Takahashi Shouten, based in the city of Yame in Fukuoka Prefecture, launched a subsidiary in India in February. The sake producer, founded in 1717, is known for such sake brands as Shigemasu.
While the Indian unit has yet to obtain a manufacturing license from local authorities, it is conducting trial production and selecting manufacturing sites in the South Asian country.
It is believed to be the first Japanese sake manufacturer that has established an Indian subsidiary, according to the Japanese Embassy in India.
Although many in India do not drink alcohol for religious reasons, the country's population of over 1.4 billion means that even if only a tenth of people drink, the number would surpass Japan's entire population.
"There are many young people, and I feel the market potential," Takahashi Shouten president Takuya Nakagawa, 50, said.
According to trade statistics from Japan's Finance Ministry, the East Asian country's sake exports to India totaled ¥29 million last year, far lower than the ¥12.4 billion in sales to China, which has a similar population size.
Nakagawa said he is glad that sake brewing skills became listed as UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage as this has made it easier to explain sake to people in India, where the drink is not well known.
Ingredients other than koji mold, such as rice and water, will be sourced locally in order to create an Indian local sake. Nakagawa expressed "worry and excitement" as this may lead to the sake tasting differently from that made in Japan.
Imports of sake from Japan are subject to high tariffs, and sales prices can be up to 10 times higher depending on the store, said Aditya Kumar Vijay, 42, head of Takahashi Shouten's local unit.
The unit aims to distribute sake across the country by reducing costs through domestic production.
Vijay said that the company hopes to launch full-fledged production within three years, adding that it is testing pairings of sake with Indian food.
Shigemasu India Pvt. Ltd. story in The Japan Times today!
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