The Consulate General of Japan in Ho Chi Minh City on Tuesday held an event to promote sake, or Japanese rice wine, in Vietnam with the highlight being the pairing of the wine and Vietnamese food.

The consulate general organized the event, named 'Explore Sake 2023,' in association with Kaku-Uchi & SAKE, the first Japanese sake specialty store in Vietnam, as part of the activities to celebrate 50 years of the diplomatic relationship between Vietnam and Japan.

The event, taking place at the residence of Japanese Consul General in Ho Chi Minh City Masuo ONO, attracted 30 breweries from across Japan.

“Sake, with its diverse flavors and long history, is closely linked to Japanese food culture," Consul General ONO said.

"In recent years, sake has also become known for its ability to pair well with non-Japanese cuisine such as French or Italian cuisine.”

The wine was later found to be able to be served with Vietnamese food as well.

During 'Explore Sake 2023,' sake was introduced to pair with typical Vietnamese dishes, including banh hoi nem lui (grilled pork wrapped in rice noodles), shrimp stew in coconut, and banh mi (Vietnamese baguette), along with non-Vietnamese food like sushi, seafood from Japan, and cheese cakes.

“Sake is now favored by many people in various parts of the world. It helps bring people together and make life more colorful,” Sana Tsukimori, the owner of Kaku-Uchi & SAKE Shop, the co-organizer of the 'Explore Sake 2023' program, said at the event.

She expressed her hope that sake would be a bridge to connect Vietnam and Japan.

Jesse Selvagn, a U.S. sake sommelier, who joined the event as an instructor of sake and food pairings, told Tuoi Tre News that he loves both sake and Vietnamese food.

They are a perfect match as sake has a lot of fruity, herbal, and umami flavors and Vietnam also has fruity, herbal, umami, and sweet savors in its dishes.

Umami is described as savory and is characteristic of broths and cooked meats.

Sharing the idea of combining sake with Vietnam’s typical dishes, Selvagn said, “We met with the consulate’s chef and asked him about the kind of dishes that he was interested in making. We both wanted to showcase sake with Vietnamese food, so he made some traditional banh hoi and banh mi.

“We want to show people how wonderful Vietnamese food [is when combined] with sake.”

'Explore Sake 2023' participants were excited to try pairings of sake and Vietnamese food, including Luke Nguyen, a Vietnamese-Australian chef, who said that Japanese and Vietnamese cuisines are similar in the sense that the two countries love using fresh, high-quality materials.

“Sake is a great beverage to pair with not only Japanese food, but any cuisine. And Vietnamese food can pair with any kind of wine, whiskey, and also sake.”

Assessing the Vietnamese market, Seiichiro OTA, president of OTA Shuzou Co. Ltd., one of the 30 breweries introducing sake at the event, said the Vietnamese market is promising and his company is seeking to penetrate it.

He hoped to introduce sake products to more Vietnamese consumers in the coming time through this occasion.

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