“Cup Sake” Is Having a Kooky, Category-Defying Moment. Here Are the Ones to Try.
Until recently, the image of RTD sake, or “cup sake” as it is referred to in Japan, was stuck in the past—1964, to be precise. That’s when the OG of the genre, Ozeki One Cup, burst onto the sake scene along with the Tokyo Olympics and the Shinkansen bullet train—all three signals that Japan was dusting off the shame and poverty of the post–World War II era and innovating its way onto the world stage.
The game-changing sake—which brought a sleek, modern glass cup design and portability to a staid drink—celebrated its 60th anniversary this year. While it still rules among convenience store sakes in Japan, it’s old hat to younger Japanese drinkers. For a new generation of sake consumers, today’s growing wave of RTD sake options (both Japanese and domestic) manages to highlight the essence of what’s driving sake’s international popularity: flavor, fermentation, captivating design and cultural currency. These RTDs are also, crucially, part of the “premiumization” of the RTD category. “Nicer sakes are being offered in the one-cup format, and sake enthusiasts like that they can get cans from the smaller brands now, too,” says Yoko Kumano, co-founder of Umami Mart in Oakland, California, one of the country’s top sake retailers.
Cup sakes today range from metal cans to glass cups with peel-off aluminum or plastic lids. They span a kooky, category-busting sparkling sake-wine hybrid from Wakaze, the Paris-based maker; brash and fresh unpasteurized namas; everyday futsus; and top-grade junmai ginjos, for which the rice has been polished and the grains‘ outer layers removed by at least 40 percent, leading to lighter, fresher flavors. There are American-brewed or -bottled brands that have partnered with established (sometimes unnamed) Japanese brewers, including Wakaze, Sake High! and WeSake, along with a slew of newer premium cup sakes from top-tier Japanese breweries like flower yeast specialist Amabuki. Whether foreign or domestic, the emphasis is on demystifying sake for international audiences and underscoring sake’s versatility in pairing. Label art is key, too. You’ll find pop culture homages (Chiyomusubi’s manga-referencing Oyaji), kawaii (Japanese for “cute”) motifs and iconic labels like the shiny gold and red of Kikusui Funaguchi Gold, which is as immediately recognizable to Japanese as a bottle of Budweiser is to Americans.
The availability of RTD sake varies widely by region, making it difficult to create a universal “best of” list. So herewith is a snapshot of some of the best sakes available to purchase right now, which doubles as proof of just how varied this young category has become.
Domestic
Wakaze SummerFall Classic Bubbles
$28 (four 236-milliliter cans)
ABV:11%
The most unconventional of the bunch, this is really a wine-sake hybrid, ideal for natural wine fans who want to dip into the sake world. Wakaze Brewery founder Takuma Inagawa trained under a master brewer in Akita prefecture, but is based in Paris, where he brews sake with Japonica rice grown in Camargue, France, and brewery-cultivated—rather than commercial—koji fungus. For this project, he brewed in California in partnership with the Japanese sake giant Takara Sake USA, using California Calrose rice, white koji and local wine yeast. At only 11 percent ABV, it’s a high-acid, citrusy, session sake that would be good with everything from al pastor tacos to Spam musubi.
Sake High!
$20 (four 200-milliliter cans)
ABV:14%
From a Los Angeles–based startup founded by Brenna Turner and Joey Labes, partners in business and life, this crisp and dry junmai (indicating that it’s not cut with distilled alcohol) sake is brewed in Japan in a minimalist, well-balanced style. The whimsical label and breezy marketing are a play at making sake more accessible to the Western market, and the sake’s super clean profile lends itself to sipping or use in cocktails.
WeSake
$40 (eight 200-milliliter cans)
ABV:13%
A collaboration between drinks entrepreneur Pablo Rivera and Brooklyn Peltz Beckham, this is a slickly designed, Japan-brewed sake packaged in California. The maker is touted as “one of the oldest breweries in Japan” from the traditional sake-making stronghold of Nada near the port city of Kobe. A classic, banana-nosed junmai ginjo (meaning the rice has been polished to at least 60 percent), it is brewed with Japanese Yamada Nishiki rice and clocks in at a low 13 percent ABV. Crisp, fruity and dry, it would pair well with anything from sushi to Peltz Beckham’s favorite, beef Wellington.
Imported from Japan
Chiyomusubi Oyaji Junmai Ginjo
$65 (six 180-milliliter bottles)
ABV:16%
This velvety junmai ginjo from Tottori prefecture’s Chiyomusubi Sake Brewery is full of character, with a nose of ripe cantaloupe and mushrooms and a soft, long finish. The ghoulishly surreal label, depicting an eyeball kicking back in a cup of sake, is based on the manga Kitaro of the Graveyard, about a yokai spirit monster whose reincarnated eyeball father enjoys his sake and bathes frequently. What’s not to love? Try this one chilled or at room temperature with any of your favorite bar snacks.
Aoki Yuki Otoko Abominable Snowman Junmai
$13 (180 milliliters)
ABV:15.5%
This is a classic sake in the Niigata tanrei-karakuchi style (light, dry and refreshing) from Aoki Brewery, maker of the Kakurei brand of ginjo sakes. The cup version is brewed with Miyama Nishiki rice milled to 60 percent, giving it a light-bodied refinement. Its label is a negative of that on the 720-milliliter bottle, depicting the traditionally black snow yeti of Niigata in white on a frosted-white glass cup, appropriate for the cool, snow powder softness of this sake, which would be a worthy barbecue sidekick.
Amabuki Ichigo Junmai Ginjo
$9
ABV:16%
From the Saga Prefecture Brewery that made a name with its creative use of yeasts cultivated from Japanese flowers and fruits, this one is brewed with strawberry flower yeast and local Saga no Hana rice, and is housed in a glass cup bearing the skyline of New York City. It’s another premium brew in a small container, and a pasteurized version of the larger-format nama. Aromas range from fruity to nutty, with an elegant structure and mouthfeel.
Kikusui Funaguchi Gold Honjozo
$7 (200 milliliters)
ABV:19%
This iconic, budget-friendly staple of the izakaya and Japanese vending machine is beloved for a reason. A nama genshu honjozo (unpasteurized and undiluted, with added alcohol), this is full-bodied at 19 percent ABV. Its honeyed nose, mouth-coating viscosity and well-calibrated balance between sweetness and acidity make it the perfect accompaniment to richer fare.
Miyozakura Panda Junmai
$8 (180 milliliters)
ABV:15.5%
The pandas and their favorite bamboo shoot snacks that wreath this clear glass cup are a kawaii (“cute”) come-on to consumers. This accessible sake from mountainous Gifu prefecture, made with local Asahi no Yume rice and polished to a rustic 70 percent, is savory and rice-y on the nose, soft and creamy on the palate with a dry finish. It’s a versatile pick that works at temperatures from chilled to warmed, and pairs well with a range of dishes.
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