1O years shizuku | A round milestone

Dear connoisseur

Zurich, October 18, 2013. The new and first online shop specialized in sake www.shizuku.ch is online! The Japanese journey has started...

And then it was 1O years shizuku....
Can you believe it!!! 'Crazy. Even I have yet to realize it,' smiles founder Marc Nydegger, visibly touched.
When you take the step into self-employment, you do everything for the first time. Nervousness, tension, hope accompany you. Low blows teach, experiences shape. And successes drive you on.

The kanpai becomes historic
Friends, companions & partners - who have discovered, lived and helped shaping shizuku over the years drop by drop by supporting us on the journey to this round milestone - shall be vividly quoted!

The result is an album of good memories, which we are happy to open again and relive these beautiful emotions on the occasion of the 1Oth Birthday.

Arigato - the journey continues - drop by drop
Marc

(October 2023)

«What do you do with Japanese studies? Yes, exactly that!»

Jan Knüsel
2 Swiss people who love Japan, both studied Japanese Studies and have made the culture their business and purpose in life - and tick the same way! Sure, they exchange ideas before hour 1...
With asienspiegel.ch, Jan has created a renowned platform with over 5000 culturally & journalistically valuable articles. He is the address for people interested in Japan & travelers from Switzerland.
In Jan, Marc has also found a real sparring partner and friend. They exchange ideas, reflect, criticize & support each other, as is also good practice in Japan...

«When I read 'shizuku' somewhere in Japan, I immediately think of Marc»
Now it's getting personal (he laughs), because I totally see Marc being passionate about sake and shizuku for me is Marc. Even when I read 'shizuku' somewhere in Japan, I immediately think of him. Simply cool. And my respect for his work is huge!

«A lot of people have come & gone, but he's still here!»
We took a similar path, small, as Japanologists, self-made men. Japan is a niche anyway, no matter what you do. I can therefore fully put myself in his shoes. With this product that requires explanation, then a pandemic... Huge compliments and admirable how he has pulled this off for 1O years & established it.
This perseverance & passion are the reason why shizuku still exists.
Marc is constantly evolving & always takes a fresh look at sake. He lives the topicality, stays with it. I think that's super cool. He's the sake expert! A lot of people have come & gone, but he's still here! Mega, mega!' (says Jan with genuine enthusiasm).

«What do you do with Japanese studies? Yes, exactly that!»
Marc is the ideal example for me: if you study Japanese Studies and then do something useful with it, he's the perfect Japanese Studies student! (he laughs)
Let's be honest: what do you do with Japanese studies? Yes, exactly that! Creating something out of nothing as an innovator, that's cool! Marc came from the restaurant world back then, so he knew exactly how things work in gastronomy. And he goes into depth, Japanese depth. Marc embodies expertise. Not just selling: He understands what he's selling. He has the expertise.

«The 'aha' effect»
1O years ago, Jan was on site at every shizuku sake lecture. Not only did he point out the locations (shizuku Store didn't exist back then), he also poured: I always emptied the sake aside when pouring - haha! But at the end of each evening, we were able to support each other, to expand. As a self-employed Japanologist, I always thought to myself when I was with Marc: 'Ah cool, I'm not alone'. It was a pleasure to help him and I also learned a lot every time. Because this drink (nihonshu) is historical, complex and I also had to listen carefully to each of his lectures in order to understand and appreciate the production of this fascinating product. Creating this 'aha' effect, making this complexity understandable: Marc has an excellent command of this. I will always have fond good memories of these evenings.

«Better a big fish in a small pond than the other way around»
Among all the Japanese products available on the Swiss market at the time, sake was new. And the advantage is still there today: the quality competition is small.
I saw his business idea as an opportunity for him. Japan was developing positively at the time, and interest from journalists was also increasing. But I also thought that things would go faster, that sake would establish itself quickly, like sushi. The reality turned out to be more difficult. Establishing sake in our culture alongside wine, beer etc. was a difficult path for Marc. But he succeeded in his own way. The fact that sake has not been able to replicate the sushi boom in Switzerland is also a good thing: sake remains something exclusive. Or to put it another way: better a big fish in a small pond than the other way around.

