Description
Sake Adviser
Prepare yourself for a career in the restaurant, beverage, or food industry with our Certified Sake Adviser course. This course provides the fundamental background knowledge on sake production, history, and types. Students will gain the ability to speak about basic varieties of sake and production methods with confidence.
Note: Students who have obtained Certified Sake Adviser are eligible to enroll in our advanced sake certification course, Certified Sake Sommelier.
Course Date and Time
Sunday, July 26, 2026
- Online Lecture: 9:00am – 4:00pm PT | 12:00pm – 7:00pm ET
Monday, August 3, 2026
- Online Exam: 11:00am – 12:00pm PT | 2:00pm – 3:00pm ET
Please adjust accordingly for your own time zone.
Prerequisites
There are no entry requirements for this qualification.
Important Notice
- You must be age 21 or over to take this course and exam.
- Registration will close when the course reaches capacity or the enrollment deadline (July 10, 2026) has passed. Please be advised, that late registration may incur additional charges for textbook rush order shipment fees.
- Students will receive ZOOM information after registration.
- If the student has decided to cancel their registration before tasting samples being shipped, a full refund will be issued. Though, if students have decided to cancel their registrations after the tasting samples have been shipped, no refunds will be issued. However, the course fee will be honored towards future classes.
- Please use your legal name that matches with your ID when registering. The registered name will be printed on your certificate.
Exam
Monday, August 3, 2026
- Online Exam: 11:00am – 12:00pm PT | 2:00pm – 3:00pm ET
The 1-hour exam is comprised of 100 multiple-choice questions covering the textbook and lecture content. A blind-tasting exam is not included at the Sake Adviser level.
Note: The examination requires a minimum mark of 75% to pass.
Main Concepts
- The history of sake in Japan
- Sake ingredients and brewing processes
- Sake terminology and reading sake production labels
- The principles behind the storage, selection, and service of sake
- Overview of sake tasting and analysis
Study Support
- All students will receive a review guide for course preparation support. We encourage students to contact us before the course if they have questions about their course materials.
Instructor: Cole Youngner
Cole holds certifications including:
- WSET Level 3 Award in Sake & Spirits
- Sake Adviser, Sake School of America
- 2021 Bartender of the Year, Heaven Hill Brands
Cole’s first exposure to Japanese culture was through anime, and a near lifelong love for anime would unfold into a wider appreciation for Japanese bartending, cocktails, tea, music, writers, poetry, and history. An eager lifelong learner, Cole is passionate about knowledge and education not for personal gain but for being a connector of people, ideas, experiences, and culture. A trained health scientist and researcher, he brings a scholarly enthusiasm to beverage education. Fast forward to 2016, Cole would begin his beverage career, working at one of the best bottle shops for fine wine and spirits in Atlanta. Wine and spirits retail led into working in bars and restaurants, and honing his craft in hospitality, cocktails, spirits, and wine. After awards and recognition, Cole stepped away from bars but keeps his feet wet in the beverage world now as an educator, earning his WSET Level 3 in Spirits and then Sake. He has continued teaching in some of his other passions such as yoga, meditation, and writing. After 18 years in Atlanta, GA, Cole now lives in Portland, Oregon and looks forward to bringing his scholarly enthusiasm and hospitality background to sake education. He firmly believes sake is both mystical and magical but also for everyone, and learning about it should be fun, a little bit nerdy, but mostly delicious.
