An unofficial guide to Yamaguchi Prefecture and its nihonshu
I have recently been thinking so much about sake pricing, I almost confuse myself. It's a very big topic, and one that many people in the industry (particularly non-Japanese) seem to have strong opinions about. The primary reason, of course, is that within Japan most sake is very, very cheap, while outside Japan it is... Continue Reading →
Harada Junmai Daiginjo, Rice Choshu Yamadanishiki Tokujo, Seimaibuai: 40% I rang in the New Year with a bottle of Hatsumomiji Shuzo's super premium Harada Junmai Daiginjo. This one is made with Yamadanishiki sake rice grown locally in Yamaguchi prefecture (the historical name for this area is Choshu). The rice is also ranked Tokujo, which is... Continue Reading →
Rather than do a regular old tasting note, review, or event update, I thought I'd take a look back at what this year was like for me in my sake journey. 2019 was a fairly big sake year for me. I led my first tasting class back in January, and did my first work translating... Continue Reading →
The event I talked about last time sold a couple of limited edition sakes. This is one of them! It's a junmai tobingakoi, meaning it was filtered by being hung in cotton bags and funneled directly into a glass tank before it is pumped into the bottles. Harada Toji is filling bottles directly from a... Continue Reading →
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... Continue Reading →
It makes me sad how difficult it will be to explain the pun behind this sake's name in English. But we'll get to that. No need to cry. Nakasu sake is is from Hatsumomiji, the makers behind Harada sake. It's a local favorite, and a kura I've visited a few times. I like their sake,... Continue Reading →
This sake is one of Hatumomiji's most premium brands. The name is a reference to the Kaiten "manned torpedoes" planned at the end of World War 2, and built and tested at a base on a small island off the coast of Shunan city. It's a sad local story, and one that lingers over 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 →
Yamaguchi Sake 