«He simply knows about sake!»
Jan knows Japan. He travels to the island nation several times a year and understands the great interest in the country and its culture only too well.
Japan has become a must, a must-see country if you are interested in culture today. And I think that's important and could give Marc an exciting boost.
What's more, there are now so many Japanese restaurants here. Sake will always have its place there and shizuku has 'de bescht Sake ide Schwiiz! (the best sake in Switzerland)
And it's quite clear: you have to buy sake from someone who knows his stuff, from the expert, not from a fan. So you go to Marc, the studied expert.
Marc was a pioneer. Also the combinations he makes with sake and cheese show that he embodies what it takes. He's got it figured out: 'He simply knows about sake!
Marc understands his trade, he knows the country, the culture, speaks the language... With him, you can check, check, check - everything fits.

To the 1O. Birthday
I simply wish Marc success, good health and that he continues on his path. I want shizuku to still be around in 1O years, so stay tuned and enjoy it. Because he is bringing Switzerland and Japan closer together.

Arigato!
Jan Knüsel - Japanologist, journalist, filmmaker & founder of Asienspiegel (asienspiegel.ch)

«shizuku to me is more than a brand. They are delicacies»

Oliver Honegger
We had the pleasure of getting to know Oli as a customer and connoisseur. The personal as well as professionally shared fascination then degenerated into the Sake Flavoured Vodka Mame San® ;).
Together with Turicum, this innovative spirit was created, that combines the fruits of Tottori with the national drink of Japan and the water of Zürichsee. So one thing led harmoniously to another...

«There is passion behind it, an attitude to life»
When I think of shizuku, I think of many ups & downs, feeling sympathetic because I come from a similar industry. But really great milestones have been placed, even with us.
shizuku to me is more than a brand, sake or spirit supplier. They are delicacies. And you can tell that there's passion behind it, an attitude to life that you can definitely feel.
Also beautiful for me is all the communication behind it: On the website, in the newsletter, at events... At shizuku everything is a beautiful experience, which you pass on with passion and attention to detail, paired with this incredible know-how.

«A giant experience!»
I was introduced to sake during my cooking apprenticeship days. In general, I like the ritualistic aspect of it, which is why sake appealed to me. It was easy to 'put away' a bottle before going out (he smiles).
And I remember a Christmas dinner of Turicum at restaurant Drei Stuben, because there was also served sake, per course agreed with shizuku, that was a giant experience! Drinking sake from a wine glass? And even chilled? I just thought 'wow, sake can be so different and enjoyed on a high level'.
And then Marc came around the corner, we got to know each other and I quickly became a customer of his...

«The crazy recipe is outstanding»
Marc & I have a similar passion as epicureans. So already a year later it came to the Mame San, also a great experience.
During the development of this Sake Flavoured Vodka, I also personally learned a lot.
Not only the design but also the crazy recipe is outstanding. 'Japanese beans? Yeah, let's distill them!' We tried many things over months, created so-called 'ghosts', tasted & laughed a lot. The Junmai at the end was the perfect crowning glory of the product! And I still get good feedback to this day.

To the 1O. Birthday
Head up in these not easy times, keep it up, with just that drive that shizuku has. Not on mass, further on delicacy. I wish for you that it continues to run successfully, hopefully for a very long time...

Arigato!
Oliver Honegger - CoFounder, Technical Management, Recipe Development & Production Turicum Distillery GmbH

«For me, shizuku stands for the best sake I have ever drunk in my life.»

Marco Pero
He has been with us from hour 1. We remember many sakelicious moments at Restaurant Drei Stuben, visits from Japan & pairings that impressed. So it's all the more beautiful to be able to raise the sake glass with him again after 1O years - on October 21, 2023.

«A really cool product»
Through shizuku, I discovered the beautiful quality of sake in a wine glass. Marc opened my horizons to something completely new, something unique, something glorious. Through him, I found access to a product I had not known, a product of the highest standard, a really cool product.

«What the heck is this?!»
Marc as a person as well as the subject matter just fascinated me. It was a smooth transition for me in my career with the 'Drei Stuben', then Andermatt with the 'Chedi', where I also got to know & perceive our cuisine from a completely different side through sake. Because sake have such special flavours, special gouts. Wine has a structure that is not so broad, that's why sake is so exciting to combine.
(He laughs...) I still vividly remember the one, the Edo! This effect, when I had that one the 1st time in the nose & on the palate. I just thought, what the heck is this?! It immediately reminded me of a small Ikem, honey, this florality, these aromas! And from that, the idea was born: Let's combine this with Swiss cuisine, like the Edo to the warm chocolate cake.

