Hiro Sake, imported by Hiro Sake USA, Manhasset, N.Y., debuted its first single-serve glass cup sake, a term commonly used to reference this serving size.

The 180-ml Hiro Sake cups, which feature a 15 percent alcohol-by-volume content, will debut in southern Florida this month at on-premise accounts initially, following to the off-premise market. Distribution will expand across the United States and in Australia by the end of 2019 and into 2020. At retail, Hiro Cup Sake will be sold as a single item with a suggested retail price of $6.49 for a cup.

Hiro Sake is 100 percent produced in Japan where cup sake is a popular trend. Taking a cue from Japan, Carlos Arana, Marco Destefanis and Claudia Valotta, co-founders of Hiro Sake, decided to introduce single-serve Hiro Sake cups to the United States and Australia markets to capitalize on the success of its Hiro Sake portfolio and expand the brand into a new market segment of single-serve products. The single-serve cups not only allow new consumers an introductory option to try sake without committing to a full bottle, but they make it easy to take on the go, drop into a cooler, make a cocktail for two, and more, it says.

"We developed Hiro Sake in 2011 and have seen the U.S. market grow, develop and mature in the last few years," said Arana, chief executive officer of Hiro Sake, in a statement. "We concepted the Hiro Sake single-serve cup as a way to take sake out of its niche and make it a go-to for consumers that are looking for a drink that is versatile, mixes well in cocktails, is low alcohol and gluten-free — and will allow them to take their sake on the go. It is the evolution of a market that supports single-serve wine, Champagne, Prosecco and ready-to-drink alcoholic beverages and we think that cup sake is the next single-serve trend."