Always so good to be back at Roberta’s! Joining Jimmy in the studio today are returning guests Shinobu Kato, sake brewer and founder of Kato Sake Works, and Peter Lengyel-Fushimi, beer brewer at Rockaway Brewing. The crew will dive into all things rice, sake, koji, burgers, fermentation, ABV, pairings, and...

This week we are hanging right off of Sunset, sitting down with Charles Namba and Courtney Kaplan of Tsubaki OTOTO. We talk about their recent James Beard win, how they met during their time in the restaurant scene in New York, and what guests can expect to hear on...

Our guest is Nori Nakamura who is the owner and winemaker at Noria, a unique winery in California. When we eat Japanese food, we almost automatically think to pair it with Japanese sake or Japanese beer. On the other hand, Japanese sake has become so popular globally that you can...

Our guest is Kotaro Hamada who is the 6th generation of Hamada Shuzo in Kagoshima Prefecture, Japan. Hamada Shuzo has been making shochu, the Japanese traditional spirit, since 1868. Hamada Shuzo’s quality is highly recognized not only in Japan but also abroad and its shochu brands called Daiyame 25 and...

Our guest is Cinzia Mesolella who is in charge of PR and communication at Kobe Shushinkan Breweries in Hyogo Prefecture. Hyogo is the home of “Nada no sake”, which means “Sake from Nada”, and is synonymous with great sake. Kobe Shushinkan Breweries was founded in 1751 and its award-winning label...

Our guest is Jamie Ryder, who is a certified sake sommelier as well as a Japanese culture enthusiast. Also, Jamie publishes a Japanese culture-themed magazine called Yamato Magazine, which explores Japanese culture from a variety of angles. We have had many guests in the past, talking about Japanese food scenes...

Our guest is Yuichiro Murai, the 29th generation of Kojiya Sanzaemon based in Aichi Prefecture, Japan. Koji, which is also called the national mold of Japan, has been used to make a majority of anything delicious in Japanese cuisine, such as miso, soy sauce, sake, and shochu. In the last...

Our guest is Maurice Dudley, who is an awamori specialist based in Okinawa. Awamori is a very important traditional alcoholic beverage from Okinawa Prefecture, but its preciousness is yet to be known outside Japan. Maurice went to Japan for the first time in 1994 as an Airman. He was stationed...

Take a splash into HRN’s drinks archive to discover episodes on coffee, cocktails, cider, and more!

Our guest is Michael Tremblay who is a Sake Samurai, international sake judge, sake sommelier, and certified sake educator based in Toronto, Canada. Michael is also the co-author of the excellent new book “Exploring the World of Japanese Craft Sake: Rice, Water, Earth” from Tuttle Publishing. This book is not...