Shunan city sake brewery Hatsumomiji Shuzo, makers of popular brand Harada, held a small festival on November 16th and 17th to celebrate their 200th anniversary. Since I’m a fan of not only their sake, but the brewery staff as well (I’ve toured it twice and have met many of them several times at events), I figured I had to go. The fact that they were selling special bottles limited to 200 each really sealed the deal.
I went Saturday morning to ensure I got the limited editions. One was a tobingakoi junmai ginjo in special bail-top bottles, which the toji was filling AT THE TABLE from a tobin. The other was a junmai daiginjo in a special serial-numbered bottle and wooden box. Yes, they were expensive. No, I don’t care.
Left: Junmai Daiginjo Genshu Limited Edition w/ Serial Number
The event kicked off with a kagami biraki, when VIPs use wooden mallets to break the lid of a specially prepared keg of sake. This sake was then sold in special masu drinking boxes to attendees. I was planning to drive later in the day, so sadly I couldn’t partake. But it sure did look good…
The event also offered snacks, soft drinks (including Harada Junmai Amazake), and games for the kids. They also had a drawing/bingo game which you could enter by exchanging stamp cards for bingo cards. You earned stamps with every 200 yen purchase, and ten stamps got you a bingo card. I got 4 bingo cards…
And I’m glad I did! Because one of my bingo cards hit a bingo, and that earned me a chance to draw a prize slip, which turned out to be a bottle of Harada Junmai Ginjo Reiwa Hatsushibori. Yay! So much sake!
The event really was fun. I ran into familiar faces (who were all pretty raucous for a Saturday morning in a residential area, honestly) and got to see some history of this local favorite. And I also got a totally neat commemorative Tenugui towel just for showing up!
Yamaguchi Sake 