Wine Meow Watch News 2021/06/09

Rare sake rice "ひより" that has won the Gold Award for four consecutive years

Many of the wines that participate in the National New Sake Appraisal every year are brewed with Yamada Nishiki, the king of sake and rice, but there are also heretics who insist on using rare rice to compete. Kammei Brewery in Osaki City, Miyagi Prefecture thinks so, using the sake rice "ひより" cultivated by Mr. Shizutaka Hiratsuka, a farmer in Iwanuma City, Miyagi Prefecture, to brew Junmai Daiginjo to participate in the competition. The evaluation meeting won the gold award for 4 consecutive years/6 times, and it shines in a field of Yamada Nishiki.

ひより is a breed obtained by Mr. Hiratsuka's mating of ササシグレ and Yamada Nishiki. It has been successfully developed for 9 years since 1990, and the breed registration was completed in 2002. After meeting Mr. Hiratsuka, the chairman of Kammei Brewery, Mr. Takashi Iwasaki, began to challenge cultivation and brewing in 2005.ひより is easier to cultivate than Hyogo Yamada Nishiki, and it produces sake that is not too fragrant and tastes good. He won the gold award for the first time when he participated in the appraisal meeting in 2008, and since 2017, he has won the gold award for 4 consecutive times after deducting the gold award that was not decided because of the Wuhan pneumonia epidemic last year.

Using non-Yamada Nishiki sake rice, and the sake rice is developed by an individual farmer and cultivated by the company, it is very rare in Japan to obtain the golden prize under such conditions. This is not only because of the characteristics of sake rice, but also because the sake brewers have expanded the equipment in the factory and cooperated with farmers to continue to grow high-quality sake rice. If I have a chance to see the "Colour Pure Fragrance" brewed with ひより, I would also like to drink it.

Watermelon is powerful! Junmai Daiginjo "Watermelon Flower"

Kume Sakura Brewery located in Maruyama, Tottori Prefecture, uses the Tottori industrial technology センター Koji fungi and yeast isolated from watermelon flowers, plus the flowing water in the Oyama area and the sake rice grown at the foot of the mountain to complete the "Junmai Daiginjo"すいかの花". All ingredients are produced in Tottori Prefecture, and it is a bottle of "ALL Tottori" Japanese sake.

About the summer delicacy of Tottori Prefecture--Watermelon: There is fertile black soil at the foot of the mountain, and the juicy and sweet Tottori Daidama watermelon can be cultivated. ~ Early July. If you want to use it as a stain, you should choose the source Wubingwei Xiaoyu watermelon.

Further reading: Oyama Yeast ( Lakanse Yeast ) isolated from Beech in Tottori Prefecture

winemaking trends

#drunkwhalebrewing

Kochi City's Kochi Sake Brewery has launched a Japanese sake picture book "What is Sake?". The 24-page picture book depicts the manufacturing process of Japanese sake and the banquet culture of Kochi Prefecture. The text describing the scene is in both Japanese and English. Ms. Nagai, a picture book writer living in Kochi City, is in charge of the painting work. After talking with the 53 staff of Shuzo, she also drew all of them into the picture book.

#RiceWine #Moriyama Brewery

I may not know who the names of these two companies are, but if you talk about the HINEMOS series of wines that you drink at what time, you will probably have an impression, right?

RiceWine and Moriyama Shuzo will move to Odawara City, Kanagawa Prefecture together. The existing refrigerated warehouse is currently being renovated to set up a liquor store. It is expected to be completed in July 2021, and the transfer procedures are also under application. The sake is stored in the refrigerated warehouse, and the temperature suitable for brewing can be maintained throughout the year, and the work style of "Four Seasons Sake" can be performed all year round.

Moriyama Brewery, located in Higashie-cho, Kitakura-gun, Aichi Prefecture, used to only make wine in winter. It is a 300-year-old store founded in the first year of Genroku. However, due to the sparse population in the area where the sake brewery is located, it is necessary to use old equipment to make wine in winter 3~ The environment for brewing without taking a break for four months is really severe, and it is a great threat to the maintenance of business operations, so Mr. Toshisaku Yuasa, the 12th generation, decided to relocate the sake brewing.

Changing to year-round brewing allows brewing equipment and employees to work throughout the year, which can guide employees to improve their working methods. After the number of brewing times increases, the output can be expanded to 3-4 times as much as before, and the existing logistics facilities are used. The cost of building a Four Seasons Brewery can be reduced by 1/4 compared to building a brand new one.

Going back to RiceWine, the sales channel is very different from other Japanese sake manufacturers in that more than 90% of the sales are sold directly to consumers and restaurants (D2C) through its own e-commerce. Through direct contact with customers to understand the subtle needs of customers, take it into account when OEMing, and make wines that are closer to consumers' needs.

Because D2C saves the fees paid to middlemen (wholesalers/wine shops/other e-commerce platforms), it can ensure profits, and can actively invest in consumer favorite designs and product development. In addition, social media is also actively used for market promotion. Taking HINEMOS as an example, the sales in December 2020 increased by 1375% compared with the same period in 2019, which is an increase of about 14 times, and the sales volume is accelerating.

HINEMOS has not officially entered Taiwan as an agent. Originally, my friend was going to hold an officially authorized drinking event on 5/29, but unfortunately it had to be closed due to the escalation of the epidemic. Now we can only obediently stay at home and fight to lift the third level as soon as possible. As for when the event can be held, it is up to God.