Sarika Sake:
Boutique Japanese Sake Education & Consultancy
Discover the world of Japanese Sake with Sarika, United Nations official turned Sake Fairy Godmother, on a Mission to Preserve our 2000-year-old Art of Sake
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Taught Sake to MIT · Harvard · ambassadors · royalty · Featured in:
Ciao! I'm Sarika
Your Sake Fairy Godmother! 🧚♀️ So happy you're curious about Sake!
I'm a former United Nations official turned entrepreneur. Unusual career pivot, I know! 😉 (Even Forbes thought it was a good story🤭)
Here's the thing: I used to hate Sake because my grandpa was drinking the bad stuff. Then I discovered the true craft by accident, fell completely in love, and now I'm on a mission to share this 2,000-year-old Japanese craft with the world.
Why now? Sake in Japan is actually in serious decline. Breweries are closing every month. My ancestral hometown of Nagano, one of Japan's historic Sake regions, is watching this precious craft slowly fade. I wanted to do something!
So, now I share the joy of Sake. I care deeply about sustainability and mindful drinking. And yes, I also founded the Sake Beauty Balm, a Sake-infused natural brand that won the 2024 European Natural Beauty Awards 🏆
If you're new to Sake and slightly intimidated by all the Japanese jargon - welcome! You're exactly who I'd love to share the beauty of Sake with!
Sake is beyond a drink. It's the liquid soul of Japan. Come join me in the Sake revival!
Love, Sarika
Sarika Sake Credentials
Competition Judge
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Tokyo Whisky & Spirits Competition
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Féminalise World Wine Competition, France
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Japan Women’s Sake Awards
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Women's International Trophy
Clients
- Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) Japan Program
- Harvard Business School - Asian American Business Association
- Polish Vodka Museum
- 11,500+ students worldwide
Sake Certifications
- SSI Official Sake & Shochu Lecturer 日本酒学講師 Master Sommelier of Sake
- Official Lecturer, Food & Beverage Organization, Japan
- Certified Sake Scholar
- Doburoku Ambassador
- Sake Pioneer, Sake Sommelier Association
- SSI Shochu Sommelier
Featured in Forbes
Featured in Forbes in “How Women Sake Masters Contribute to Preserving Tradition Amid Decline,” highlighting the stories of women helping shape the future of Japan's sake industry.
Read in ForbesSTART HERE
Your Sake Discovery Adventure!
Go from Sake novice to Sake savvy, fun & fast!
STEP 1 · BEGIN FOR FREE
Get the FREE Sake Cheat Sheet
✨ Your shortcut to Sake confidence in minutes 🍶✨
🍶 What Sake pairs with pizza or ice cream?
🍶 Which Sake should you sip hot or cold?
🍶 Which glassware works best?
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STEP 2 · GET SAKE SAVVY
Sake Decoded
Go from Sake novice to Sake savvy in 55 minutes. Learn styles, labels, serving temperatures, food pairing, and more!
STEP 3 · EARN YOUR CERTIFICATE
Sake Navigator Certificate
Take the next step with an official certificate from the Sake Service Institute, Japan’s leading Sake education authority in Tokyo.
READY FOR MORE?
Live experiences for groups & businesses
FOR TEAMS, GROUPS & EVENTS
Sake Masterclasses
✓Forget boring tastings! This is 2,000 years of Japanese wisdom poured into one unforgettable experience - tailored exactly to your crew, knowledge level, and what you actually want to achieve.
✓Corporate Teams & Events
Turn your next team building into something people actually remember. No PowerPoints. Just Sake, stories, and surprising connections.
✓Hospitality & Restaurant Staff
Give your team the confidence to sell Sake like they mean it. Real knowledge, zero jargon, plus the stories that make guests lean in.
✓Universities & Cultural Institutions
Academic credentials meet rebel spirit. Forbes-featured expertise delivered with the honesty your students crave.
✓Private Groups & Celebrations
Whether it's 5 friends or 50, an experience that turns "just drinks" into "remember that incredible night when..."
