300 Year Old Comics about Sake

If you’ve listened to Sake on Air before, you know every single episode kicks off with Chris saying, “…all the culture and history and…” That line was actually born in our very first recording session, cut from an explanation about exactly what hooked him into sake. It’s a philosophy we live by on the show, but today, we’re exploring it in a remarkably unique way.

We’re reporting on an event held earlier this year at the JSS Information Center that viewed sake culture through the vibrant, witty lens of Edo-period (1603~1868) comics and art. Joining us to guide this trip in a time machine is Yuki Hata, professor at Meijo University in Nagoya and an expert on 16th- to 19th-century Japanese culture and history. To give any more away would be to spoil this episode, so this time we are keeping the intro short. Enjoy!

As always, if you have questions or comments, please do share them with us at questions@sakeonair.com or send us a message on our Instagram, Facebook, or Substack!

We’ll be back very soon with plenty more Sake On Air.

Until then, kampai!

Sake on Air is produced by Export Japan. Our team is Cindy Bissig, John Gauntner, Chris Hughes, Sebastien Lemoine, Arline Lyons, Marie Nagata, Christopher Pellegrini, Rebekah Wilson-Lye, and Frank Walter. Our theme, “Younger Today Than Tomorrow,” was composed by forSomethingNew for Sake On Air.