Crafting DASSAI Sake on the Moon

A peek behind the curtain of the DASSAI MOON Project. Explore the first step toward crafting sake on the moon. All attendees must be 21 or older.

As we begin the new year, Japan Society looks to the future together with sake brewery DASSAI for a conversation on the DASSAI MOON Project—an initiative aimed at constructing the first-ever sake brewery on the moon. The project’s focus is to produce sake on the moon by 2050, and to achieve the historic feat, DASSAI recently carried out the world’s first sake fermentation in orbit inside the Japanese Experiment Module “Kibou” (Hope) aboard the International Space Station. This experiment was conducted in simulated lunar gravity (1/6 Earth’s gravity) using an artificial gravity generator installed in Kibou. The experiment investigated how fermentation behaves in lunar gravity and laid the foundation for brewing sake beyond Earth—bringing traditional Japanese craftsmanship into the era of space exploration. The moromi (fermentation mash) produced inside Kibou will be brought back to Earth and pressed to make sake bottled under the name DASSAI MOON, and DASSAI will donate all proceeds from its sale to the future development of Japanese space exploration. This project is a first test in anticipation of human lunar settlement and the dream of making sake in lunar colonies!

Please join DASSAI Chairman Hiroshi Sakurai and DASSAI MOON Project Manager Soya Uetsuki for a conversation about their collaboration with the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) to conduct brewing experiments in orbit. They will discuss the technology behind the project and how DASSAI transformed this idea into reality to achieve a historic milestone for humanity. This talk will be followed by a reception and sake tasting featuring DASSAI BLUE freshly brewed in Hyde Park, NY.

About Hiroshi Sakurai:
Hiroshi Sakurai was born in 1950 in Yamaguchi, Japan. He graduated from Matsuyama University in 1973 and joined sake company Asahi Shuzo in 1976, overseen by his father. After his father’s passing in 1984, he rebuilt the business and developed the flagship Junmai Daiginjo sake DASSAI. He is an internationally acclaimed business owner, winner of the EY Entrepreneur of the Year in 2021 in Japan and a respected innovator in the sake industry. 

About Soya Uetsuki:
Soya Uetsuki is the Lead Researcher in the Innovation Laboratory at DASSAI. With a background in life sciences, he contributes to pioneering research that integrates biotechnology with sake brewing. Uetsuki plays a key role in the DASSAI MOON Project, advancing fermentation and yeast experimentation. He holds a Bachelor’s and Master’s Degree from Hokkaido University and joined DASSAI in 2021.

About the Reception:
Following tonight’s lecture, all attendees are invited to join in a sake tasting featuring sake from DASSAI BLUE. All are made in New York State with Yamada Nishiki rice from Japan and Arkansas and water from New York’s Hudson Valley.

Reception will feature:

• Dassai Blue Type 23 – Tasting Notes: Complex aromatics of anise, pear and marshmallow develop into bright lemon chiffon, honeysuckle and stone fruit with a touch of minerality.


• Dassai Blue Type 35 – Tasting Notes: White peaches and ripe papayas with a soft, sweet fragrance. The taste is characterized by a subtle sweetness and refreshing acidity.


• Dassai Blue Type 50 – Tasting Notes: Licorice and cantaloupe give way to pineapple candy, lemon curd and vanilla with a hint of brine on the finish.


• Dassai Blue Nigori Sparkling 50 – Tasting Notes: A fruity aroma reminiscent of green apples and Japanese wagashi treats. Some sweetness, moderate fizziness and a refreshing crisp finish.

About Dassai:
DASSAI’s aim is to craft great sake. DASSAI is the #1 exported premium Junmai Daiginjo sake in the world, and it commands a large market share of the sake business. A haiku poet named Masaoka Shiki took “DASSAI” (literally “otter festival”) as his pen name because he would often scatter his writing materials in much the same way otters spread out their fish. Shiki was known for revolutionizing Japanese literature during the Meiji era, and DASSAI takes its name and inspiration from him. DASSAI’s focus is on crafting sake through revolution. 

One of DASSAI’s most recent revolutions is the launch of DASSAI BLUE, a state-of-the-art sake brewery just north of New York City. Combining Yamada Nishiki rice from Japan and Arkansas with water from New York’s Hudson Valley, the goal for DASSAI BLUE is to brew a sake that surpasses DASSAI’s sake in Japan. Named “Blue” in honor of the proverb of the indigo plant, in which its dye possesses a deeper blue than the very plant from which it originates, DASSAI BLUE is inspired to craft sake superior to any DASSAI before it.

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Header & Bottom Image © Dassai.

This event is co-presented by DASSAI BLUE.

Japan Society Food Events are sponsored by BALMUDA and Kikkoman Corporation.

Support for cultural programs is provided by Anime NYC, the Sandy Heck Lecture Fund, Jean Fan Colson and Daniel Colson, and Faith L. Taylor.

Japan Society programs are supported by the New York State Council on the Arts with the support of the Office of the Governor and the New York State Legislature.

Additional support is provided by a grant from The Venable Foundation.

Japan Society’s 120th anniversary initiatives and related programs are generously supported by Champion Sponsor, MUFG Bank, Ltd.; Advocate Sponsor, Mizuho Americas, Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation; and Friend Sponsor, Mitsubishi Corporation (Americas).