01 Japanese Sake Ingredients🍶

What kind of alcohol is Japanese sake?

It is a brewed liquor made from rice, water, and koji. Japanese sake is an alcoholic beverage made from rice, water, and koji, fermented using yeast. Like wine, it is classified as a brewed liquor. The use of these three ingredients to make sake began in the Nara period. Afterward, the production method was gradually established, and by the Muromachi period, the method had become almost the same as it is today. Since Japanese sake is made from simple ingredients, each element greatly affects the flavor.

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Sake-specific rice🍚

Sake-specific rice, used for brewing sake, is different from the rice we usually eat. The starch required for sake brewing is concentrated in the sake-specific rice, so by polishing the rice, it can be made into delicious Japanese sake. In recent years, there has been a growing focus on locally produced rice, with more breweries handling rice production themselves.

The main types of rice suitable for sake brewing include the following

amada Nishiki: The most popular variety, it produces Japanese sake with a pleasant aroma. With its large grains and easy-to-polish nature, it is widely used as a high-quality ingredient for Japanese sake.

Gohyakumangoku: It results in Japanese sake with a warm, crisp taste. It is the most produced sake-specific rice in Japan.

Omachi:This rice creates a rich-tasting Japanese sake. It is a high-quality sake-specific rice, comparable to Yamada Nishiki.

Miyamanishiki: It leads to a clean-tasting Japanese sake. This sake-specific rice is relatively new, and the finished sake retains the flavor of the rice.

The taste of sake is heavily influenced by the hardness of the water💧

The taste of sake is heavily influenced by the hardness of the water, as over 80% of sake is composed of water. Water hardness refers to the amount of calcium and magnesium contained in the water, and in Japan, soft water is the norm, though there are regions with moderately hard water. Minerals, which affect koji and yeast, and in turn the fermentation process and taste of sake, are also important factors.

Differences in taste due to water hardness:

Hard water: Results in sake with a sharp, clean finish. This is because it provides nutrients for koji and yeast, allowing fermentation to progress well.

Soft water:Leads to sake with a sweeter taste, as fermentation proceeds more gently.

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excellent water veins🌈

Japan is blessed with high-quality water, and there are excellent water veins in mountainous regions. Many sake breweries have existed in these areas since ancient times, making the most of this water for sake production, which greatly impacts the taste of sake from different regions.

For example, the following water veins give rise to different taste profiles:

Soft water:

Yoshinoyama: Soft water quality, resulting in a sweet and soft sake.

Daisen: Water with a high calcium content, producing a soft sake.

Hakusan: Water containing a large amount of minerals derived from the Daisen mountain range, creating a sake with a moderate sweetness.

Mount Fuji: Extremely soft water, providing an elegant mouthfeel and bringing out umami. Chokaisan: Soft water with a gentle taste, low mineral content, and a distinctively Japanese sake flavor.

Hard water:

Rokko Mountain: Rich in minerals, leading to a sake with an expansive, sharp aroma.

Iwate Mountain: With an appropriate amount of minerals, resulting in a robustly flavored sake.

Moderately hard water:

Asahidake: Meltwater from the Daisetsuzan mountain range becomes groundwater, creating a moderately smooth sake. This water source has been selected as one of Japan’s 100 best.

Japan Alps: Meltwater provides cold water even in summer, and the right amount of minerals for a smooth, velvety sake.

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Ingredients Koji🕐

Promoting fermentation and enhancing flavor and aroma with “Koji”

Sake, a Japanese alcoholic beverage, is made from rice and water as its primary ingredients. However, these alone are not sufficient to induce complete fermentation or convert the mixture into alcohol. This is where koji mold comes into play.

Koji mold is a type of fungus, and in sake production, it is sprinkled onto steamed rice to encourage its growth. This process requires delicate control of humidity and temperature. Additionally, koji mold plays a role in drawing out the umami and aroma of the sake.

There are three main types of koji mold in Japan: yellow koji, white koji, and black koji. While yellow koji is primarily used in sake production, white and black koji are also employed in some cases to enhance specific characteristics. Each type of koji mold possesses its own unique flavor and properties, contributing to the diverse taste profiles found in Japanese sake.

What is “yeast（酵母）”?

Yeast plays a significant role in the fermentation process of sake. Yeast works to ferment the sugars produced by koji mold and convert them into alcohol. The taste and aroma of the sake can vary greatly depending on the type of yeast used, reflecting the intentions of the brewery in their yeast selection.

There are two major lineages of commonly used yeasts. The first is called Association Yeast, sold by the Japan Brewing Association, and each strain is numbered to represent its unique aroma characteristics. The second type is yeast developed by local governments or sake breweries, and in recent years, research in this area has been flourishing.

The yeast used is often listed on the label of Japanese sake, so be sure to check it out.

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