«Da isch mer fasch de Lade abe!»
What I remember most of all is when the brew producers were with us at 'Drei Stuben'. This typical, woody Swiss ambience & then in the middle of it all the Japanese tradition, the classic, how Shinji with his traditional suit explained everything to the guests, with such calmness, balance & patience. How he presented it with pride, made the foreign culture tangible on the spot. I was also impressed & amazed at how open the guests were in each case. It was very exciting to see how they tasted the unknown. Shinji has united this impressively and very personally beautiful, this mix of our Swiss correctness combined with Japanese courtesy, restraint. And also how Marc talked to him - of course fluently in Japanese! - Da isch mer fasch de Lade abe!' (= I was completely impressed) (he laughs out loud). That's just part of his success, this authenticity that Marc lives and shares.

«This makes me mega proud»
For me, shizuku today stands for top quality served in a wine glass. Compared to other sake suppliers, Marc doesn't have a middleman, he gets the products directly from on-site, even from small producers, we don't know them here at all - and that's what makes Marc and shizuku so unique.
At the time, I thought: How does he manage that? To establish such a specific product from Japan in Switzerland, where nobody has a clue. Can he even do that? - Today, I am simply mega proud of what he has achieved. I see his products everywhere I go, spread all over Switzerland. He is placed with sake & that makes me mega proud.

«How do you recognize a good sake?»
What really annoys me nowadays, however, is when I still observe far too often how people order a nice sushi even in good gastronomic establishments and then they get served inferior goods. Because we Europeans don't stand a chance. So I asked Marc: 'How do you recognize a good sake?' What remained for me was the degree of polish, that I can tell from it whether a sake is of high quality & which therefore also determines the price. I still pay attention to this with every bottle. Because in the past, we only knew sake in shot glasses - and slammed them. Marc said to me: 'Take a good glass & it tastes completely different'. That's right.

To the 1O. Birthday
I wish Marc the most important thing: health. And motivation for the next 1O years, that he continues to find these trouvailles and brings them to Switzerland, so that we can enjoy them here. Because his sake are really something unique, something wonderful.

Arigato!
Marco Pero - Gastronomy Consultant (various businesses of Andermatt Swiss Alps & The Chedi Andermatt) & Owner Brasserie Freilager Zurich (ex Restaurant Drei Stuben)

«Shinji brought his spring water from Japan in a suitcase - and poured it!»

Alex Bindig
Started in 2017 at 'Bunter Hund', the passionate journey continues to this day at Restaurant Trübli in Winterthur. With Alex & Marc, two extremely creative gourmets collide & have always served a multi-course 'Menu Surprise', skillfully accented with Japanese sake. When the brewmaster from Japan personally joined them, all gourmets were in for a treat. And ps: The next pairing event is already simmering...

«shizuku stands for Japanese drinking culture in Switzerland»
Marc is simply a freak too (he starts laughing). Absolutely passionate, a persistent person. I don't know anyone who pushes his vision & the basic idea - of creating understanding - like this for years like he does. Insanely impressive.
It's not an easy task, but easy is not his claim. He wants to create an identity, nothing trivial. He celebrates what he does with so much passion. And he tangibly engages with the subject matter and brings the emotion directly into the glass. That's what grabbed me, too.

«Atypically typical Japanese»
When we met, I was overwhelmed because I didn't know what was involved in sake. In the meantime, I've been to Japan, too, and I realize today that Marc is at the top of his game in terms of quality. Plus he also comes from the gastro, which means he understands exactly what ideas are brewing in my head. He has the courage and combines, that's what makes his fascination & his success: atypically typical Japanese (Alex already summarizes).

«When pairing, the product has to be the star»
I like Marc's inspiration because he also approaches new pairings unconventionally. I had zero experience & no comparison when it came to sake. But the knowledge on his part and the personal created an almost fanatical thirst for knowledge.
And the running order was always exciting: first was the sake, then the creative menu to go with it. In pairing, the product has to be the star. With Marc's know-how, we brought out flavours or created contrasts - like sweet sake with blue cheese.
And we have guests who still say today that these pairings were some of the most awesome things they've ever tasted.

