Products from 15 Japanese small and medium-sized producers came together in London — most of them not yet available in the UK. Around 50 guests, including restaurant professionals, importers and bar and off-licence operators, attended the invitation-only tasting, the first STANDAGE has organised on its own.
STANDAGE held its invitation-only tasting, STANDAGE London Japanese F&B Tasting, over two days on Monday 8 and Tuesday 9 June 2026 at MOI (84 Wardour St) in Soho, London, introducing sake and other Japanese food and drink to UK buyers. Products from 15 Japanese SMEs were gathered under one roof, and around 50 guests — restaurant professionals, importers, and bar and off-licence operators — attended, with more than half going on to discuss concrete sourcing. Most of the products shown are not currently imported into the UK.
Although STANDAGE has taken part in numerous international trade fairs as an exhibitor, this is the first event it has organised entirely on its own. STANDAGE staff presented the products on behalf of the producers, led by Junmai Ginjo and Junmai Daiginjo sake and extending to shochu, whisky, gin and liqueurs, food, premium ice for bars and luxury hotels, and craftwork.
Event overview
Event：STANDAGE London Japanese F&B Tasting (invitation only)
Dates：Monday 8 – Tuesday 9 June 2026, 13:00–17:00 each day
Venue：MOI, 84 Wardour St, Soho, London W1F 0TF
Format：Strictly invitation only; trade professionals, not open to the public
On show：Products from 15 Japanese SMEs — sake at the centre, alongside shochu, whisky and gin, liqueurs and umeshu, food, premium ice and craftwork. Most are not yet available in the UK.
Attendance：Around 50 guests (roughly half from restaurants; the remainder importers, distributors and bar and off-licence operators)
Organiser：STANDAGE
In partnership with：Natsuki Kikuya (London-based F&B coordinator) and MOI (venue), among others
On the day
Guests tasted and sampled their way through the range — sake at the centre, alongside shochu, whisky, gin and liqueurs, as well as food and craftwork — with STANDAGE staff on hand to explain each product and the story of its producer. Rather than seated meetings at tables, conversations largely took place standing, glass in hand. Premium ice for bars and luxury hotels was also presented as a way to raise the quality of cocktails and premium spirits served. Among those attending were sommeliers from Michelin-starred restaurants in the UK, as well as major importers and distributors.
Sake, awamori and umeshu — the event’s lead categories — drew particular interest. Japanese wine also met a warmer reception than expected: in a European market where wine culture runs deep and standards are high, the ginger wine and red wine on show were well received, a result that speaks to the quality of the producers taking part. Nick Rowan, author of Japanese Wine, was also among the guests, a sign of the growing attention Japanese wine is attracting.
What guests said
A London sommelier
“There are plenty of well-known national sake brands, but consumers are always after something new — a new product, a new experience. What was shown here felt genuinely new.”
An experienced bartender
“Sake sits at around 16% ABV, close to wine at about 12%, so it’s easy for London drinkers to relate to. Awamori is around 45%, close to whisky, so that lands easily too. Shochu, at about 25%, is a category of its own — but explained properly, that’s exactly what makes it an interesting proposition.”
On show (sake at the centre, from 15 producers)
Sake (lead category)：Junmai Ginjo and Junmai Daiginjo from several breweries, including Mutoya, Akita Meijo, Mutemuka, Nishino Kinryo, Umi to Machi to, and Nihon Glocal Business
Awamori：Okinawa Island Blue and others (Nanto Shuhan); Leo Corporation
Umeshu (plum wine)：Kumahei Umeshu (Inoue Umeboshi; certified GI Wakayama Umeshu)
Japanese wine：Ginger Wine and Ginger Sparkling (Eiho Foods); red wine (Umi to Machi to)
Premium ice (for bars and luxury hotels)：Ichimaru stick ice and Diamond Ice (Chusei Seihyo Reizo, FSSC 22000); pure-ice cubes (Okamoto Ice, 48-hour slow process, FSSC 22000)
Plus shochu, whisky, gin, food and craftwork — 15 producers in total.
A number of the products shown have won international awards, including at Kura Master, the IWSC (International Wine & Spirits Competition) and the U.S. National Sake Appraisal.
What happens next
STANDAGE will follow up with the UK buyers who attended, to turn the conversations begun at the tasting into actual trade. Encouraged by the response to this first edition, STANDAGE plans to hold further own-organised tastings in London and other cities abroad.
About STANDAGE
STANDAGE Inc., founded in March 2017, supports Japanese small and medium-sized enterprises in opening up overseas markets and exporting. Drawing on a team led by alumni of Japan’s major trading houses, it works across a wide range of categories — food, sake, supplements, medical devices and materials among them — and also develops trade DX systems for settlement and logistics using blockchain. Head office: Minato-ku, Tokyo. President & CEO: Akinori Adachi.
Media enquiries
STANDAGE — PR Team
Email: pr@standage.co.jp / Tel: +81 3 6435 3371
STANDAGE website (English): https://standage-inquiry.netlify.app/#
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First published on Big News
