Sake specs
- Prefecture
- Kyōto (京都)
- Rice type
- Ōmachi (雄町)
- Polishing rate (semaibuai)
- 66%
- Alcohol content
- 19-20%
Tamagawa Shizenjikomi Junmai Yamahai Ōmachi Muroka Namazake 2022 BY (玉川 自然仕込 純米酒 (山廃)雄町 無ろ過生原酒 2022BY) is made of Ōmachi rice milled to 66%. It is made following the Yamahai method without adding pure yeast cultures. The yeasts are exceptionally vigorous, so the average level of alcohol for these products at pressing is well over 20%. They are all enjoyed for their potent, complex flavours centred on the core of acidity and umami.
The 3U version comes in different rice strains: Kitanishiki rice ("Red Label") and limited editions with Yamada Nishiki, Gohyakumangoku and Ōmachi. The Ōmachi version is brewed sweet. Combining the sweetness with the characteristic umami richness of this venerable rice strain makes for a unique and intense-flavoured sake. 3U stands for "undiluted," "unpasteurized," and "unfiltered" junmai.
About the brewery
- Brewery
- Kinoshita Shuzō
- Name in Japanese
- 木下酒造
- Address
- 1512 Kumihamachō Koyama, Kyōtango, Kyōto 629-3442
- Phone
- 0772-82-0071
- Website
The brand name Tamagawa can be translated as "Jewel River." The name is thought to refer to the Kawakamidani River, which flows by the brewery. The character 玉 (tama) means a jewel and has sacred implications in Japan's native Shinto. 川 (kawa or gawa in compound words) means river.
Kinoshita Shuzō is one of the few Japanese breweries with a foreign tōji, Philip Harper. Born in the UK, he graduated from Oxford University. He taught English under the JET programme until he discovered sake. He worked at Umenoyado Sake Brewery for ten years before taking and passing the Nanbu Tōji Association's qualification test in 2001, earning him the title of 'Tōji'. He was the first foreigner to become a toji (and the only one at the time). He then worked at Umenoyado Shuzō, Daimon Shuzō and other breweries before becoming tōji at Kinoshita Shuzō in 2008.
Kinoshita Yoshito gave him full responsibility for everything except following the locally favoured taste of regular sake and daiginjō. He immediately began producing kimoto sake, which does not use brewing lactic acid, and yamahai, which uses only natural yeast from the brewery. In addition to new sake types like 'Icebreaker' and 'Time Machine', Tamagawa's legacy is reflected in the sake he produces.
Along with the new master brewer, the brewery's logo was redesigned with an innovative design by Sakane Katsusuke to symbolise the new Tamagawa. It is now widely known as the 'Marutama mark' (丸玉マーク).