Sato Hitomi is the director of the Belgian Beer Information Center.

How did you become such a prominent advocate of Belgian beer in Japan?

My work started in the early 90s when I was researching market conditions in Japan for the import of Belgian products. Diamonds and chocolate were an early part of my research, but the first time I went to Belgium, around 1992, I was asked if I wanted white beer. I thought, how could there be white beer? I was thinking milk or Calpis, but when they served it, it was your typical Belgian white—quite different from anything I had ever had. That was a big moment for me and sparked my interest. But I had no interest in actually importing the beer myself and lugging around cases. I wanted to educate people about Belgian beer and help facilitate its spread in Japan. We focused on big brands at first and helped push those into the market. Mr. Konishi was already importing so we brought the discussion to him; he was the one who initially drove the growth of Hoegaarden.

In 1996, ‘97 and ‘98 I invited the legendary beer critic and author Michael Jackson to Japan—Konishi was the sponsor. At the time, craft beer had just launched in Japan and Michael wanted to see that so the timing was perfect. He came to Japan to speak about Belgian beers and, instead of charging us a fee, had us take him around to the various craft breweries. Tamura Isao also published the Japanese version of “Great Beers of Belgium” and Michael was here to support that as well. Many people came out to the events to hear him speak and take pictures with him. I think his visits were a huge boost for both Belgian beer and Japanese craft beer.

Do you think the rise of Belgian beer supported Japanese craft beer?

I think Belgian beer helped pave the way for Japanese craft beer in several ways. The Belgian beers available in Japan were of a very high quality and provided an important model for brewers. They also changed people’s tastes in beer. I think those first two years were really important for Japanese craft beer, and with Michael traveling the country, he was able to give some support. There was a lot of really nasty beer back then, but he absolutely refrained from making negative comments and instead told brewers such things like, You should perhaps make it this way. He also warned people not to brew for the beer geek; you can’t let it be hijacked by them. You have to try to appeal to a big audience.

Speaking of appealing to a big audience, when did you launch the Belgian Beer Information Center?

That was in 1998. Before I started, information about Belgian beer was kind of restricted to insiders—industry publications and press releases. I wanted to spread information about Belgian beer beyond the insiders to consumers. I wanted to bring new information to Japan. That’s what I’ve been doing all these years.

People sometimes talk of a Belgian beer boom a few years ago. Can you describe what it was like? Did it parallel what we’re seeing now for Japanese craft?

People ask, “Wasn’t there a boom?” But things haven’t changed so much. There’s been a slow but steady increase in sales. There was a peak of interest about Belgium because of World Cup Soccer. Japan was going up against Belgium and for 6 months in advance, the Japanese media covered Belgian culture. There was a lot of focus on waffles and beer. I think there was definitely a Belgian waffle boom in 2002 but that went bust.

What are some of your goals for the future?

I really want there to be a bigger focus on beer and food pairing. We recently did a successful trial. My personal goal is to run more events like that. People seem to really like finger food and beer.

This article was published in Japan Beer Times # () and is among the limited content available online. Order your copy through our online shop or download the digital version from the iTunes store to access the full contents of this issue.