Winemaker Notes
Yamada Nishiki is generally considered the most elegant and expressive rice used for making premium sake, and there are few sake that exemplify that as well the Gikyo Junmai Ginjo from Yamachu Honke.
This Junmai Ginjo brings out the gorgeous subtleties of this Yamada Nishiki, with an initial sensation of melon moving into savory notes of cereal grains and toasted wheat and finishing dry with an appealing tingle of spices. After brewing the toji has skipped the standard addition of more water to retain the impact and power of the original brew.
A notch above Junmai in its milling requirement, by definition Junmai Ginjo requires milling of 40% of the rice grain so that 60% of each grain remains. The categories of saké are established not by rice variety, but by the polishing or milling percentages. Junmai Ginjo is made up solely of water, koji mold, yeast and rice and is brewed without any additon of alcohol. This style goes well with fresh, lightly seasoned dishes such as sashimi, carpaccio or seared oysters.
The introduction of the waterwheel in the 17th century, which eliminated the need for the manual polishing of rice grains, allowed Japan to begin producing saké at an industrial level for its greater population. Today Japan remains at the cutting edge of technology in its brewing practices. However, the traditional methods of handcrafted, artisanal saké remain alive in smaller and often family-owned breweries. Many of these showcase local ingredients and focus on microclimates to make what is known as ‘jizake,’ or regional saké.