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NAMI, Mexico's First Sake!

Did you know that there is a sake loved by top chefs of Michelin-starred restaurants and top bartenders of The World's 50 Best Bars in Mexico?　Its name is NAMI.And it is brewed by Mexicans in a local city in Mexico.We are curious about this, so we report from Mexico!

writer：Miho Nagaya（メキシコシティ在住）

From left to right: junmai, junmai ginjo, junmai daiginjo, nigori.©Hisako Tanaka

Japanese food becomes established → Sake also becomes standard!

In Mexico, where Japanese food has been a staple since the 1980s, SAKE (Japanese sake) is becoming a standard drink, much like wine.



While imported sake makes up a large portion of the market, Mexican sake "NAMI" is becoming a common sight in liquor stores and eating spots.

In prominent bars such as "Handshake Speakeasy," which topped The World's 50 Best Bars 2024It is used in cocktails at prominent bars such as "Handshake Speakeasy," which topped The World's 50 Best Bars 2024, and is also on the menus of non-Japanese restaurants.

(Click here for an article on"Handshake Speakeasy")

(Click here for an article on "Handshake Speakeasy" at the Tokyo International Bar Show 2025)

Moreover, it is surprising that the "NAMI" is not from a big city but from Culiacan, the capital of Sinaloa, in northern Mexico.



(A regional city that even Mexicans rarely visit!)