About US
全黒物語
One night in late 2014 would-be-founders Dave, Yoshi, Craig
and Richard sat down in front of a rugby game with a bottle of sake in
Queenstown, New Zealand’s adventure capital. They had drunk most of it when
Dave piped up, “Why don’t we start New Zealand’s first sake brewery?”
The Zenkuro team have spent most of their lives with some
connection to the land where sake comes from, Japan. They have a passion to
share their appreciation of not only Japan, but also the place that they call
home, Queenstown, New Zealand. Our sake is an expression of the surroundings
and the water sourced from the pristine mountains and lakes around our
home.
Dave & Richard also run Tanken Tours Ltd and Wilderness
Adventures Ltd in Queenstown, catering to Japanese visitors – see www.nzwilderness.co.nz
The Team Behind Zenkuro Sake
河村 祥宏
YOSHIは、日本を代表する「酒の宣教師」の一人です。日本の日本酒の歴史と文化に情熱を注ぎ、世界中に日本酒の良さを広める活動を積極的に行っている。学習院大学を卒業したヨシは、カナダのバンクーバーにある YK3 Sake の共同経営者でもあり、日本ニュージーランド ビジネス カウンシルの熱心なメンバーでもあります。
Yasuko Joll
Since first coming to NZ in 1997 from Fukuoka, Japan, as a
licensed travel agent, Yasuko has lived in Queenstown working in the tourism
industry as an inbound travel agent, at Millbrook Resort, and as a local
tour guide, before becoming one of the founding members of Zenkuro Sake in
2015.
Yasuko is now a Certified Sake Professional, providing
Zenkuro with its organizational framework, coordinating the schedules of the
brewing team and ensuring all the necessary ingredients and supplies are always
available.
Richard Ryall
Richard graduated with honours from Leeds University,
England and after years of travelling the world, including living in Tokyo, he
settled in Queenstown. An outdoor enthusiast, he is the writer and publisher of
New Zealand flora and fauna books in Japanese and specialises in Japanese media visits for Tanken ToursLtd.
Yoshi Kawamura
Yoshi is one of Japan’s foremost ‘sake missionaries’. Passionate about the history and culture of sake in Japan, he actively promotes the spread of all that’s good about sake throughout the world. A graduate of Gakushuin University, Yoshi was also co-owner of YK3 Sake in Vancouver, Canada, and is an enthusiastic member of the Japan New Zealand Business Council.