On December 5th, Japanese sake was officially recognized as a World Heritage item by UNESCO. Our CEO made a statement to the media, expressing gratitude not only for this recognition but also for the contributions of our ancestors who made it possible. He remarked, "We must not simply rejoice; we need to continue striving to make even better sake." I wholeheartedly agree with this sentiment.
For us, sake brewing is not about gaining recognition from UNESCO, but about hearing the simple words from our customers: “Ah, delicious.” We must not become a traditional industry that clings solely to its traditions.
In a similar spirit, the "DASSAI Moon Brewing Project," also known as "DASSAI MOON," which has recently garnered significant attention, was born from our constant desire to bring happiness to our customers’ daily lives. This ambitious project was made possible through collaboration with Mitsubishi Heavy Industries. However, the initial inspiration came from a Nagoya-based company, Takasago Fluidic Systems.
The story began when I was invited to give a lecture at the Nagoya Chamber of Commerce. After my talk, the chairman of Takasago Fluidic Systems approached me with an idea: "Why not make sake in space?" It started as a simple concept. An engineer at the company, who happened to be a beer enthusiast, had developed a micro-sized beer brewing system. They had previously approached several major beer manufacturers to propose experiments, but as expected, they were turned down. Eventually, they decided to pitch the idea to DASSAI, thinking we might be willing to take on the challenge.
At first, I was hesitant, as it seemed more like a curiosity-driven experiment. However, when I heard that "it is not impossible to make sake in the environment of the moon," my interest was piqued. This idea ultimately led to our collaboration with Takasago Fluidic Systems.
With forecasts suggesting that humans could live on the moon as early as 2040, we thought, "If that’s the case, sake could contribute to improving the quality of life. Mere survival isn’t enough; humans need something more, and DASSAI could play a role in fulfilling that need." Additionally, making wine on the moon would be prohibitively expensive, as transporting grape juice would add significant cost. In contrast, sake offers a practical advantage—rice can be steamed and dried to reduce its weight, making it a more feasible option. Furthermore, we considered, "There is water on the moon," which further supports the idea.
We quickly decided to assign Mr. Uetsuki, a second-year employee, to lead the project. Although he was initially surprised, he started from scratch, first exploring experiments on Earth in zero-gravity environments. He worked closely with JAXA and, through that connection, brought Mitsubishi Heavy Industries into the project. With additional support from the Aichi Food Industry Technology Center, the team successfully conducted experiments to brew sake in space.
At first, Uetsuki focused primarily on maintaining quality. However, I advised him, "Forget about quality for now; focus all your energy on fermentation." He smiled awkwardly, clearly used to handling the chairman's unusual requests by now.
Through this process, we were able to connect with Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, a leader in Japan's space technology. Their expertise played a crucial role in advancing the project to this stage, and I am grateful for their support. Unfortunately, Takasago Fluidic Systems' involvement has diminished, but they are still pursuing research in beer brewing. Perhaps, someday, we will be able to enjoy both beer and sake on the moon—both proudly originating from Japan!
The sake we will create is called "MOON." Next year, an ultra-small sake brewing plant will be launched to the space station, and once the fermentation is complete, it will return to Earth. There won’t be a stirring process like traditional sake brewing, but astronauts will still need to press a button to activate the plant’s stirring system. The daily wage for astronauts, as communicated by JAXA, is 6 million yen (40,000 USD) per hour! The entire project is expected to cost 1.4 billion yen (935,000 USD).
The "DASSAI MOON" will be sold in 200ml bottles, with 100ml reserved for internal tasting and analysis, while the remaining 100ml will be sold for one million yen (667,300 USD). The proceeds will be donated to Japan’s space development program. (This is likely to become the world’s most expensive alcoholic beverage.)
The media has been mostly positive. Some have commented, "Not satisfied with expanding overseas, now you're reaching for space!" and "This Sunday marked a 180-degree turnaround from the down mood of last week." Perhaps we've brightened Japan's morning just a little.
By the way, please don’t worry—the water used for fermentation will be Earth water, not water recycled from the space station.