Sake brewed in space could sell for $500K per glass

A Japanese sake maker is heading to the final frontier of brewing -- space.

Asahi Shuzo, the company that brews the popular Japanese sake brand Dassai, plans to send sake ingredients to the International Space Station for a very special -- and ultimately, expensive -- drink, CNN reported.

Sake, which is made from rice, koji and water, is not a liquor and is not distilled. Although it has a high alcohol by volume, the drink is brewed.

If Asahi Shuzo is successful in creating the drink in the Japanese Experiment Module Kibo on the International Space Station, the company will sell one 100-milliliter bottle for 100 million yen, or approximately $653,000, The Japan News reported. A standard glass is approximately 80ml, which would be worth about $522,000, according to CNN.

According to Asahi Shuzo the company applied for permission to use the Kibo module and received approval in July, The Japan News reported. The company plans to ferment the raw materials on Kibo and then make 520 grams of unrefined sake. The brew then would be brought back to Earth in a frozen state, according to the newspaper.

The company plans to name the drink “Dassai MOON – Uchu Jozo (brewed in space).”

Dassai, which means “otter festival” in Japanese, is one of the most popular sake brands on the market, according to CNN.

Officials with Asahi Shuzo are cautiously optimistic.

“There is no guarantee of 100% success for the fermentation tests,” Souya Uetsuki, the brewer in charge of the project, told CNN.

He told the cable news outlet that the difference in gravity could be a factor and affect how heat transfers in fluid.

Asahi Shuzo plans to begin the process during the last quarter of 2025, 9News Live reported. The brewing equipment that will be taken to the ISS is currently under development, The Japan News reported.

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