The story behind Hiro
Hiro was founded in 2009 by spirits executive Carlos Arana with Marco Destefanis and Claudia Valotta, and it hit the US market in late 2011. The sake itself is brewed at Taiyo Shuzo in Murakami, in Japan's Niigata Prefecture, a region known for snowmelt water and clean, dry styles. A Master Toji runs traditional multiple parallel fermentation, polishing Gohyakumangoku and Koshi-Tanrei rice down to bare starch.
We have carried Hiro for years because it is honest sake: no preservatives, no additives, gluten-free, and nothing blended in. The portfolio took Best of Nation at the San Francisco International Wine Competition in 2015, with Double Golds for the Junmai Ginjo and the Junmai Daiginjo, and a 95 point Gold from the Beverage Testing Institute in 2023.
Explore the Hiro range
Four bottles, one brewery. Hiro runs from a 300mL Junmai you can finish in a night to the 750mL Junmai Ginjo for a table of four.
| Expression | Type | Proof / ABV | Tasting notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hiro Junmai Sake 300mL | Junmai | 30 | Gohyakumangoku, milled 60 to 65 percent, warm or chilled |
| Hiro Junmai Ginjo Sake 300mL | Junmai Ginjo | 30 | Milled to 55 percent, crisp melon, serve cold |
| Hiro Junmai Sake 750mL | Junmai | 30 | Full bottle, versatile temperature, sushi night staple |
| Hiro Junmai Ginjo 750mL | Junmai Ginjo | 30 | Smoother fruit profile, chilled or over ice |
| Hiro Gold Junmai Daiginjo 750mL | Junmai Daiginjo | 30 | Koshi-Tanrei milled to 40 percent, delicate, aromatic |
Which Hiro is right for you?
Hiro pricing stays friendly for a sake brewed and shipped from Niigata. The Junmai 300mL is $15.99, a low-risk way to try the house style, and the same sake in 750mL runs $29.99. Step up to the Junmai Ginjo at $18.99 for 300mL or $39.99 for 750mL and you get the finer milling and the melon note that made it a Double Gold winner. All four are 15 percent ABV, so plan accordingly.
Chilled with sashimi, enough for the whole table without a second bottle run.
Small, affordable, forgiving warm or cold, and an easy read on real junmai.
Lower proof than vodka, swaps cleanly into saketinis and spritzes.