Tasting Trendies
Hong Kong Tasting Trendies® Sake Awards
"More than a Competition"
Vision: Let's Taste Sake
Mission: Respect Brewer's Mission & Listen to Customer's Feedback
Believe: Interactive Learning & Balance makes Life Sweet
Hong Kong Tasting Trendies® Sake Awards TTSA 2022
⭐TTSA 2022 Summary⭐
The "Hong Kong Tasting Trendies Sake Awards" was first launched in 2017 and has become the oldest sake competition in Asia outside of Japan. The award soon captured media attention from France and Mainland China when they reported on our first award ceremony. The number and diversity of participating sakes have increased year by year.
In 2019, the number of sake entering our Award has reached several hundred! The Consulate-General of Japan in Hong Kong has become the Award’s Nominal Support. It was a great honour to have their Deputy Consul General presenting the highest award to the winning sakes. We also held the award presentation in the bespoke TTSA Pavilion at the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre.
Since 2000, we have been coping with various government measures towards Covid-19. Although being forced to reduce the scale of the competition, we never gave up. The more difficult it becomes, the harder we work. This is because we know that the breweries need to stay active and increase their exposure in the international market! TTSA 2022 is our third competition since the epidemic. In the past few years, we were mainly B2C Customer-oriented with the mission of discovering and understanding users’ tastes. Starting this year, we added a B2B element. We have invited Hong Kong Federation of Restaurants & Related Trades, which has more than 8,000 restaurant members in Hong Kong, and the Hong Kong Wine and Spirits Association as our new supporting units. In doing so, we aim to bring our winning sakes beyond the sake industry world by help the winning sakes reach their target buyers and local agents (wine distributors) as well.
As we received many requests after the TTSA Judging Day, two sake dinners were being organised on the very next day. We successfully caught the attention of some wine distributors who took interest in some of the sakes and have asked us for the local distributors’ and the sake breweries’ contacts in Japan. We are happy to be the bridgehead!
⭐Results Summary⭐
In 2022, there are many more award-winning sake categories!
This year’s special highest prize, Grand Gold, is awarded to a total of 12 sakes. The sake category that received the most awards is the Muroka Nama Genshu, which accounts for 34% of the total awards. This is followed by Umeshu / Fruit Sake, which accounts for 25%; and Daiginjo, 17%; On the contrary, Junmai Ginjo only accounts for 8% of sakes being awarded.
The Gold Award is still dominated by Junmai Daiginjo and Junmai Ginjo, which together account for 38%.
Although the Daruma Masamune 10 Year Old Koshu Sake is Champion twice, in the past six years, Junmai Daiginjo and Junmai Ginjo still received the most champion, first runner-up and second runner-up awards (37% and 15% respectively). Together these two categories take up more than 50% of the total number of awards, compared to other sake categories. Koshu (aged sake)/Sparkling/Junmai sake categories received a little over 10% of the awards.
This year, fruit sake is the first runner-up, and Muroka Nama Genshu is the second runner-up.
Hong Kong users are becoming more and more aware of sake!
The participating sake merchants carefully select the entry sakes, and we can see that the quality is getting higher and higher each year! Thank you brewers and distributors for trusting in our independent and fair judging process. It is also one of the reasons why we created the "Highest Gold Award" this year.
⭐Discovery of User Taste Indicators⭐
The purpose of TTSA is to make it easy for consumers to find out products that suit their tastes, so basically each sake is challenging with ‘itself’ - we try to find out what awards can stand out in users’ eyes, the sakes also naturally compete against each other for the championship.
When we launched the first TTSA 2017, our slogan was "Taste Index Discovery". Our mission is to 'discover' the taste of consumers in Hong Kong, one of the two major export markets for sake industry stakeholders!
This year, we specially formed a new judging group in the user category. All of these judges joined us for the first time only. These include a SSI kikizake-shi (sake sommelier), sakashō (国際酒匠) and a CEO of a group company in the coffee industry (who is an experienced coffee taster himself). The results were indeed quite different from before. For the first time since 2017, the scores between user and expert group differ by more than 10 points! We believe that this phenomenon truly reflects the meaning and mission of setting up a ‘User Group’ judging category. As users started learning more about the various styles of sake, they judge the taste of each sake based on their natural preference. The "User Group" competition results become the direct feedback of the most valuable target customers for sake brewers!
Looking forward to another breakthrough next year!
Kennie SO
TTSA Co-founder & Organizer
Hong Kong Tasting Trendies® Sake Awards TTSA 2018
Entries of Hong Kong Tasting Trendies® Sake Awards TTSA 2018 which has been successfully held on Apr 28, 2018 has increased to 122 and 1/3 of the entries came directly from the Sake breweries. Increasing number of enquiries from Users to us for Suppliers of Entry have made us become a bridge between Users and Suppliers. Result implies that HK customers' taste will be changed after having proper "education" and knowledge about the different varieties and styles of Japanese Sake. Differences in Results between of 2017 and 2018 reflected our missions & value in TTSA.
Hong Kong Tasting Trendies® Sake Awards TTSA 2019
TTSA Results facilitate drinkers to find their preferred type of sakes more easily; help suppliers discovering various consumers' tastes and understanding the trends.. TTSA Winners has told you their feedback in this video. Totally 250 medals of TTSA Tasting Trendies® Sake Awards have been presented; our Awards Ceremony & the first TTSA Pavilion 2019 has been successfully held at the ProWine Asia@HOFEX 2019, which is Asia's leading Food & Hospitality Trade Show at HKCEC. It is significant that four TTSA Trophies were presented by Mr Tsukasa Hirota, Deputy Consulate-General, Consulate-General of Japan in Hong Kong at the big Trade Show in Hong Kong on May 8, 2019. Products showcased at TTSA Pavillion were extremely eye-catching and well received.
