Shimizu Seizaburo Shoten Co., Ltd
About the brewery
| Sake brand name | Zaku Miyabi-no-tomo Nakadori |
| Brewery name | Shimizu Seizaburo Shoten Co., Ltd |
| Founded in | 1869 |
| CEO | Shinichiro Shimizu |
| Address | 3-9-33, Wakamatsu-higashi, Suzuka-city, Mie 510-0225 Japan |
| Phone | 059-385-0011 |
| banto@daikokuya.co.jp | |
| Website | https://seizaburo.jp/ |
| Visit bookings | – |
| Visiting hours | – |
sake
| Specific Designation | Junmai Daiginjo |
| Alcohol Content | 16% |
| Raw rice variety | Yamada Nishiki |
| Rice polishing degree | 50% |
| Yeasts used | Own yeasts |
| Net Content | 750ml |
| Acidity level | – |
| Amino Acid Value | – |
| Nihonshu-do (Sake Metre Value) | – |
| Manufacturing features | Only the clearest middle part from the pressing process is bottled. Fruity and rich bouquet. Its delicate, clear, and elegant taste, combined with its aroma, gives a deep sense of satisfaction. Made entirely from “Yamada Nishiki” rice. Serve chilled. |
Specificity
| History and philosophy of the brewery | The Suzuka area in Mie Prefecture, where our brewery is located, has long been known as “the land of Suzuka Umasake” due to the delicious sake it produces. A passage from an old book called “Yamato-hime-no-mikoto-no-seiki” reports that the goddess “Amaterasu-no-ohmikami” ordered the Princess Yamato-hime-no-mikoto to look for a place where she could settle. The book describes her journey to the present-day shrine of “Ise Jingu”. It reads: “I come from the land of Umasake Suzuka”, already referring to the excellent sake it produces. According to the great Japanese dictionary “Daijirin”, the term “umasake” has been around for a very long time, also indicating that the Suzuka region is a land that produces excellent sake. Indeed, the climate of Suzuka is very favourable for brewing sake. The crystal-clear water from the basement of the Suzuka Mountains flows into the vast Ise Plain, where high-quality rice is grown. The combination of this rice and water has made it possible to brew delicious sakes over the centuries. At Kawamata Shrine, located in the Suzuka River basin, a festival called “Umasake” is held every year to express our gratitude to the deities for the delicious sake produced in such a favourable climate. Our brewery was founded in 1869 under the name “Daikokuya Shimizu Seizaburo Shoten”. We have been perpetuating this brewing tradition for 150 years while remaining modern to live up to the expectations of the several hundred years old land of the Suzuka “umasake” and to the work of our ancestors. |
| Production features | The more we process the rice, the rounder its taste becomes and the riper the resulting sake gets. However, it is not enough to simply repeat the brewing process to make a good sake. Just as the taste of agricultural products varies greatly depending on the climate, the fermentation of sake, too, depends greatly on the surrounding climate because the raw materials are rice and yeast called “koji”. It is essential to ensure that we work in close symbiosis with rice every day, our goal being to get closer today than yesterday to our ideal sake. Nowadays, of course, it is crucial to think about improving productivity, but it is surely not by setting up an efficient production system on a large scale that we will be able to produce this ideal sake to which we aspire. In addition, we use smaller than average tanks, which allows us to be more attentive and deliberate, and to control the delicate work of bacteria and fermentation more carefully. We certainly do not produce a lot, but we think this is the ideal configuration. As you probably know, rice is an essential ingredient for the Japanese people. Therefore, we highly respect this commodity, the quality of which we optimize. Fortunately, every year the harvest is fruitful, which allows us to produce high-quality sake. For us, our sake is really the crystallisation of our pride. |
| Tasting Characteristics | This exceptional batch of Miyabi-no-tomo is a version of the “nakadori” sake of which only the middle and noble parts of the pressing process are bottled, which gives it a greater sweetness and texture while keeping a dry side with a great depth of taste due to the very high quality of the rice. This is an essentially fragrant sake with a more assertive aroma coming from the steamed high-quality rice and demonstrating a higher scale. In addition to its high viscosity, it has a good amount of sweetness, dissolved carbon dioxide, a light and slightly tasty acidity that affirms its youth. The effect it brings is of great elegance, with a glossy, but transparent finish.” – Kenji Ohashi, Master of Wine |
Purchasing information
| Store | Hasegawa Saketen |
| order@hasegawasaketen.com | |
| Phone | 03-6809-5461 |
| Fax | 03-6809-5461 |
| Online store | – |
Zaku Ho No Tomo