Biography
Born in 1965, Rumiko Obata is a fifth generation sake brewer of Sado Island’s famed Manotsuru sake. After graduating from Keio University’s Faculty of Law, she remained in Tokyo to join Nippon Herald Pictures (now known as Kadokawa) in its Promotion Division and oversaw promotions for Hollywood films including Basic Instinct and Léon: The Professional. In 1995 she returned to Sado to work for the family brewery. She is currently the Executive Vice President of Obata Shuzo and is the mother of two daughters. In 2014, she started the School Brewery Project which has brought life back to an abandoned elementary school on Sado Island. In May 2017, she was nominated for Forbes Japan’s Local Innovator Award 2017. In December 2017, she appeared on NHK World’s “Direct Talk”. She is a Mistress of Sake Tasting (appointed by the Brewing Society of Japan), a member of the Japan Sake and Shochu Makers Association’s Demand Development Committee, and has sat on the The Council for Food, Agriculture and Rural Area Policies (a temporary appointment). She is also the author of a book about the School Brewery Project titled, Gakko Gura no Tokubetsu Jugyou – Sado kara kangaeru Shimaguni Nippon no Mirai (Nikkei Business Publications).
「真野鶴」五代目蔵元。
1965年、佐渡の「真野鶴」蔵元の二女として生まれる。
佐渡高校、慶応大学法学部卒業。
大学卒業後は、東京に残り日本ヘラルド映画（当時）の宣伝部に所属。ハリウッド映画「氷の微笑」「レオン」などの宣伝プロデュースを担当。
1995年、帰郷し故郷の蔵を継ぐ。
現在、尾畑酒造・専務取締役。二女の母。
2014年から佐渡の廃校を仕込み蔵として再生させた「学校蔵プロジェクト」をスタート。
2017年5月『Forbes Japan』により「ローカルイノベーター55人」に選ばれる。
2017年12月NHKワールド「Direct Talk」に出演。
きき酒マイスター（公益財団法人日本醸造協会主催）
日本酒造組合中央会・需要開発委員
農水省食料・農業・農村政策審議会臨時委員
著書『学校蔵の特別授業～佐渡から考える島国ニッポンの未来』
（日経ＢＰ社）
