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Delta Sky Lounge highlights Saipan craft beer
Steve and his wife Riss Sablan show the Saipan Brewing kiosk at the Delta Sky Lounge at the Narita Airport in Japan. “We hope this leads to a full-time presence for Saipan Brewing and other local products in the Japanese market,” Steve Sablan said. (Contributed Photo)
Saipan Brewing Co. did a promotional taste test at the Delta Sky Lounge of Japan’s Narita Airport last month to show off the company’s new kiosk at the lounge.
The local brewer’s owner, Steven Sablan, said it was a great way to expose the Japan market to the CNMI and its unique products, including craft beer. The promotion was held in cooperation with the Marianas Visitors Authority.
“Tourism remains a vital part of most successful businesses in CNMI and we are proud to be featured in this project with Delta. We believe that the visitors that had a taste of our beer in the Delta Sky Lounge at Narita enjoyed the chance to sample a product that is produced and packaged on Saipan,” he said.
“I traveled to Tokyo with MVA and my wife, Rïss, to support the launch event and introduce Sky Lounge staff to our craft beer. We served Sirena Blonde and Hafa Adai IPA at the Sky Lounge and the reception was great,” he added.
Saipan Brewing hopes to build solid ties in the Japan market.
“We have had a number of international visitors come to Saipan just for a visit to our brewery. We have also been featured in several international publications and participated in MVA events abroad but this will be our largest foray into the international market,” Sablan said.
“We hope this leads to a full-time presence for Saipan Brewing and other local products in the Japanese market. Saipan has tremendous name recognition in Japan and, with the right approach and support from MVA, we believe there is a market for local products from the CNMI there,” he added
Sablan said that 2018 is going to be a breakout year for Saipan Brewing and there is a lot to look forward to.
“Last year we produced over 50 varieties of beer, but we will easily pass that in 2018. We are upping production and will be venturing off Saipan to other islands near and far. We are also introducing 12-oz. cans in our Legends series, which will focus on designs incorporating Chamorro history and legends,” he said.
“We will have new cans in our community series that will be designed by local artists in the CNMI. We are also in the lookout for some great new events this year and new partnerships with other small local businesses,” he added.
