, requiring significant time, effort, and technical skill. However, an increasing number of breweries are taking on this challenge in pursuit of distinctive flavors\u2014such as unique richness, umami, and acidity.

The announcement that sent the venue into a frenzy was that Sasamasa Sake Brewery (Fukushima Prefecture) had taken second place in the \u201cJunmai Sake\u201d category. This was particularly noteworthy because the brewery had suffered a fire just nine days before the awards ceremony. Approximately 3,000 square meters of brewery buildings and warehouses were destroyed by fire, along with about 25,000 bottles of sake stored on the premises. Furthermore, the brewery suffered catastrophic damage, losing even the tools essential for sake production.

However, starting the day after the fire, a wave of support quickly spread, driven by the desire to \u201crebuild Fukushima\u2019s premier sake brewery.\u201d Donations to the reconstruction fund established by the Fukushima Prefecture Sake Brewers Association have been pouring in at a pace exceeding expectations, and numerous messages of encouragement have been received from both within Japan and abroad. With inquiries about support also coming in one after another from overseas, it appears that the movement to support the reconstruction of Sasamasa Sake Brewery is gaining momentum.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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\u25bc Inquiries regarding donations:info@sake-fukushima.jp<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Covering the awards ceremony made me realize once again that the \u201cSAKE COMPETITION\u201d serves as a mirror reflecting the \u201cpresent\u201d of Japanese sake. While trends in sake quality and shifts in consumer preferences are reflected in the results, the breweries take these evaluations seriously and strive to reach even greater heights. Whether it\u2019s the joy of winning or the disappointment of a narrow loss, it all feeds into the next round of sake brewing\u2014the battle for next year\u2019s top spot has already begun.<\/p>\n\n\n\n


* This article is machine translated from Japanese to other foreign languages<\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The SAKE COMPETITION, which featured 1,139 entries from 367 companies in 2026, has garnered immense support from industry professionals as a competition that reveals the latest trends in sake and the true capabilities of sake breweries.<\/p>","protected":false},"author":69,"featured_media":176118,"menu_order":0,"template":"","categories":[78,618],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-176113","specialpost","type-specialpost","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-article","category-special-features"],"blocksy_meta":[],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.allway-japan.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/specialpost\/176113","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.allway-japan.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/specialpost"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.allway-japan.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/specialpost"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.allway-japan.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/69"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.allway-japan.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/specialpost\/176113\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.allway-japan.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/176118"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.allway-japan.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=176113"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.allway-japan.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=176113"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.allway-japan.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=176113"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}