«I was shocked into another world!»
Our sake pairings were certainly the most special occasions, because we all left our comfort zone. This was interesting for us as well as for the guests - and touching! Just imagine: Brewmaster Shinji was on the road for a whole day (Japan-Switzerland) to do such an event with us, that's crazy! His presence was completely absurd.
And best of all, he brought his spring water from Japan in his suitcase - and poured it! I was shocked into another world! (laughs Alex loudly). But so he had the people from second 1 - maybe crazy, but worked.
Because we all talked but didn't understand each other. And so the spring water & the sake became the language ambassador. Sometimes you are different & at the same time so the same. As a passionate person, you immediately have a basis with people of relish. Shinji & Marc managed to unite two worlds in Winti. That has had a great impact on me.

To the 1O. Birthday
I wish that shizuku never stops planting this emotion & this great product in people's hearts. And I'm extremely looking forward to our next collaboration, because it's working with friends.
We're crazy enough, so it's all or nothing! (smiles Alex at the end)

Arigato!
Alex Bindig - Owner & Host Restaurant Trübli Winterthur

«From Marc we were also allowed to learn a lot & take along»

Shinji Tsukutani
He lives sake, every day. And he does so handed down through generations, at the Inata Honten Brewery - a small, family-run brewery in Yonago (Tottori Prefecture) that still places an enormous amount of emphasis on traditional craftsmanship.
And he makes the family thing a top priority, sitting on planes and visiting shizuku for many exclusive, special events in Switzerland already since 2017.
The trust on his part cannot be taken for granted, inspired us emotionally and still does today.
We appreciate Shinji-san as a very sincere, modern person & dear friend. And the sake pairings with him were always a great pleasure! The sensual feeling & joy of nihonshu connects us - and continues to drive us forward

«Dear Marc-san,
we would like to congratulate you from the bottom of our hearts on the 1Oth anniversary of shizuku.

Our business relationship with Marc began through the help and cooperation of Yutaro Kobayashi of J. Kobayashi And Co, Ltd. in Osaka.
Then, when I first met Marc in Zurich, my impressions were his serious and sincere personality, his great enthusiasm for Nihonshu, and his authentic and access-creating attitude of carefully passing on the taste of sake to his customers and making it an experience.
This attitude as well as his character have led to a trusting relationship, so that we as a brewery can rely on him to take good care of our sake. We wholeheartedly enjoy continuing to work with him as a safe and strong partner.

I always visit the distributors who sell our brand Inatahime. When I am in Zurich, I visit them together with Marc - with shizuku not only serving as a base and intermediary. During these visits, Marc always opens sake bottles at his expense, lets customers taste directly, and carefully explains the flavour characteristics to convey the deliciousness of sake in a tangible way.
I am aware that after deducting logistics costs and various taxes, the price of sake in Switzerland is very expensive. And I remember, as if it were only yesterday, how impressed I was by the way he simply gave the bottles of these expensive products to the customers to taste right away how good they are. Since then we have decided to support Marc in any way we can, even in the future. Because it is also a pleasure for us to work with Marc.

«Zurich is one of my favorite trips every fall»
Although there was a break due to the pandemic, visiting Zurich every fall is one of my favorite trips. Not only do I get to meet Marc, but I also enjoy myself with the happy and positive Swiss people at the events. It's like an enjoyable, life-affirming bud opening up.
The atmosphere in Zurich is wonderful, with church bells ringing through the streets, and also the time between events when you take a breath together with good friends is an experience that is hard to beat.
I am also very grateful to Nathalie for being a good friend to me both privately and professionally, for taking me on tours as far as Lake Zurich, for the meals we eat and enjoy together. Through business I have found a friend in Zurich, for that I am very grateful.

«From Marc we were also allowed to learn a lot & take along»
From inception to the present day, Marc's efforts and the way & manner in which he runs his business have also been very educational for me and for us as a sake brewery. Making sake and the drinking culture associated with it accessible to people in an enjoyable way with pairing events like this... We were also allowed to learn a lot & take along with us.
The authentic approach of shizuku shows us that we have found the right contact person for Switzerland with Marc. We sincerely hope that the company will continue to develop positively in the next 2O and 3O years.
We would also like to thank Yutaro Kobayashi and Kenjiro Kobayashi for their support in logistics, including detailed preparations.

We, Inata Honten Brewery, are committed to making delicious sake so that we can grow together with all of you.
Congratulations to Marc and Nathalie on the 1Oth anniversary of shizuku. We look forward to a long and fruitful future with you.»

