Meet Maxwell Leer | Co-Founder and COO

We had the good fortune of connecting with Maxwell Leer and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Maxwell, what was your thought process behind starting your own business?
My business partner Troy Nakamatsu started Sawtelle Sake just before the start of the Pandemic. Troy brought me on later to do something radical: grow sake culture in Los Angeles outside of the traditional spaces in which sake culture currently lives. To do so, we had to brew, blend, brand and package sake using new methods. Our color series, for example, features four different sleek 12 ounce cans that are made from our base sake (i.e. Clear Skies) flavorized with Japanese Yuzu and Rock Sugar and West-coast native flowers and herbs; think of the cans like carbonated Agua Frescas designing for drinking in Los Angeles.

Alright, so for those in our community who might not be familiar with your business, can you tell us more?
Sawtelle Sake is currently a three person company. We are just now starting to brew again after a long gap in production as we set up our new brewery space in DTLA. At core, we are a sake brewing company. To manufacture sake in a dedicated facility, we had to basically start from scratch. This process is extremely capital intensive as well as labor intensive; the equipment used to brew sake is very different from the machinery and tools used for wine and beer making and many of the pieces had to be imported from Japan. As a start-up, this process took much longer than we originally thought so much so that it required not paying our salaries towards the end in order to see the project to its completion. There are too many lessons learned to list them all but I think its important to remember that in building a company from scratch you have to make time to celebrate all of the little victories; one day at a time.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
As an F&B person, I am going to stick to eating and drinking. If on the westside, during the day I would drop into see Brian @ Crudo e Nudo for sustainably-sourced seafood and then I would hit up Tony @ Nanbankan on Sawtelle Blvd for some Yakitori and Sake at dinnertime. Heading east, I would grab lunch with Joshua @ Casa Leo or Aric @ Fountain Grain and Greens. I would definitely budget a night in Koreatown where I would grab dinner @ Kobawoo House and follow up with drinks at HMS Bounty. When headed to a Dodger game, I would visit Andrew @ A ti before and after the game for some of best eating and drinking in the city.

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
First and foremost, we would be no where without our families and their unwavering support of us as a start-up company. Secondly, we have to thank the community of friends here locally in LA who are helping bring our story to light. There are too many to name but you know who you are:)

Website: https://www.sawtellesake.com/

Instagram: @sawtellesake

Image Credits
Ben Dolenc: @bowsprit.co. Cydney Puro: @cydneypuro.