Sake Brewed on International Space Station to Sell for $650K Per Bottle

One small step for man, one large leap for … sake?

Asahi Shuzo, the company known for the sake brand Dassai, has announced plans to launch the ingredients — Yamada Nishiki rice, koji mold, yeast and water — necessary to make the Japanese rice wine into space. During the trial, which is slated for the second half of 2025, the company will ferment the wine on the International Space Station (ISS), before returning a single bottle back to Earth.

Back on land, the 100ml bottle, called “Dassai MOON – Space Brew,” will be put up for sale at a whopping price of ¥100 million — or roughly $650,000. (Currently, the company’s most expensive sake goes for an economical $600. It also noted that "the full amount from this sale" will be donated to "support future Japanese space developments.")

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But the six-figure bottle is only the beginning of Asahi Shuzo’s intergalactic ambitions: Its long-term vision — according to a press release — is to eventually brew Dassai sake on the Moon using lunar water and rice, noting that "as humanity looks toward potential lunar colonization in the 2040s, the role of sake in adding richness to life in such extended stays is worth considering."

“In a future where humans can freely travel between the moon and Earth, some will visit the moon as tourists,” Souya Uetsuki, the brewer leading the project at Asahi Shuzo, told CNN. “This project aims to create sake that can be enjoyed on the moon, allowing visitors to have delightful moments there.”

Before blasting sake ingredients into space next year, Asahi Shuzo will first test the fermentation process under lunar conditions — roughly one-sixth of Earth’s gravity — while fine-tuning its brewing equipment.

Related: Astronauts Feast on Dehydrated Thanksgiving Dinner in Space After Being Stuck for Extra 5 Months: 'Gonna Be Delicious!'

But why sake, and not grape wine or another boozy beverage? The company believes that rice, devoid of the water that fills standard grapes, will offer a lighter and more practical alternative when making the perilous journey from Earth to the Moon.

Still, Uetsuki acknowledged that such a daring experiment is no sure bet. “There is no guarantee of 100% success for the fermentation tests,” the project lead told CNN, noting that differing gravity on the Moon could affect the fermentation process in unexpected ways.

But if it works, it might mean that a host of Japanese foods that require fermentation — including miso and natto — could be made in space as well, Uetsuki added.

Read the original article on People