Arigato!
Shinji Tsukutani - Inata Honten Brewery (Yonago, Japan)

«It just fits, it fits with the cheese»

Stephan Schaub
'Stöphi' was skeptical for a second ;) What does Marc want? A sake cheese pairing?
Open as he is, a nice & long lasting partnership was born immediately. Marc combines his cheeses with sake at events. The window of the Amstad Chäslädeli was decorated with Japanese bottles. And the Sake Raclette - that goes down well, even with the boss...

«Sake fondue is served»
I still remember the first time we served sake fondue at our opening event of the raclette season. I found it exciting, thought 'wow, really cool'. The guests were visibly irritated at first. But it was nice to see them openly accepting it, tasting it & finding it exciting too. And that's why shizuku with sake was there every year from then on...

«It was a match»
shizuku for me stands for Japan and friendship. shizuku for me is Marc, high quality, a good story, the quality is right. You can tell he has studied this all and is happy to share his background.
The first contact came about through mutual friends. I never drank sake in a big way. The combination with cheese wasn't common at all until then. But I thought it was a cool thing, something new. It was a match and friends support each other. - So let's do this...

«What could have happened...»
At the first sake cheese tasting, I was very open, just tried it. What could have happened... (he smiles). But yes, it just fits, it fits with the cheese.
And it was also exciting for our company, so we simply put the sake bottles in the shop window. We also wanted to present the people something new. Of course, the reactions were very skeptical (the Amstad Chäslädeli is known for its fondue mixtures and the large assortment of different raclette cheeses). But after tasting it, they liked it. And today we also sell his Sake Raclette.

«Sake Raclette belongs to my Top 1O»
Specialized in raclette, we knew it of course with port wine or similar. The Sake Raclette is something unusual that not everyone knows and was also new for us in the assortment.
I'm more of a traditionalist with nature, pepper or smoked raclette. But I like the interplay with sake, the Japanese-Asian. I think it's great, a cool thing and it belongs to my Top 1O.

To the 1O. Birthday
I simply wish you all the best for the future and look forward to a continued great partnership - maybe even expanding... (Stöphi smiles motivating).

Arigato!
Stephan Schaub - Co-Owner & Managing Director Amstad Chäslädeli

«Sake has great potential in the cocktail world»

Dirk Hany
The cocktail journey with Dirk began in Zurich's Niederdörfli at the Widder Bar. As a renowned bartender, sake had long been a household name for him. Today, he runs his own institution with the Bar am Wasser, trained his team at shizuku Store from day 1 on sake, spoiled our connoisseurs with an exclusive sake cocktail menu and has by no means finished mixing! Well then, kanpai!

«Sake offers so many flavours»
I think sake is brutally good & beautiful. Chocolate, salt, umami, citrus - sake offers so many flavours that you can't find anywhere else, is highly complex and therefore has great potential especially in pairing and in the cocktail world. It's the icing on the cake, but you have to keep pushing people to try it. Sake has been around for hundreds of years, but is still under-appreciated in our country.

«Pioneers - offer & push»
It was Marc who gave me the creative kick back then and led me onto the sake track. Marc is THE Swiss sake pioneer. I don't know anyone as skilled & extremely passionately focused.
We also see ourselves, the Bar am Wasser, as pioneers and that's why sake has been an important part of our flavouring map and fixed on the menu since we opened.
We even had our very first team training with Marc. With its sweetness, sake allows us to catch the guests in a completely different way. That's why it's clear that we also offer & push sake by the glass.
And also our joint menu Sip it classy was an easy challenge because your products are cool to incorporate, whether sake, kabosu, yuzu or umeshu.

«Sake is brutally underrated!»
The Swiss palate is not made for sake. We don't know it. But sake is brutally underrated! And I claim: 6 out of 10 will appreciate & love it if we gastronomes show it to them.
I got to take a brewery tour in Japan thanks to Marc's connections and was completely flashed! That culture, the history, the way it's made - it impressed me. And from that visit, I look at sake from a different angle & work at sake with a different intensity.

