Atsuo Sakurai learned sake in Tokyo. Today he brews it in Holbrook, Arizona, just off historic Route 66, alongside his wife Heather, who is from the Navajo Nation. When they opened Arizona Sake, he admits the reaction was skeptical: initially, nobody believed. The awards since then, from competitions in Japan and around the globe, tell a different story.
The process is deliberately slow. Each bottle takes about three months from start to finish, brewed in a 200-gallon vat. Their lineup includes a sake made with Navajo tea, blending Japanese technique with Navajo ingredients, and tasters describe notes of pear and blueberry, with at least one picking up prickly pear. Some creations are sold only in Holbrook, which makes the shop a genuine destination.
For those of us on the Suncoast, where local makers and seasonal visitors shape so much of community life, this is a story about craft holding its ground in an age of AI and automation. It’s also a reminder that the best local flavor often comes from people who bring two worlds together. Have you found a local maker around Sarasota or Bradenton doing something similar? Tell us in the comments.
