This Friday, October 17th, you can meet in person, Koji Kawakami, president of Yoshi no Gawa Sake Brewery from Niigata, Japan. He will be making a special appearance at Toku Restaurant in Richmond, BC, pouring some special sakes for customers. The restaurant, located at Lansdowne Mall, will be offering specials upon purchase of a bottle of Yoshi no Gawa to celebrate Kawakami-san’s visit. Above, is a photo of me with Kawakami-san (L) and Patrick Ellis (R), president of Blue Note Wines & Spirits, Canadian importer of Yoshi no Gawa.
Kawakami-san tells me that his brewery was established in 1548, and is the 5th oldest continuously operating sake brewery in Japan. They have never stopped producing in over 460 years! That’s pretty amazing–and something tells me they have a pretty good handle on making sake because of it. Because of its long-standing history, Yoshi no Gawa is also Niigata prefecture’s oldest brewery, so in fact, they are pioneers in this famous sake-producing region.
Kawakami-san will be in attendance starting at 6pm. Please say hello to him and taste some of his lovely sake.
Kanpai!
elise