Founded in Singapore two years ago by restaurateur Benjamin Goh and partner Celine Tan, Caviar Colony is another Asian brand looking to make premium caviar accessible to all. They offer five types of caviar sustainably sourced from an 800-hectare farm in Yunnan, China, where the sturgeon are raised without antibiotics in pristine spring waters, fed fish feed that includes Chinese medicinal herbs and salmon oil, and harvested after 10 years to ensure the highest quality. The eggs are then aged for two months and lightly salted (3.2 to 3.5 per cent as compared to the industry standards of 5 to 8 per cent) to allow the natural flavours to come to the fore.

Characterised by its dark green pearls, light and buttery flavours, and long, briny finish, the eggs of the Amur sturgeon are the brand's best-selling variety; but for something more exclusive, it’s best to go for the Russian hybrid, bred using Ossetra and Siberian sturgeon. The taste is quite distinctive and somewhat sweet—like Kyoho grapes but with a nutty and creamy finish.

Located in the Malaysian state of Perak, T'lur Caviar is the first company in the world to successfully reap caviar from coldwater fish in a tropical climate, and has scooped up armfuls of awards from aquaculture associations for its efforts. Imported from China in the early 2000s, T'lur Caviar's sturgeon number 20,000 strong and can be divided into seven types: Kaluga, Beluga, Siberia, Amur, Ossetra, Hybrid, and Paddlefish. They inhabit a farm that spans 3.3 acres, though T'lur's investors are in the process of acquiring 60 acres more.

After harvesting, the caviar is mixed with Bario salt from Sarawak, Himalayan salt and sea salt, changing their greyish colour to a greenish-black; the eggs are then aged for two weeks before being packaged for retail. The product is primarily sold to restaurants, and features in prominent Malaysian venues like Sitka Studio, ATAS Modern Malaysian Eatery, and Entier French Dining.

See also: Why It's A Big Deal That T'lur Caviar Is Being Harvested In Our Waters

Caviar de Duc is the brainchild of Vietnam's eccentric 'Caviar King' Le Anh Duc, a 43-year-old Russian-educated businessman who has interests in everything from real estate to sea planes. Founded in 2007 with the mission to popularise reasonably-priced Vietnamese caviar at fine dining institutions around the world, Duc opened a farm on a lake near the city of Dalat, flying in the face of expert advice warning against sturgeon production in Vietnam due to the country's tropical climate. Beginning with 50,000 fingerlings, it wasn't until 2013 that Caviar de Duc was able to make its first harvest of caviar.

Today, Caviar de Duc boasts more than half a million sturgeon across six production facilities across Vietnam—essentially repurposed hydroelectric dam reservoirs leased from the government. Forgoing quantity for quality, the brand does not use hormones or antibiotics on the sturgeon, and keeps them in larger cages to reduce stress levels in the fish. Caviar de Duc's main export market is Russia, although its caviar can be found at many of Vietnam's five-star hotels, such as JW Marriott, Sheraton and InterContinental.

Related: Culinary Capitals: Ho Chi Minh’s Dining Scene Is Not What You Remember

It's no surprise that Japan, a nation of gastronomes, is home to one of the first true Asian caviars. As its name suggests, Miyazaki Caviar 1983 is produced in the southern prefecture of Miyazaki, a region already famed for its premium Wagyu beef; its mountainous geography provides pristine waters and a stable year-round temperature conducive to raising sturgeon. 

The '1983' in the brand name refers to the year that the company first sourced its fish—the intervening years were spent experimenting with different species, breeding methods and harvesting processes, before the product was finally deemed to have met their criteria and launched nationwide in 2013. Today, Miyazaki Caviar 1983 is produced under the strictest standards: workers spend up to two hours using tweezers to remove contaminants from the eggs, which are then scanned for radiation and heavy metals, before being flash-frozen for optimal freshness.

The final product has a salinity of less than 3 per cent, imparting a creamier, more subtle taste. This makes it a suitable pairing for sake, as well as in more delicate Japanese dishes like udon or ochazuke (tea rice).

South Korea's Namhan River supplies the Korean peninsula's only caviar farm with fresh water, in which Almas Caviar's 50,000 Caspian Sea sturgeon swim. It's these waters that owner and former economist Han Sang-hun credits with the premium quality of his caviar, thanks to the steady alkaline balance and temperature—a result of the lack of factories along the river as well as the presence of a nearby dam that controls the flow of water.

Han began sturgeon farming in 1992 when he brought two hundred sturgeon back from a business trip to Russia. His exacting standards, the uncertainty of raising sturgeon, and kill-free harvesting processes—wherein a small incision is made in the egg sac and the eggs massaged out, allowing the fish to live another day—have not made it an easy journey. By Han's estimate, 72 other sturgeon farmers in Korea have failed where he has succeeded, due in large part to the high cost of upkeep (between US$60,000 and $100,000 a month just to feed them).

Almas is also unusual for allowing their sturgeon 10-12 years to mature, compared to the industry standard of 5-7 years, which Han believes results in better quality roe. Meanwhile, their specialty Beluga caviar is harvested when the fish reaches a minimum of 20 years in age. Preservatives and additives are eschewed, and the caviar is minimally salted at 3 to 3.5 per cent to allow the natural flavours to shine through. Today, Almas is widely recognised in Korea, and exports to Japan and the West Coast of the United States too.

Founded by a father and now operated by the daughters, Yu Zhi Xiang is a Taiwanese caviar producer that is tucked in the mountainous Guguan valley near the city of Taichung. Translating to "home of the fish", Yu Zhi Xiang began as one of the first trout farms in Taiwan before switching to ayu and, in 1998, sturgeon, when a friend of the owner helped to import the prized fish from Europe. Given the long maturation period of sturgeon, Yu Zhi Xiang's first caviar harvest occurred in 2007.

The company espouses a nose-to-tail ethos where the roe is harvested within a three-day window—a precise method only made possible by implanting all of the sturgeon with microchips tracking their every move. After the harvest, the sturgeon are turned into a range of dishes served at the on-site restaurant as sashimi, congee and soup, or smoked and steamed in a range of regional specialties—paired, of course, with fresh caviar.

Beginning first as an importer of caviar from China and Russia, Caviar House became the first Thai producer of caviar in 2016 when it opened its own farm in Thailand's Hua Hin province. Taking more than a year to construct, the 1,500-square-metre facility is heavily reliant on specialised equipment imported from all over Europe to maintain the highly specific conditions—from water temperature, to pH and oxygen levels—needed to rear the arctic sturgeon, a task made even harder with Thailand's tropical climate. 

Today, Caviar House counts among its offerings the smooth and delicate Classic Sturgeon Caviar from Siberian sturgeon fish; the intense and flavourful Premium Sturgeon Caviar from Russia; the coveted Beluga Caviar; and the firm yet buttery Royal Oscietra Caviar from beluga-sturgeon hybrid fish.