COULD DO BETTER - Part 2 [Retailers]

In Part 1 of this ranting article I gave, with help from Tom Wilson at Kanpai London, a quick snapshot of the post-pandemic Sake restaurant scene in the UK. It’s not bad, on the right trajectory but still could do better.

So how about the retail sector?

London is certainly leading the way which isn’t surprising of course but still there’s just three dedicated places for drinking and buying Sake on site - Kanpai London, of course, and then MOTO in Covent Garden and Sake Collective - and really just a smattering of online retail opportunities to buy Sake for drinking at home.

I’m sure Tom won’t start blocking me if I say that it’s a bit of a trek over to Peckham Rye. However, it’s definitely worth the trip in my view (where else can you sip fresh Sake in the UK with its brewer?) but for someone less dedicated in the hunt for Sake, would they agree?

And this is exactly why Tom has decided to focus on where the brewery is, winning the hearts and minds (and palates) of likeminded locals. London is a sprawling city. To its advantage is that it does have identifiable neighbourhoods and, dare I say it, tribes which means that you’ll find all the cool experimental happenings in up and coming East London whereas a lot of the more formal, nuanced and, well, downright fanciful stuff (read “expensive”) is in West London.

MOTO is brilliantly located in Covent Garden’s periphery but how many of the tourists there would consider going for a deep dive into Sake on a Tuesday lunchtime when there’s Fish & Chips and warm beer on the “must do in London” shortlist?

Sake Collective is perhaps the best located, mopping up the after work crowds from Bishopsgate, commuters going to Liverpool Street and the bohemian drinkers from Shoreditch. It also seems to have the only decent street presence that screams “Sake” - we need more of this.

But what if I want to easily pick up some Sake to drink at home? What if I can’t face the rain or the public transport delays?

In Japan, it would be just a short dash to pretty much any supermarket or convenience store to get your Sake fix. Nice weather? Then take a bit more of a stroll to a dedicated Sake purveyor and spend some time picking out something truly memorable to drink. And therein lies the difference.

The UK leads the world in supermarket range, freshness and diversity, and that applies even to those more scaled down versions in dense urban conurbations. But when it comes to a Sake fixture, you’re out of luck.

Search for “Sake” in three of the UK’s leading (and higher end) online grocery platforms and you’ll get back a range of mirin and Shaoxing (so from China's Zhejiang Province) rice wines. Come on, that ain’t Sake, retailers! In fact, word on the grapevine is that one retailer doesn’t stock Sake as the booze Buyer isn’t a fan of it, but that’s just hearsay…I hope.

One entry that does come up is from Sawanotsuru, a large brewer of Sake from Kobe. Yet it’s listed under “Liqueurs & Aperitifs”, and elsewhere referred to as a “Sake Wine Deluxe”. Oh dear. Nevertheless, fifteen reviewers on one website rate it an average of 4.5 - so you can see the potential for this market.

A note of advice to one retailer - I don’t want to give your identity away but it starts with a “W” and ends with “aitrose” ;-) - from a savvy customer who commented:

A little harsh and none of that umami deliciousness that good quality Sake can offer. Please source some higher level Sakes for customers to try too - say a Tokubetsu Junmai, a Junmai Ginjo and a Daiginjo.

That comment was made four years back and nothing’s changed. Could do better. By the way, it wasn’t me.

But there’s some good retailers out there, championing Sake. It’s just that they’re not on every High Street.

Case in point, Fortnum & Mason. And, with over 300 years of retailing experience, you’d expect this to be the case. Type in “Sake” here and 314 products come up. Sounds good however sadly only six are actually Sake. Wonderful to see Kanpai’s brews in the line up though.

In the store itself, I clocked the same six when I visited, displayed neatly on the Lower Ground Floor…in the Spirits section and positioned confusingly under a smart illuminated sign “SAKE & OTHER SPIRITS”. It’s not a spirit, Mr Fortnum and Mr Mason. Close, but no cigar. Could do better.

Top of the class, not a surprise really, goes to Hedonism. Winning the battle for shelf space is courtesy of their dedicated Sake consultant, Honami Matsumoto, and their own clear passion and dedication to the alcoholic beverage universe. It all looks beautiful and in those swanky chillers, clearly a selection they want to take care of.

Sakes range from the ubiquitous Mio Sparkling at just north of ten pounds to a 1% polished Yamada Nishiki with a price tag three hundred times that. Quite the spectrum. And don’t forget the six Enomatic sampling machines downstairs, normally always there’s a Sake on for tasting. Just sort out your online and take Sake out of the “SPIRITS AND MORE” section, arigato gozaimasu.

So all in all, it’s a bit hit and miss.

What’s the solution then, you ask? Well it lies with us, I’m afraid, this little gang of Sake lovers, the global Sake community.

Crippling taxes makes the jobs of Britain’s importers very difficult. Tom doesn’t have quite that issue, brewing in London, although there is an increasingly high alcohol duty to absorb still. He does face cost of living increases, skyrocketing utilities and sometimes short-sighted retailers. Plus, he brings in all Kanpai London’s raw ingredients from Japan, a necessary evil that swallows up a good chunk of his already tight margins.

So, tell your friends, get them to taste Sake. Bug your pub landlord about it, badger your local restaurant Sommelier for a Sake on the list. Hopefully retailers will take notice. Who knows, in ten years’ time Sunday Roast at the Dog & Ferret will have the landlord reaching for another case of Yamahai from the cellar, rather than another box of generic Aussie red wine.

But in the meantime, retail industry, you really could do better.

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LINKS:

Kanpai London Craft Sake
Peckham Rye, London
https://kanpai.london/

MOTO
Covent Garden, London
https://motoldn.com/

Sake Collective
London
https://shop.sakecollective.uk/