An unofficial guide to Yamaguchi Prefecture and its nihonshu
Location: 山口県岩国市今津町3-18-9/ 3-18-9 Imazumachi, Iwakuni, Yamaguchi Open to Public: Yes, by appointment Cost: 200 yen for disposable clean suits Production: 1,000 Koku (18,000 liters) produced from September through March On Saturday, January 29th I had the perfect excuse opportunity to visit Yaoshin Shuzo, makers of Gangi, when a friend came to the area and the... Continue Reading →
On January 19, I was finally able to get a sake tasting class together, after two failed attempts last fall. 6 drinkers gathered at Kokushu 国酒 in Shunan, Yamaguchi, where we tried a total of for sakes, before going on a tour of nearby Hatsumomiji Shuzo. Kokushu is a sake specialty izakaya with a great... Continue Reading →
In a recent wander around the shopping streets surrounding Tokuyama Station, I found what you might actually call my holy land: a new bar dedicated (almost) solely to sake. Kokushu (͡國酒) opened in March of this year and offers pretty much one thing: All you can drink nihonshu (they do have a little machine dispensing... Continue Reading →
I'm beginning to feel I have some kind of karmic connection to Nakashimaya. Every sake event I go to I run into the same young staff member, and he always talks me into trying something new. When people ask me for recommendations, I always find that their specific event needs seem to call for one... Continue Reading →
Hey again! So the blog here is going to be a bit spotty this month because I have family visiting from America and none of them drink, so it's kind of awkward to sit around slurping sake and taking notes on my own. I'll do my best to get something up here, though, and here'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 →
This is a lovely Junmai Ginjo from Imada Shuzohonten in Hiroshima. The brewery has attracted some attention because they have one of the few women Toji in Japan. Miho Imada was recently profiled in Sake Today, in fact, so one can hope that this great kura will be getting more attention in the future. And... Continue Reading →
Today I've got something from Iwakuni powerhouse Sakai Shuzo, makers of Gokyo. Sakai has a reputation as a very staid, traditional kura but they've recently been trying some more modern things with labels designs and such, and this is clearly one of them. There is a whole line of "five" branded sakes, of different colors.... Continue Reading →
This sake presents an odd situation. I bought it when I noticed the "sub heading" Sugihime. That's the main label for Yamaguchi city brewery Yamashiroya, and indeed Yamashiroya is listed on the label...but, on closer inspection, as the "sales point." Huh? Indeed, the maker is listed as Yamagata Honten of Shunan, the first brewery I... Continue Reading →
Yamaguchi Sake 