WHY ENTER?
EXCLUSIVE!
The First Sake Competition in Hong Kong.
WELL RECOGNIZED!
Awards Ceremony of TTSA 2017 was held in HOFEX, ProWine (Asia's leading food and hospitality trade show). Highly exposure in online & offline media coverage. Trophy presented by SP guest:
Mr. Simon WONG, JP, Chairman of HK Federation of Restaurants & Related Trades (in 2017)
Mr. Lee Yuk Fat, FPVCB(Hon), Chairman of Pok Oi Hospital (in 2018)
INNOVATIVE!
First-ever Judge Panel.
1. Expert group
Kikisake-shi (Sake sommelier), Sake Importers / Retailers.
2. User group Original!
Executives in Top Management CEOs, Top management from global enterprises, Association Chairmen, Professional, Media representatives.
The Results are more pertinent.
FAIRNESS!
Results calculated by CPA Firm.
Trophy: Champion, 1st & 2nd Runner up have been presented to Winners of top 3 highest score.
Gold, Silver, Bronze medals have been presented to winning sakes that got prescribed score.
PROFESSIONAL!
Our Judge Affairs Director is Mr. Tomy FONG, the first BJCP International Beer Judge from Hong Kong has been qualified as a "Certified" Judge; also a Kikisake-shi, wine expert, Food Pairing Business Development Advisor of Food & Beverage businesses.
PASSIONATE!
We endeavor to explore a new market segment by EDUCATING Consumers. We arranged an elite class to User Group Judges before the Judging.
We hold subsequent events named TTSA Tours, namely TTSA Winning Sake Showcase at the Washu Fes HK 2018; dinning events of Sake x Various Cuisine to promote culture & variety of Japanese sake to public.
INCLUSIVE!
TTSA accepts all types of sake & Umeshu. Start from 2019, we will also accept your Shōchū & Awamori.
WE ARE CONNECTION!
Hong Kong is the World's 2nd large Importer in terms of sake import volume. Hong Kong is the first free wine port among major economies; the gateway into trade with China.
Enter TTSA 2023 Now!
Important Dates：
Application Deadline : 24 March, 2023
Samples Delivery Period : 13 March - 14 April, 2023
Judging Day : 22 April, 2023
Award Ceremony : 10 May 2023
Gala Dinner : 10 - 12 May 2023 (date TBC)
ENTRY FEE
![Entry Fee v[10911].JPG](https://static.wixstatic.com/media/f0c378_bbadccd19aa04852acf08c60e9f87cbb~mv2.jpg/v1/crop/x_0,y_13,w_1492,h_467/fill/w_862,h_270,al_c,q_80,usm_0.66_1.00_0.01,enc_auto/Entry%20Fee%20v%5B10911%5D_JPG.jpg)
Enrollment & Payment Method
Account Payee: KSOARTS Limited
Account Payee Address:
Room 1202, 12/F, On Hong Comm Building, 145 Hennessy Road, Wanchai, Hong Kong
Bank Account Number: 390-492999-001
Beneficiary Banker: Hang Seng Bank 024
Bank Headquarter Address:
83,Des Voeux Road, Central, Hong Kong
District of Banker: Hong Kong
Swic Code: HASEHKHH
1. Please check the amount of payment from the ENTRY FEE table and arrange your payment by transfer or remittance.
2. Please EMAIL us
i) your completed application form and;
ii) a copy of your remittance or bank deposit slip.
3. Please prepare Two(2) Bottles of 720ml or volume equivalent as ENTRY SAMPLES (Samples deliver to Hong Kong are duty free). You will receive our email to confirm your payment and delivery samples details.
CATEGORIES
1. Junmai Daiginjo
2. Junmai Ginjo
3. Daiginjo
4. Ginjo
5. Junmaishu
6. Honjozoshu / Futsushu
7. Yamahai / Kimoto
8. Muroka Nama Genshu
9. Koshu (Aged at room temperature)
10. Low temperature aging, ice cold temperature aging
11. (Shizuku sake, Joso, Tobingakoi, Fukurotsuri, Nakadori, Centrifuge)
12. High rice polish rate (Rice polish lower than 30%)
13. Low rice polish rate (Rice polish higher than 70%)
14. Pasteurization (Pasteurization only once, Pasteurization after bottled, Micro-carbonation effect etc)
15. Sparkling Sake / Doburoku
16. Umeshu / Fruit Sake
17. Shochu / Awamori
NEW 18. Rice Variety Aiyama 愛山
TTSA 2022 Awards Ceremony
TTSA 2021 Awards Ceremony
![TTSA 2020 Medal Logo-彩色[9885].png](https://static.wixstatic.com/media/f0c378_d1f938d6667040ad880f3839938176cf~mv2.png/v1/fill/w_315,h_391,al_c,q_85,usm_0.66_1.00_0.01,enc_auto/TTSA%202020%20Medal%20Logo-%E5%BD%A9%E8%89%B2%5B9885%5D.png)
TTSA 2018 Awards Ceremony & Tour of Winning Sake Counter
Tomy introducing winning sake to customers
Great honor that Mr.Kuninori Matsuda, the Ambassador & Consulate-General of Japan in Hong Kong, visited our counter and showed his interest and support to TTSA.
TTSA 2017 Awards Ceremony
Guests from F&B trade industry at Awards Ceremony
Awards presenter Mr. Simon Wong, JP was giving out an speech
Awards certificate presenting to the Winners
Awarded winning sake showcase in ProWine Asia, Hofex