An unofficial guide to Yamaguchi Prefecture and its nihonshu
Imada Shuzo Honten is in Higashi-Hiroshima city, some 90 kilometers up the Seto Inland Coast from where I sit. It's a small brewery, producing around 300 600 (correction) koku a year, but its presence in the sake brewing industry is growing increasingly prominent. It is currently run by kuramoto/toji Imada Miho--one of the few women... Continue Reading →
Nagayama Honke Shuzojo is much more well-known for its Taka label, but within Yamaguchi they also continue on their traditional Otokoyama label. There are actually twelve or so breweries in Japan who use this name, and so Nagayama keeps Otokoyama within the local market only to avoid confusion. Understandable, but somewhat unfortunate, since this retro... Continue Reading →
At a recent On-nomi I focused my drinking on a pair of sakes from Hagi city in Yamaguchi. Hagi is a major brewing city in Yamaguchi prefecture, and locals are growing increasingly vocal about their ingredients, including locally grown rice, and Hagi's spring water. Migaki 6 Tokubetsu Junmai, Hagi grown Yamada Nishiki, Seimeibuai 60% The... Continue Reading →
My first fresh bottle of sake this year is Taka's Tokubetsu Junmai Jikagumi 60, a fresh Shinshu just for this season. Taka Tokubetsu Junmai Jikagumi, 60 Seimaibuai, Yamaguchi-Grown Yamada Nishiki Another jikagumi! For those who missed it from the Ageo ode, jikagumi sake is bottled directly from a wood press, as yet another variation of... Continue Reading →
One of the tricky things about taking all these classes and doing all this "official" sake study is that people expect me to know how to recommend and pair sake to food. That's kind of hard at this point, mainly because I have no idea what works without trying it. There are certain points on... Continue Reading →
I like to focus on Yamaguchi and the surrounding prefectures on this blog, since they seem to get fairly little attention compared to, say, Niigata or Fukushima. I think it's fair to say that Kochi prefecture, on the nearby island of Shikoku, is close enough to qualify. Plus, this sake is called Drunken Whale. I... Continue Reading →
Yamaguchi Sake 