Interview with President and CEO Nobuyuki Watanabe
We spoke with President and CEO Nobuyuki Watanabe about his commitment to product-making and his outlook for the future.
What inspired you to start making liqueurs?
Watanabe (honorific omitted)
We also made liqueurs when I worked at the former sake brewery, Yoikigen, but at the time they were positioned merely as “something to sell alongside sake.” When founding HOIDA CRAFT, I wanted to explore the potential of liqueurs in depth as a “liqueur specialty workshop.”
Another major motivation for making liqueurs was the desire to make the most of the rich local ingredients of “Fruit Kingdom Okayama,” such as white peaches, pears, and Shine Muscat grapes, as well as Japanese mint, of which Okayama was once a major producer.
By making liqueurs with an “exceptional amount of fruit pulp” that preserve the fruit’s natural flavor without using flavorings or coloring, we hope to share the appeal of the region.
You’re announcing new products this year (2026), aren’t you?
Watanabe
In addition to the fruit liqueurs we currently make, we developed two new products in May 2026: the coffee liqueur “SETOUCHI BLACK” and the pineapple and lemon liqueur “AZURE PINE & LEMON.”
SETOUCHI BLACK is made with roasted coffee beans from Okayama Ohisama Farm, which grows bananas, coffee, and other crops in Okayama City.
It brings out the flavor of the ingredients, with a black, bitter taste.
AZURE PINE & LEMON is a tropical liqueur made with pineapple grown at Okayama Ohisama Farm and Shiomachi Lemon harvested in Kasaoka City.
It is colored a vivid blue inspired by the Seto Inland Sea using spirulina, a natural pigment from algae also used in soda ice cream, and has a relatively low alcohol content of 10%.
Both were developed with the aim of offering a lineup of unique products made with locally sourced ingredients, rather than commonplace ones.
What ingredients are you using for the unusual liqueur currently in development?
Watanabe
Someone I met at an event suggested that we make an alcoholic drink using garlic skins. They currently use the skins by steeping them in hot water to extract a broth-like flavor, and we are considering whether we can make a liqueur using them as an ingredient.
You’ve also started working with academia and industry, haven’t you?
Watanabe
We have started a new initiative through an introduction from the Okayama Prefecture Industrial Promotion Foundation.
We met with a professor at Notre Dame Seishin University who is researching product development that makes effective use of “residue” (the pulp left after pressing fruit), and are considering moving forward with research and development.
Since the leftover pulp still contains a lot of edible material, the idea is that using it effectively could help us pursue sustainable production that makes full use of ingredients without waste.
Finally, do you have a message for our readers?
Watanabe
Our liqueurs use plenty of fruit from “Fruit Kingdom Okayama,” capturing its delicious flavor in the drinks.
We hope you’ll try our liqueurs, which cherish the natural flavor and aroma of fruit without using coloring or flavorings.
In addition to taking part in events, we hope to organize events ourselves in the future, such as “drinking gatherings” at garden bars. We’d be delighted if you’d feel free to come along.
Our workshop welcomes visitors for tours at any time. During fruit season, we also recruit volunteers for hands-on production experiences, such as cutting peaches. We hope you’ll enjoy working together and get a taste of how alcohol is made.
From the Writer
I first learned about HOIDA CRAFT when I saw them selling amazake at the “Ishichi New Sake Festival,” held at Kumaya Sake Brewery in February 2026.
I had also heard some time ago from my grandmother, who is from Mabi, that Yoikigen once had a sake brewery in the Hattori district, and that connection led to this interview.
With the corporate philosophy “Make SAKE, create connections through sake, create community,” HOIDA CRAFT resumed sake brewing in the Hattori district of Mabi after 60 years. We’ll be watching closely as new creations emerge from sake-making that begins at its place of origin.
They also plan to recruit volunteers for hands-on production experiences during liqueur-making season (fruit harvest season), so if you’re interested, why not check out HOIDA CRAFT’s Instagram?
HOIDA CRAFT Co., Ltd. Information
| Organization | HOIDA CRAFT Co., Ltd. |
|---|---|
| Industry | Manufacture and sale of liqueurs, amazake, and other products |
| Representative | Nobuyuki Watanabe |
| Year established | 2024 |
| Address | 431 Hattori, Mabi-cho, Kurashiki City, Okayama Prefecture |
| Contact | Telephone 086-697-5533 (090-7372-1009, Watanabe) Fax 086-697-5539 |
| Website | HOIDA CRAFT |
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