To the 1O. Birthday
I may remember when Marc talked about sake at the start. I had to smile ;). Will that work?
Today he is a down to earth, convinced & convincing person who represents sake as an important point in gastronomy. That's incredibly nice and makes me happy. Because sake has its legitimate place in the gourmet world.
I wish Marc continued perseverance, that he stays on his path to success and that shizuku remains responsible for sake becoming an integral part of Swiss gastronomy. I hope he & shizuku will still be around in 5O years.
Keep it up! Let's try it together, together we'll overgrow the gastronomy!

Arigato!
Dirk Hany - Host & CoOwner Bar am Wasser Zurich

«I remember Marc's great love for sake»

Yutaro Kobayashi
Yutaro-san is our partner in crime - our partner in Japan. Together we want to aim high, overcome borders, discover with & through him new breweries & products and bring them to Switzerland on a distance of more than 9OOOkm.
We value the personal as much as the pleasant business. We started young & dynamic, achieved a lot together and enjoy an enormous mutual trust until today. This is not only business, but also fun!

«Dear Marc-san,
congratulations on the 1Oth anniversary of shizuku.

Our first meeting with Marc was back when shizuku GmbH was founded.
I remember Marc's great love for sake from the time when sake was not yet exported overseas or to Europe.
Marc has gained the trust of all the sake breweries he deals with here in Japan and has built a good relationship with them as exclusive partner in Switzerland. This is mainly because he focuses on the quality of each product and the brewery that goes with it, and he imports all of the products carefully and by refrigerated container. Further, he doesn't just sell, he explains and presents the products in detail, with expertise and pleasure.

«His style is well received in Japan»
We both try to promote sake in Switzerland in the best possible way and, working with Marc, we sensed that he is a very professional and trustworthy person, with a positive character.
Privately, we also have a very close relationship - and fun too! We've had barbecues on his balcony in Switzerland and toasts in various places in Japan. I have always appreciated that very much. We have the feeling that his charming and amiable personality is loved by everyone, not only by us. His manner inspires and his style is well received in Japan.

We are therefore confident that Marc will continue to develop with shizuku in the future and are convinced that he will continue to grow in business. We are looking forward to walking this path together with the two of them.
Congratulations again on your 1Oth anniversary!»

Arigato!
Yutaro Kobayashi - CEO J. Kobayashi And Co., Ltd (Osaka, Japan)

«There are many sommeliers. Marc has done it scientifically and from the bottom up»

Prof. Dr. Eduard Klopfenstein
His name comes up at every shizuku sake lecture - whenever the question arises how Marc, as a Swiss, came to sake. 'Mr Klopfenstein' - his professor in Japanese studies at the University of Zurich - opened the doors to Japan for Marc through his valuable contacts, to the logistics there and to his current local partners on site. An invaluable pathfinder & loyal companion that Marc would not want to miss on his journey.

The real adventure already began at university. Marc decided to study Japanese studies after his first exchange to Japan. When he told his professor that he wanted to write his M.A. paper on the topic of nihonshu, his support was more than groundbreaking...

«He literally had to get behind the few books»
I thought it was a wonderful subject. I was in Japan back in '64 and got to watch breweries evolve in the 70s. That's why the subject matter & background interested me personally. But Marc has chosen a very challenging project. Unlike other topics, there was little western literature on the subject. So Marc had to literally get behind the few books (all in Japanese) and really dug in. That impressed me.

«Marc was an exceptional case»
Marc always describes meeting 'Edi' and his support as pure luck in life. The professor himself, on the other hand, had Marc's enterprise at heart from the very beginning.
Then came his step into self-employment - that made me very happy. As a professor, to be able to inspire and personally experience someone like Marc directly from his studies was an exceptional case. To see him apply what he learned correctly & getting active without detours directly after graduation was a joy.

«I have always followed his career»
Marc was one of the few I was allowed to follow on his path - even after graduation - like this. Not only as a sake lover.... (he smiles contentedly). I have always followed his career.
I still remember his first warehouse: very small, a cellar compartment. It was a beginning, but you have to start somewhere. I visited him from time to time, tried to encourage and support him. We exchanged ideas, talked. That was nice. And it was clear: it had to continue, it had to develop. And that's what it did...

«Marc has made a home for himself»
Of course, the shizuku Store (opening 2016) was a pleased location. I was allowed to invite and speak in his realm (a lecture for the Swiss-Japanese Society). That was a beautiful moment.
Marc has created a home for himself, a very beautiful one.
Personally, I like the amakuchi sake, the sweet ones. But thanks to Marc and his beautiful assortment, I was also able to discover new things that I didn't know before and that I got to know thanks to him... For example Kabosu, a very interesting juice. I'm happy to recommend it, something very special.

