Sake Industry News. Issue #136.

Rice Crisis Hitting Hard, Kid In America, New sake movie, Furuya Shuzōten recovers, Dassai Space Sake Sold, Kitano Nishiki new brewery, Aomori GI, the best Yamada Nishiki and more!

Welcome to Issue #136 of SIN.

In the last issue of SIN, we reported on how lower grades of sake are starting to encroach on the realms of the next grade up with greater regularity; in other words, each grade is starting to taste and smell – and perhaps even legally qualify for – the next grade “up” of sake. And as an opening anecdote, I told the story of setting up a tasting challenge as part of a sake exam. I described using a futsū-shu next to a ginjō, and finding it more challenging than I intended to tell the difference because the futsũ-shu was aromatic, and in that sense encroaching on ginjō. Not that this is a bad thing; on the contrary, it is more than likely a good thing. Nothing lamentable at all about it.

Well, lo and behold, just the other day I opened up an issue of the industry publication, the Jokai Times, to which I subscribe and there it was: a story about a brewer in Kochi Prefecture, the formidable Tosatsuru, coming out with a new product called “Kaori Regular.” Kaori means aroma, and regular means, well… regular. Like, futsū in Japanese, as in futsū-shu.

While something tells me that that borderline condescending explanation was probably overkill, the product is just the kind of sake about which I wrote in that last issue: a futsū-shu made with a yeast that gives rise to ginjō-esque aromas, even in a futsū-shu.

But Tosatsuru is unabashedly marketing it for what it is. Their angle is offering sake that lets one enjoy a bit of sunshine without waiting for a special day, by enjoying a futsu-shu that clearly presents aromatics reminiscent of more special sake. In fact, the company is promoting enjoying this futsū-shu in a wine glass. The product has its own unique logo, and comes in both bottles and cartons. The alcohol is only 12 percent.

Surely other producers will come out with similar products. However, it will be interesting, because not all daily drinkers of futsū-shu actually want ginjō aromas. Yet they are sure to capture a certain sector of the market with this.

See how your friends here at Sake Industry News are always just a bit ahead of the curve? 😉

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*We apologize due to logistics that we do not have an audio version of this issue.

**SIN Chief Editor Julian Houseman is stepping in with comments for this issue in lieu of a very busy John Gauntner.

And now for the news…

Rice Crisis Hitting Hard For Everyone

Japan- Industry pundits are calling the ongoing rice shortage in Japan a “once in a hundred years crisis”. Rice prices have continued to remain high even after the release of supplies of reserved rice and are showing no signs of dropping.

Saitama, which currently ranks fourth in Japan for sake production volume from its 32 breweries, is one of a number of regions which is looking at raising sake prices due to the cost of rice.

Ryouji Matsuoka, chairman of the Saitama Prefecture Sake Brewers Association said, “It is inevitable that the rice prices rise, but the biggest challenge is if the brewers can raise prices accordingly without too much negative impact on sales or consumer trust.”

Mariko Sato, toji at Satō Shuzōten, commented on the difficulty for breweries to absorb the 150% rise in cost of table rice when the price of other brewing materials is also on the rise. Sato was forced to abandon the use of Saitama’s own Sake Musashi rice due to inflated pricing.