An unofficial guide to Yamaguchi Prefecture and its nihonshu
Despite the fact that Asahi Shuzo is a mere 30 minute drive from my house, I just don't drink that much Dassai. I suppose it's just too ubiquitous, too famous, and, well, too expensive for me to pay much attention to. I genuinely feel like Yamaguchi has such an embarrassment of riches when it comes... Continue Reading →
I am not normally a shochu drinker, as I left my hard-spirit drinking days behind me long ago. However, I do occasionally enjoy some when I'm out on the town, and I appreciate its cultural place as Japan's native distilled spirit. Adding to that the big attention this particular one is getting, I figure it's... Continue Reading →
Saturday, October 27th was Shunan city's 2nd annual Jizake Yokocho local sake Fair. 16 sakagura from all over Yamagata were there offering their wares, including some rarities I've never seen anywhere locally. A group of friends and I went to give our lovers a workout, and it was pure fun. None of the kura were... Continue Reading →
There is a large hotel not 2 minutes' walk from my house, and their restaurant is what I like to call "Bubble Fancy." It's a remnant of Japan's heady days of high wealth in the 80s and 90s, with furnishings that were once clearly the height of luxury...but now with 30 or so years of... Continue Reading →
Something that I've been working on sort of unofficially, that I'm actually bringing into the "official" part of work, is an exhaustive index of all of the kura in Yamaguchi prefecture, where I identify and map them, try their sakes, and eventually visit them. The mapping part would be easier if the Hiroshima bureau of... Continue Reading →
As you might have heard, recent flooding in western Japan has left thousands of people in emergency shelters, killed more than 200, and caused unimaginable damage across several prefectures. Yamaguchi is in the area of flooding, but luckily was much less harder hit than Hiroshima or Okayama. However, one exception is the Asahi Shuzo brewery,... Continue Reading →
Whenever I talk to people about Sake and mention I live in Yamaguchi, the conversation inevitably turns to Dassai. This is understandable, since clearly Dassai is immensely famous (perhaps the single most famous sake in the world?). The brewery, Asahi Shuzo, is on TV, in newspapers, and making huge waves in the brewing world with... Continue Reading →
Twice a year, Yamaguchi sakagura and several gourmet Japanese restaurants near Tokuyama station in Shunan host the Guruguru Yamaguchi no Sake event. For a 7000 yen ticket, you get a name tag and the right to visit 5 restaurants, each of which hosts 1 or 2 different sake brewers for a tasting and pairing experience.... Continue Reading →
Yamaguchi Sake 