Sarika: 36th generation Japanese. UN official turned Forbes-featured Sake Scholar, who has taught Sake to ambassadors, royalty, MIT and Harvard.
✓Ready to shake things up? Let's create magic together!
EXPLORE LIVE MASTERCLASS EXPERIENCES
Sake Consultancy
🍶 Got a restaurant, hospitality group, retail space, or Sake brand? I'd love to bring my world-class Sake expertise to your project!
Tell me what you're dreaming up and your budget - let's chat about how we can create something amazing together!
Here's how I can help:
- ✓Staff Training & Education Programs (your team will actually understand what they're pouring!)
- ✓Sake Menu Development (curated selections that make sense)
- ✓Food Pairing Consultation (beyond just Japanese food!)
- ✓🌏 Sake Brand & Market Advice (navigating the global Sake scene)
Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT)
Japan Program
Post-Workshop Survey 4.69 out of 5.00
Suzanne Vian, USA, Founder, Saigon Yoga
“Sarika is such a gift to the world, and one of the most interesting women I have ever met. Her laugh and awesome sense of humour will keep you engaged - she is a mesmerising teacher and draws students in with her sheer love of life and incredible enthusiasm in all she does”
Claudine Kloetzli, Artist Switzerland/Spain
“Thanks to you Sarika!! You were Fabulous! What a success 👏 amazing speaker and sake specialist wow 🍶 ♥️ I would give you 12/10“
My Sake Story
Actually, I never really liked Sake all my life! (even though I loved all other kinds of alcohol!). That was until I tasted a local brew in Fukushima back in 2009. It was so completely different from anything I've tasted before. It was rather shocking to learn that Sake was this good! I had been missing out all these decades, declining Sake, simply based on my prejudices from a few bad earlier Sake experiences.
Since then, I quietly started my own sake studies, unofficially (visiting breweries and meeting brewers) and formally (obtaining Sake certifications). The more I learned and tasted, the more I did not understand (!), but I became so much more fascinated by Sake.
Then, I learned that the domestic consumption of Sake is steeply declining and breweries are having to close every year. In fact, Sake, our 2000-year-old 'national alcohol', only occupies 7% of the whole alcohol market share in Japan! Quite a shock. It did not seem like this reality was doing justice to Sake.
I also became fascinated by women and women masters (toji) who work in this largely male-dominated industry. At present, only about 25 out of 1200 Sake breweries are headed by women tojis.
I wanted to share the beauty of Sake to my friends and others while also supporting women who work in Sake.
Certification List
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日本酒学講師 (No.000456) Official Lecturer | Certified Master Sake Sommelier, Sake Service Institute, Japan
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Official Lecturer, Food & Beverage Specialists Organization (FBO), Tokyo, Japan
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Judge, Féminalise World Wine Competition, France, 2022-2026
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Judge, Japan’s Women Sake Award 2023
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Judge, Tokyo Whiskey & Spirits Competition 2024
- Judge, Women´s International Trophy 2026
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Doburoku Ambassador
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Graduate, Sake & Shochu Academy, Japan Sake & Shochu Makers Association (JSS) 2019
- Certified Sake Scholar
- Sake Pioneer, Sake Sommelier Association
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国際利酒師 (No.116451) Certified International Sake Sommelier Kikisake-Shi (English)
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日本酒利酒師 (No.031523) Certified Sake Sommelier Kikisake-Shi (Japanese)
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Certified Sake Professional, Sake Education Council
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日本酒品質鑑定士 Certified Sake Quality Evaluation Expert
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焼酎利酒師 (No.030172) Certified Shochu Sommelier
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焼酎品質鑑定士 Certified Shochu Quality Evaluation Expert
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Certified Spanish Wine Scholar, Wine Scholar Guild
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Certified in Wine Level 1, Wine & Spirit Education Trust (WSET)
If you don´t know where to start:
What kind of Sake are you!?
Find out your Sake personality in my 1-min quiz!
Sparkling Sake, Aged Sake, or....6 personalities!
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