Yukikomachi Daiginjo Miyamanishiki
Sake brewing Rooted in Fukushima's Climate and Land.
It would be no exaggeration to call him a savior of Fukushima's sake in the post-disaster era. Yasuhiro Watanabe, the president of Watanabe Shuzo Honten, hadn't just studied sake; he had majored in soil science at Niigata University's Faculty of Agriculture and even had experience cultivating premium sake rice.
Then, the disaster struck. With a background in radiation chemistry, he quickly took action to minimize reputational damage. He shared information about safety and lectured more than 2,000 people on safe rice cultivation and soil improvement.
The sake born from this dedicated expert is "Yukikomachi." It is a pure, clean sake, bursting with an apple-like fruitiness. "How can we create value-added sake using our own local rice and water? That is the question we have always been pursuing," Mr. Watanabe says. He means it. An incredible 95% of the rice he uses is grown locally. The water is a blend, sourced from Koriyama and the Abukuma mountain range. By masterfully balancing both soft and medium-hard water, he crafts his signature style: a sake that is exquisitely crisp and dry.
"The most important thing in sake brewing is the blueprint," he explains. "After that, it's just a matter of diligently working toward the flavor you're aiming for." For Mr. Watanabe, a key part of that blueprint is meticulous temperature control. He slowly nurtures the moromi (fermenting mash) at a low temperature of 15°C or below, a patient process that results in a remarkably fine-textured sake. This, he explains, is the very reason "Yukikomachi" is celebrated for being so remarkably easy to drink.
Watanabe Shuzo Honten