5 Classic Cocktails That Call for Sake

Estimated read time 6 min read



As appetites increase for low-alcohol drinks, sake is uniquely suited for the moment. But it’s the proliferation of American-made sakes that’s seemingly inspired restaurants to experiment more with the fermented beverage as a cocktail ingredient.

“Products made in the US allow us an opportunity to taste a fresher product,” says Haera Shin, Beverage Director of Momofuku Restaurants. “There is no substitute for Japanese imported sake, but the style of unpasteurized sake that is meant to be enjoyed fresh shines when it’s made closer to home. We’re also able to contribute to supporting our local farmers, since brands like Brooklyn Kura source homegrown ingredients.”

Sake’s history dates to ancient Japan, where it has been crafted since the 3rd century BCE. A fermented rice beverage, sake is made from rice, water, and koji, a culture also used to make miso, soy sauce and mirin.

Coming in at around 14–16% ABV causes many drinkers to associate sake with wine, but it’s made in a complex, unique process called parallel fermentation that’s actually closer to how beer is brewed. During this process, the rice gets converted from starch to sugar to alcohol and is then refined.

Depending on the level of refinement, sake comes in 6 main styles — junmai, daiginjo, ginjo, honjozo, futsushu, and nigori — which vary in their levels of dryness, acidity, and flavor.

“Sake doesn’t fight with food, and when used in cocktails, it can lift up certain flavors,” says Andy May, head bartender at New York City’s The Golden Swan, who recently added a drink with two different types of sake to the menu. Or, for anyone interested in a lower-proof option, a sparkling sake is great in a spritz, Bellini or Mimosa, instead of prosecco, cava or Champagne.

American sakes to try

  • Sake ONO – Junmai daiginjo that balances Campari in a Sake Negroni.
  • SummerFall: Comes in cans as well as sparkling and still. It’s made with wine yeast and cultures instead of sake yeast and white koji. This brewing method creates more acidic sake, which makes it easier to pair with food.
  • Brooklyn Kura: Comes in four different varieties as well as a limited-release subscription. Try the Catskills Junmai Dai Ginjo, which is the Champagne of sakes. Flavor-wise, it’s more delicate, aromatic, and softer on the palette than others.
  • Proper Sake Co.: A Nashville based brewery that specializes in kimoto and yamahai styles, the rarest, oldest, and boldest varieties of sake. They tend to have flavors that can range from meaty to cheesy to earthy.
  • Dassai Blue: Has been making sake since 1984 and is brewed in Hyde Park, New York. It’s a junmai daiginjo. The brewery hosts tours, tastings, and paired dinners that are worth checking out.

As sake continues to pop up on drink menus alongside a range of cuisines that extend far beyond those of Japan, our framing of the beverage is shifting.

“Wine has a stigma — many like it, but many don’t. Sake gives people another option,” says Jenifer Van Nortwick, luxury activation manager at Sake ONO, an American-made sake that launched earlier this year. “It’s also incredibly versatile. It’s crisp, clean and lacks the tartaric acid that wine has which makes it easy to pair food with outside the realm of Japanese cuisine.”

Now, bar directors are seeing sake as a creative way to riff on classic cocktails.

At Momofuku’s Noodle Bar in New York City, it’s used in a refreshing, herbaceous Cucumber Saketini; at Majordomo in Los Angeles, ume sake takes center stage in the Green Tuxedo, a complex herbal cocktail that also features Lillet and Chartreuse.

At the Williamsburg, Brooklyn location of buzzy hand roll bar Nami Nori, you’ll find locally sourced Kato Sake Works in the Mother of Pearl cocktail, the team’s interpretation of a classic Martini.

“Being able to feature a product that is made in [Brooklyn] makes us feel even more connected to the community,” says Lisa Limb, managing partner of Nami Nori. “We’re supporting a fellow small business that is making an exceptional product.” 

Food & Wine / Photo by Brie Goldman / Food Styling by Lauren McAnelly / Props by Addelyn Evans


Sake shares a number of similarities with gin — a nuance, often botanical-forward profile among them — and makes for a fantastic substitution for a lower-alcohol Negroni riff. Here, a junmai sake is used to create richness while bringing enough of a backbone of natural acidity to stand in for a higher-proof ingredient.

Food & Wine / Photo by Brie Goldman / Food Styling by Lauren McAnelly / Prop Styling by Addelyn Evans


The classic Vesper Martini, made famous by James Bond in Ian Fleming’s original novel Casino Royale, uses both gin and vodka to create a particularly boozy take on the classic cocktail. Here, the Sake Vesper replaces vodka with a combination of dry sake and yuzu sake, to lower the alcohol and increase the diversity of flavor, while orgeat is used to bring body to the cocktail.

Food & Wine / Photo by Brie Goldman / Food Styling by Lauren McAnelly  / Prop Styling by Addelyn Evans


The Sakke Margarita follows closely to the “golden ratio” of sour cocktails, or two parts spirit with one part sour and one part sweet. What this translates to here is a spirit base that is split between reposado tequila and sake, with lime juice bringing the classic sour Margarita profile, and sweetness coming from a combination of simply syrup and agave nector. Chili oil and a shichimi togarashi rim bring a hit of salt and spice that bring the drink home.

Chelsea Kyle / Food Styling by Drew Aichele


Cucumber vodka is used alongside junmai sake in this two-part cocktail created in a classic 2:1 profile, with sake taking the place of a Martini’s traditional dry vermouth. Cucumber helps to bring out sake’s subtle vegetal notes, though if preferred, you can easily substitute the vodka with a botanical-forward gin of your choice.

Sake Bloody Mary

Jennifer Causey / Food Styling by Emily Nabors Hall / Prop Styling by Christine Keely


Yellow tomatoes are used in this riff on the classic Bloody Mary, which emphasizes the drink’s citrus elements versus simply doubly down on its savory aspects. Basil bitters and celery salt help to bring an herbal finish, and though sake is the base of the drink by volume, a touch of rye vodka adds a depth and a bit of extra heat.



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