To the 1O. Birthday
My first wish is that Marc will be able to continue and expand. It would be nice if the current store became too small and he had to expand... (he laughs in good faith).
But I also want him to remain an important representative of the cause, the authentic representative of sake in Switzerland. There are many sommeliers. Marc has done it scientifically and from the bottom up and I think 'he should be the boss of the whole thing' (concludes the professor benevolently).

Arigato!
Prof. Dr. Eduard Klopfenstein - Professor Emeritus of Japanese studies, University of Zurich (1989-2005)

«Sake is like a well-rounded meal»

Hans Georg Babits
Wine he can. Hans has been involved with wine for over 40 years, is a qualified wine academic, speaker & trainer and has become Marc's sensory companion. He smells & tastes all sake before they enter the assortment of shizuku. The professional taster, you could say...;)

«I owe this sake world solely to Marc»
Thanks to Marc, I understand sake. He taught me how to taste sake back in the day at Marmite. With sake, the craft, the production and the handwriting of the brewmasters play such a much bigger role. The product is completely different, compounds differently, has different gravity, behaves differently on the palate... A completely different culture. I owe this sake world solely to Marc.

Wine is liveliness, freshness, acidity, aromaticity, power and opulence. Sake, on the other hand, is very much about the tasty and round, what many call 'umami' in our country. That's why I'm looking for the other approach. Although sake has nothing to do with wine, except the pleasure, I try to taste sake like wine, that is, to filter out the aroma, structure & charm. Pleasure, taste & smell are decisive here. The variety of nuances, aroma and structure differences, where rice is the basis - next to a few thousand grape varieties in contrast - that surprised me.
For me, sake is like a well-rounded meal. And food has a whole other meaning in Japan, too...

«Sake deserves a goblet»
Sake is a fountain of youth compared to wine. An instant drink that should be enjoyed (mostly) young. I wasn't used to that from wine and find it insanely exciting.
I also found the fallacy of traditional ceramic drinking utensils exciting. I may still remember that Marc arrived from the beginning with large wine glasses, precisely to promote the nose, the perception of the aromas, from the rice and the yeast. This facilitates access and also promotes the flow of drinking... (smiles the connoisseur). Sake deserves a goblet.

«Marc is the sake scout»
When I tell about sake & shizuku, there is already resonance. The world in pleasure is small, there Marc has found his place with shizuku noticeable.
With tastings, he is one who does not give up trying to find something new, even more exciting. He is always looking further, remains open & curious. Once he has discovered something, I come into play.
For me, he is the sake scout (he laughs, but convinced). And he is also a name in the scene, a brand. People send him bottles. Customers trust his opinion. That's the distinction! Because quality is his top maxim. Marc respects the product and that makes a leader - that makes great people.

Arigato!
Hans Georg Babits - Qualified wine academic, speaker & trainer (WSET, académie du vin sa Switzerland)

«The world needs more sake!!»

Markus Lichtenstein
He didn't need to be convinced ;). As an internationally enthusiastic & Asian-interested gastronome, sake was already a concept to him at that time and he absolutely & from the beginning wanted to make common cause with shizuku. The enjoyable affair with Markus and his team was just as much fun for Marc - and still is, successfully...

«Something completely exotic»
Marc and I, we started our own business almost at the same time. Me with Smith&Smith, he with shizuku. Marc, of course, chose a much more difficult subject! We know wine, it's our culture, there's no need to explain it. Sake, on the other hand, is something completely exotic to many.

«The translator between 2 worlds»
Sake is so complicated for us. Let's be honest: No one can read the Japanese labels. No one can remember the names of the products. That's why sake is like a parallel world to wine. Nobody can see through it, and Marc is the translator for me between these two beautiful worlds.

«The world needs more sake!!»
We enjoy sake as an extension. And for us/myself, it is a very nice extension of what we offer. With Marc and shizuku, we have developed such a beautiful partnership over the years.
And it is quite clear: 'The world needs more sake!!!'- Why? Because it's just that good! (he is convinced and adds with a laugh) And you get an insanely fun buzz - and no hangover!

Arigato!
Markus Lichtenstein - CEO & Founder Smith & Smith Wine Company