San Diego Sake Festival: The City's Biggest Sake Tasting Returns for Its 10th Year, Sunday, September 27

Overview

San Diego's biggest celebration of sake is back, and this year it's a milestone. The 10th Annual San Diego Sake Festival, presented by the San Diego Sake Club in partnership with JETRO Los Angeles, takes over JULEP Venue on Sunday, September 27, 2026 — an afternoon of premium sake from Japan and the United States, poured alongside Japanese food, music, and culture.

Billed as the largest sake tasting in the city, it's grown every year since launching in 2016. Whether you're a longtime drinker or only know sake as the warm stuff at a sushi bar, this is the one afternoon a year built to walk you through how wide and refined the category really is — and it feels more like a cultural festival than a rowdy beer garden.

What You Actually Need to Know

• Event: 10th Annual San Diego Sake Festival, presented by San Diego Sake Club (with JETRO LA)
• Date: Sunday, September 27, 2026
• Time: 2:30 PM – 6:30 PM (VIP & Nonbei entry at 2:30; General Admission at 3:30)
• Where: JULEP Venue — 1735 Hancock St, San Diego, CA 92101 (Middletown, just north of Little Italy)
• Ages: 21 & up only — valid ID required
• Price: Tiered — General Admission / Nonbei / VIP; limited Early Bird tickets [CONFIRM current prices]
• Tickets: Get tickets on Eventbrite →

What to Expect

The heart of it is a curated pour list spanning premium sake from Japanese breweries and the growing wave of American producers — a rare chance to taste across styles, regions, and brewing approaches, and the widest sake lineup San Diego offers all year. Producers and sake professionals are on hand, so it's as much about understanding what's in the cup as drinking it.

Around the tasting, Japanese food booths serve the afternoon (food is sold separately from admission), with music and a festive, culture-forward atmosphere throughout. The pace is built for savoring, not sprinting.

Choose Your Experience

Admission is tiered. Exact inclusions and pricing are set at checkout, but here's the general shape [CONFIRM details at booking]:

• General Admission — entry at 3:30 PM with full tasting access
• Nonbei Admission — early entry at 2:30 PM, a full extra hour before the main crowd, plus full tasting access. ("Nonbei" is an affectionate Japanese word for a sake lover.)
• VIP — everything in Nonbei, plus an exclusive VIP lounge, a premium guided tasting led by sake professionals, an original festival T-shirt, and a nigiri pairing from Soichi Sushi, San Diego's Michelin one-star sushi restaurant

Early Bird tickets are limited, so the best pricing goes to whoever books first.

Good to Know

• 21 & up only, and no pets — bring a valid ID
• Entry times differ by tier — 2:30 PM for VIP/Nonbei, 3:30 PM for General Admission, so the earlier tiers are worth it if you want the extra hour
• Food is sold separately — come hungry and bring a card for the booths
• Pace yourself and rideshare — it's a tasting event, so sip slowly and arrange a ride home
• You're minutes from Little Italy and the downtown waterfront if you want to keep the day going

However you pour it, the San Diego Sake Festival is one of the more distinctive ways to spend a late-September Sunday in the city. For more happening around town, browse our full event calendar.