Break out your calendars and clear your schedules, because Sake Day 2026 is almost here! October 1st is World Sake Day and this marks the traditional start of the sake brewing season in Japan, and here in the US, the sake celebrations stretch from late September all the way to mid-October. In this episode, John and Timothy run down Sake Day events happening from coast to coast (and even in between), with tastings, festivals, and celebrations in New York, San Francisco, San Diego, Denver, DC, and beyond. Plus, don't miss our own Sake Revolution Live! recording on Sake Day itself at the Brooklyn Kura Taproom, followed the very next night by Sake Day Brooklyn, the brewery's biggest tasting event of the year. Along the way, we sip two special potluck picks: Suigei "Drunken Whale" Harmony Junmai Daiginjo and Farthest Star's The Needs of the Many. Find your event, grab your tickets, and come say hi (free stickers guaranteed). Kanpai!

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Episode 190. Honjozo sometimes gets a bad rap. Somewhere along the way, "added alcohol" sake became viewed skeptically by some and Junmai sake wound up with all the glory. On Episode 190, John and Tim go back to basics to mount a defense of honjozo because as John puts it, "ginjo doesn't need a hero". In the glass we are sipping Atago no Matsu Tokubetsu Honjozo from Niizawa Jozo in Miyagi, a bottle that quietly flexes Grade A Yamadanishiki from Hyogo milled all the way down to 60%. It drinks like it — creamy, grippy, gently nutty, with a dryness that never raises its voice. Along the way we talk about what tokubetsu means and why exactly is it that Honjozo grade sakes are less common to find in the U.S. vs. in Japan. Join us as we go back to basics on honjozo and BYO Tonkatsu!
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Episode 189. After six years of audio-only podcasting, Sake Revolution is officially on video — and we're celebrating by doing something dangerous... dangerously delicious, that is! John and Timothy are trying their hand at a 15-million-view viral sake challenge out of Japan: dipping castella cake into a can of Kikusui Funaguchi. A sake shop called Kurand started it. Kikusui's own social media team escalated it. And now America's first sake podcast is here to find out if castella cake is really and truly sponge worthy. Along the way, we dig into what castella cake actually is (it's not pound cake, we promise), why Funaguchi's 19% ABV is sneakier than it looks, and, critically, whether you should dunk or dribble. Spoiler alert: one of us learned the hard way. In any case, we are here to tell you that you can have your cake and drink it, too. If you've been with us since the beginning, welcome to our new video format. If you're brand new — pull up a can and your favorite cake and join the party. Kanpai!
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