Process of Making Sake:

1. Polishing: Brown rice contains proteins and fats that add a cloying taste to the sake. Therefore, the outside of the brown rice is shaved to remove excess components.

2. Washing & Soaking: The rice is washed to remove powder particles (rice bran). Then, the core of the rice is allowed to absorb a moderate amount of water to provide the rice grains with the moisture necessary for “steaming” through soaking. 

3. Steaming: White rice is steamed with steam at 100°C or higher for about one hour. The surface of the rice grains must be hard outside and soft inside, with just the right amount of elasticity. After steaming, the steamed rice is cooled to the target temperature, depending on its use, such as for kake rice or koji rice.

4. Molding: Steamed rice is heated to the proper temperature, sprinkled with seed koji mold, and placed in a koji room that is kept at 25-35℃ even in the middle of winter, where koji is cultivated for about two days.

5. Making Yeast Starter: Steamed rice, water, and koji are mixed, yeast is added, and a large amount of pure culture of yeast required for fermentation is made.

6. Fermentation: Yeast Starter is combined with koji and steamed rice, where fermentation begins. It is called “Moromi” which means unrefined sake. Since the yeast growth will be affected if the sake is brewed in a single batch, the ingredients are processed through three stages within four days.

7. (First day) “Hatsusoe”: It is brewed with yeast starter, kake koji, kake rice, and water.

8. (Second day) “Odori”: Take a day off from brewing to fully energize the yeast.

9. (Third day) “Nakasoe”: Kake koji, kake rice, and water are added again.

10. (Fourth day) “Tomesoe”: Kake koji, kake rice, and water are added again and finish making “Moromi”. It will gradually become alcohol over the next 30 days or so.

11. Filtering: After fermentation is complete, the unrefined sake is squeezed and separated into sake and sakekasu, a process known as “Jyou-Sou”. The process for ginjo-shu is done by a method called Fukuro-zuri (hanging in a bag) to prevent the flavor of the sake from escaping. The unrefined sake is placed in a bag and the drops that fall drop by drop are collected.

12. Testing and Aging: After the new sake has been squeezed, the quality of the new sake is checked. After this, the sake is aged for a while to stabilize its quality before going to the stores.

Introduction of Brands

Akita Prefecture has many different Sake brands because of the history and geographical location. Some popular brands include Takashimizu, Hideyoshi and Kimura.

• Takashimizu:

Takashimizu was founded in 1944 and was formed by merging 12 different breweries. They provide many different types of Sakes to match people’s preferences. This can be explained by the merging of different breweries together, which bring a variety of choices for consumers. With the special technique, Takashimizu won multiple awards (New Sake Awards, Top awards for Tohoku competition) that prove their success as a Sake business. 

https://www.takashimizu.com/

• Fukukomachi:

The Kimura Brewery was founded in 1615 by Shigenari Kimura, and it is the second oldest brewery located in Akita. They focus on craftsmanship; handmaking all sake rather than utilizing machines, but at the same time trying to embed modern tastes in this traditional drink. Fukukomachi was named by Emperor Meiji, where the name was changed from Otokoyama to Fukumusume, and later to Fukukomachi to honor the popular poet Ono no Komachi who was born at Yuzawa. 

http://www.fukukomachi.com/english/kimura/index.html

• Hideyoshi:

The Suzuki brewery was founded in 1689 and was named by the Akita Lord during the Houreki Era due to the great taste of the sake. Suzuki not only produces sake, but also other alcoholic beverages, with a special edition of sake in a special bottle. 

https://www.hideyoshi.co.jp/

French brochure for their sparkling is below, and French video is available in the later section