On 10 September 2026, a special celebration was held at PARKROYAL Darling Harbour Sydney to honour the award-winning sake from the Australian Sake Awards 2026.

Now in its fifth year, the Australian Sake Awards 2026 received 204 entries from sake breweries across Japan, as well as importers and distributors in Australia and overseas. A panel of 68 judges assessed a diverse range of sake styles. In addition to evaluating the sake itself, this year’s competition once again included the Judge’s Choice Awards and the Food Matching Competition, which focused on how well each sake paired with food.

You can view the results of this year’s Australian Sake Awards here.

The celebration brought together 33 guests, including representatives from the Consulate-General of Japan in Sydney and JETRO Sydney, as well as sake brewers, importers and marketing professionals.

Alongside presentations of the award-winning sake and speeches from guests and industry representatives, attendees were invited to enjoy pairings of dishes with sake selected through this year’s Food Matching Competition.

The evening opened with remarks from Osamu Yamanaka, Consul-General of Japan in Sydney. For the toast, guests enjoyed Kikuizumi Hitosuji Rose by Takizawa Brewing Company, Ltd., a Gold Award winner in the Sparkling Category.

The event was hosted by Simone Maynard, a Sake Samurai and well-known figure in Australia’s sake community, who guided the evening in a warm and relaxed atmosphere.

The celebration featured five dishes, each paired with a sake selected as the Best Food Matching Award winner in its respective category:

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Dish	Award-winning sake	Brewery
Caprese Salad	Kamikokoro Kokagenosakana	Kamikokoro Shuzo Co., Ltd.
Beer Battered Fish & Chips	SHIRAKAWAGO TANSANJUNMAI AWANIGORI	MIWA SHUZO CO., LTD.
Chinese Five-Spice Pork Belly	Kamikokoro Kokagenosakana	Kamikokoro Shuzo Co., Ltd.
Thai Green Curry with Tofu & Vegetables	Prince Nagaya	Nakamoto Sake Brewery Co., Ltd.
Cheesecake	KAGURA Roca Sparkling Unfiltered Undiluted	Matsui Sake Brewery Co., Ltd.

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Between the pairing sessions, guests had the opportunity to hear directly from brewers and importers about the award-winning sake and the craft behind them. Videos also introduced the stories, values and backgrounds of the breweries, offering a deeper look at what goes into each bottle.

Kenichi Ishihara, Chief Executive Director of JETRO Sydney, and judging leader William Stewart McIntyre also addressed guests, sharing their perspectives on the international expansion of sake and its potential in the Australian market.

To close the celebration, Tsuyoshi Endo, Managing Director of JAMS.TV and Representative Director of Australian Sake Awards Incorporated, joined MC Simone Maynard in thanking the breweries, judges, importers and everyone involved in this year’s awards. They also spoke about their shared commitment to introducing more Australians to the appeal of sake and further strengthening food and cultural exchange between Australia and Japan.

Strengthening Australia–Japan Connections Through Sake

Bringing together award-winning sake selected from 204 entries, the celebration provided a valuable opportunity for brewers, importers, judges, marketing professionals and others involved in the sake industry to connect.

From 11 to 13 September, immediately following the celebration, Sydney Sake Festival 2026 was held at the Overseas Passenger Terminal. The festival showcased a wide variety of sake, including award winners introduced at the celebration, giving Australian consumers the opportunity to discover the diversity of sake.

2026 also marks the 50th anniversary of the signing of the Basic Treaty of Friendship and Co-operation between Australia and Japan. The Australian Sake Awards 2026 was officially recognised as a 50th anniversary event, highlighting the significance of sake in fostering food and cultural exchange between the two countries.

The Australian Sake Awards aims to identify sake styles that resonate with Australian consumers while providing Japanese breweries with valuable insights through judges’ evaluations and feedback. By using approachable descriptions rather than relying solely on traditional sake classifications, the Awards also seeks to make sake more accessible and encourage its enjoyment alongside Australian food culture, while exploring evaluation approaches that reflect the local market.

Through this year’s celebration, we were pleased to highlight award-winning sake and strengthen connections between Australia and Japan, contributing to the continued growth of sake in international markets.