Kitanohana Shuzojo

The soft water from the Iide mountain range is fluffy and gentle, with a moderate minerality. The sake of Kitanohana Shuzojo, brewed with this water, possesses both a mellow character and a crisp, refined profile. It's the kind of sake you want to have another glass of while savoring a meal. Rie Hoshi, the 4th generation owner-brewer, pursues this quality, aiming for a sake that can be enjoyed slowly with food. Kitanohana Shuzojo was founded in 1919. Born as the eldest of three sisters, Rie never considered taking over the family business, and after graduating from university, she took a job at a printing company in Tokyo.

"My father would sometimes ask me to help out at tasting events," she says. "But at the time, I knew almost nothing about our own sake and couldn't answer any customer questions, like 'What kind of yeast do you use?' That's what made me want to start studying sake." In 2010, at the age of 26, she enrolled in the Junior College of the Department of Fermentation Science at the Tokyo University of Agriculture (as it was then known). Although her hometown was struck by the Great East Japan Earthquake while she was a student, she continued her studies and returned home in 2013.

Two Pillars: Crisp & Dry, Floral & Sweet

In her first year at the family brewery, Rie also began studying at Fukushima's "Sake Academy." Her father, the 3rd generation owner-brewer, suddenly entrusted her with a 1.2-ton tank all to herself. It was the first time she had handled much of the equipment in her family's brewery. Rie recalls that it was completely different from the theoretical brewing she had in her head.

"I was stunned. It was like I had only ever made a single fried egg, and someone suddenly told me to make 100 right now," she laughs. "But I figured if I was going to do it, I wanted to make a sake that was truly my own." The result was the 'Kitanohana Junmai Ginjo Muroka,' a sake with a floral aroma and a sweet, full-bodied profile. As the brewery's conventional brand, Kuradaiko, was popular for its dry style, this new sake was its polar opposite, becoming a new flagship product.

"My father has a 'let's try anything' spirit. I was desperate when he put me in charge of a tank in my first year, but it was a tremendous learning experience. We've faced ongoing difficulties with the earthquake and the COVID-19 pandemic, but this is the path I chose for myself. I want to continue brewing sake with strength and resilience, getting back up even if I fall."