July 27, 2024
Although the brewery itself is not operation during summer season and was closed on Saturday, the president kindly allowed me to visit it.
In fact, I was introduced to the company by a member of a local mountaineering association, and where I got the opportunity to serve as an interpreter for overseas guests attending the Takato Festival (*), which was held to commemorate the 30th anniversary of the founding of the Asian Mountaineering Federation.
(*)Takato Festival
The Takato Festival is held annually to commemorate the legacy of Nihei Takato, a founding member and the second president of the Japan Alpine Club. Since the establishment of the Mountain Day, the festival has been held as a commemorative events to express gratitude for the blessings of the mountains, to educate the public about the mountain climbing culture, and to promote safety among the activity of climbing on mountains.
On March 4, 1787, almost 220 years ago a fire destroyed the entire sake brewery and its area. The Yamashiroya and Yamagaya breweries were burned to the ground, but quickly rebuilt due to the needs of sake brewing. The two breweries then merged to form of the current Koshimeijo Co., Ltd.
This brewery is located i upstream of the Kariyata River, n Tochio, Nagaoka City, Niigata Prefecture, which originates from the Mt. Sumon, bordering with Aizu, in the Fukushima Prefecture. The brewery is located in a basin surrounded by mountains on all sides, an area that gets heavy snowfall of 2 to 3 meters during its cold winters.
This time, I had the chance to taste the three different kinds of sake.
The first bottle is the “Yamashiroya First Class”
This is a representative bottle of the Yamashiroya regular series. You will experience a world full of contradictions, where softness and sharpness coexist. It has an exquisite balance and a tendency to run freely across the palate, racing towards harmony with the food.” – Quote from the official page
I tried this one first and it had a slight dry taste. I thought it would go well with Japanese food, especially sashimi. The aroma also reminded me the intensive taste of Japanese Sake!
The second bottle is called “Yamashiroya Special Class.”
This is also a quote from the official page of Koshi Meijo: “This is a luxurious sake made by taking only the most delicious part of the ‘nakatori’ (the unpressurized part) from the dripping when pressing the unrefined sake (moromi) which is also the base of the sake. Because of it’s labor-intensivity, it is produced in limited quantities, therefore a special creation which allows you to experience the sweetness of the rice and the rich, crisp flavor at the same time.”
Although this second bottle had a slight weaker aroma than the first one, I knew immediately that something was different. I could say I felt a lingering aftertaste, a richness, a different taste.
The third bottle was a summer-only brand called “Yamashiroya WABI”, which is a sparkling sake with secondary fermentation. This one requires refrigeration, so it must be exported in refrigerated containers. Since it is summer now, be careful when you take it out of the refrigerator when you try to open the cap, bubbles will come out.
It was designed to be the kind of soda you would want to drink on a hot night while watching fireworks, and it is like fireworks bursting in your mouth. It has a high-foaming, refreshing and crisp taste – Quoted from the SNS of Koshimeijo Co., Ltd.
These Sakes are also introduced to overseas customers, with the exception of the summer limited edition.
Here’s the website of Koshimeijo Co., Ltd.
https://koshimeijo.jp/
