Nice to meet you all.
I’m Saki-chan, also known as the “Brewery President,” currently busy working to launch a Scottish craft beer brewery in Hidaka Village, Kochi Prefecture.
On this blog, I plan to record not only the brewing logs of my husband, Jon (our brewer), but also my own struggles, conflicts, and daily thoughts from a president’s perspective.
Before we dive into the full series, let me share a little bit about why I’ve taken on this challenge.
I am not a “Beer Maker”
To put it bluntly, I am not a “technical expert” when it comes to making beer. Scrubbing the tanks, monitoring the yeast, and designing recipes through precise calculations—that is the role of my Scottish husband and Head Brewer, Jon.
So, what is my role?
It is to ensure that the beer he pours his soul into reaches our customers as the perfect pint. And, through this business, it is to shine a new light on my home, Kochi Prefecture.
I may not be a professional brewer, but I want to be a professional at providing the “emotion” and “quality time” that beer creates. That is the vision guiding me as I steer the ship of this business.
Bringing a Scottish Breeze to Kochi
Jon and I are an international couple. We met in Japan, and later decided to walk through life together in Scotland. For us, moving to Japan and starting a business in a rural area was a massive, massive decision.
My husband left his familiar home to chase a dream in a land with a different language and culture. While supporting him, I hold a personal ambition: to make my roots in Kochi a “Holy Land of Beer” that we can boast about to the world.
Giving Back to My Hometown
To me, Kochi isn’t just a place to start a business; it’s the precious home that raised me.
However, in April 2025, the population of Kochi Prefecture fell below 650,000, reaching an all-time statistical low. With the population decline showing no signs of stopping, the future of Kochi is being called into question.
Perhaps BRAVE & BRAW cannot single-handedly increase the population. But if the people who are here now can join hands and connect through our beer, I believe the future will be bright. We want to realize that kind of world with the beer born right here in Hidaka Village.
This village has incredible water, rich nature, and warm people. If we combine those with the Scottish spirit of “BRAVE & BRAW” (brave and fine/splendid), I’m certain a wonderful chemical reaction—something no one has seen before—will occur.
Dreaming of Conversations over a Scottish Beer
That said, reality isn’t always a beautiful drama. Even now, we spend our days breaking into a cold sweat over the historic weak yen, scratching our heads over equipment being shipped from overseas, and sometimes laughing ruefully, wondering, “Why did we start something so difficult?”
But just as Masataka Taketsuru (Massan) and his Scottish wife Rita saw a dream through the amber glow of whisky, Jon and I dream of a scene where locals and travelers from around the world are chatting at a pub counter, Scottish beer in hand.
In this blog, I will document our struggles. I would be honoured if you would follow along—sometimes laughing, sometimes worrying with us—until our brewery finally takes its first breath.
In Closing
Thank you so much for reading to the end.
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Life is more fun if you are BRAVE＆BRAW!
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