INTERVIEWS

Sake is an entry into a great experience in Japan.

Interviewed & written by Isao Tokuhashi Mail to: info@myeyestokyo.com   Andre Bishop Sake Samurai/Owner of Japanese restaurants & bars   The 2nd Kyoto interview is with Andre Bishop, “Sake Samurai” from Australia. His attachment to Japanese food and sake developed into owning his own Japanese restaurants and bars in his country. He has much knowledge of sake, but he wanted to learn how to make sake. In March 2015, Andre met Maho Otsuka, a toji (杜氏, Chief Sake Brewer) who worked for “Japan Brand Public Diplomacy Program” as a sake expert, in Australia. She held a seminar on climate, culture

INTERVIEWS

I want to tell the depth of sake to the world.

Interviewed & written by Isao Tokuhashi Mail to: info@myeyestokyo.com   Maho OtsukaToji (Chief Sake Brewer)   We’ll introduce you to 2 people who are involved in “sake”. One is a female toji (杜氏, Chief Sake Brewer), another is a “Sake Samurai” from Australia. First of all, let us share the stories of Maho Otsuka, a chief sake brewer of a 370 year-old brewery called “Shotoku Shuzo (招德酒造)”. Otsuka has been working at the brewery in Fushimi, a sake brewery town in Kyoto, as a toji since 2005. In March 2015, she worked for “Japan Brand Public Diplomacy Program” as a

INTERVIEWS

What people eat or what people drink is a window onto the culture.

Interviewed & written by Isao Tokuhashi Mail to: itokuhashi@myeyestokyo.com   Melinda Joe (USA) Sake/food journalist (She’s been in Japan for several years)   Do you like sake, a Japanese alcoholic beverage made from rice? If so, how much do you love it? We met an American woman who really loves it enough to work for that. Melinda Joe, a sake/food journalist. She is the drinks editor for Bento.com (a website which provides you information of restaurants and bars in Japan) and a frequent contributor to publications such as CNNGo and Japan Times (One of Japan’s English newspapers). Also she writes articles