Daishichi Junmai Kimoto

As its name indicates, Daishichi Junmai Kimoto (大七 純米生酛) is produced employing the traditional kimoto method. Its rich body harmonizes with its deep umami and acidity, while the aftertaste has a lovely freshness. When served warm, it has an enveloping and satisfactory savour.

It can be paired with Japanese food with umami but also goes well with buttery or creamy Western food. This well-matured sake should be served at room temperature (15 degrees Celsius) or warm (between 40 and 45 degrees Celsius).

Awards:

• First place in the category "Sake to drink warm at leisure" at the "Great Jizake Show" in 2007
• Gold award in the category "Sake which is delicious hot" at the "Great Jizake Show" in 2008
• Platinum award in the category "Sake which fits osechi New Year dishes" at the "Great Jizake Show" in 2009
• Platinum award in the category "Hot sake to drink in summer" at the "Great Jizake Show" in 2010
• Platinum award in the category "Warm sake which fits sake appetizers" at the "Great Jizake Show" in 2011
• With three platinum awards, Junmai Kimoto entered the Hall of Fame

The town of Nihonmatsu in Fukushima Prefecture, at the foot of Mount Adatara, is well-known for its water quality, such as the Hikage Well, one of the Three Famous Wells of Japan. The Ōta family (太田氏), related to the Seiwa Genji and hailing from Ise Province (modern-day Mie Prefecture) settled in the 1640s in the entourage of the Niwa clan (丹羽氏) in Nihonmatsu where they started brewing sake. In 1752, Ōta Saburoemon (太田三良右衛門) established a branch family and set up the present Daishichi sake brewery. Since then, the Ōta family has devoted itself for ten generations to brewing sake, specialising in the kimoto method.

The kimoto method

The kimoto method was developed around 1700 and is considered the most orthodox way of sake brewing. Only the best and most potent yeast is selected and cultivated from an abundant collection of microorganisms. The focus on kimoto results in soft and rich umami and possesses a beautiful harmony with no intruding sourness or roughness. In the Meiji period, more straightforward methods of sake brewing, such as sokujo-moto (速醸酛) and yamahai-moto, were developed. However, Daishichi insists that kimoto remains the best way to achieve sake with a deep and rich taste.

Superflat rice polishing

Daishichi maintains that with the conventional way of rice polishing that mills the grains into small round balls, the rice is milled down too much and the end and not enough in the thick middle part. Proteins and crude fats on the surface of the grain are left, leading to off-flavours in the sake. Therefore, it is first necessary to mill the thick part of the grain down. Based on Daishichi's research, the brewery introduced its super flat rice polishing technique.