Brewing experience “Trivia”

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  The special brewer`s rice comes wrapped in yellow husk upon being harvested from the rice paddy. This sake rice with the husk is called “momi”. In comparison to regular rice, the specialised rice for sake is characterised by a larger kernel, full of starch perfect for sake brewing. This feature allows much easier absorption of water and better growth for the “Koji” brewing yeast. The yellow husk of the “momi” is removed in a process called hulling or “momi-suri”, to be presented as brown rice or “genmai”. Surrounding the brown rice is bran which needs to be removed by polishing the surface in a process called “seimai”. The resulting clean white grain is simply called “white-rice”, or “hakumai”. The amount of polishing or milling is very important, as it greatly influences the taste and strength of the sake. For the grade called “Daiginjo-shu”, the rice is polished to have only 50% of the grain remaining while “Ginjo-shu” is polished to have 60% or more remaining.

  Here at Mitoyotsuru-TOJI, experience firsthand the journey of brewing sake, starting from being the freshly harvested rice. Leave your home rice paddy, step out of the husk and whatever you are wearing to ready yourself for a polish (swimwear = gin-jo, au naturel = daiginjo).

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  There is still some powder and fine dirt remaining on the surface after the polishing process. The next step is to wash the rice thoroughly called “senmai”, or washing rice. This is vital to making a truly delicious sake. After washing the rice, it is important to let it soak in water. The optimal soaking time depends on each variety of rice used and degree of polishing to ensure that the water is absorbed to the core. Once fully soaked, the rice can continue on to the next stage of steaming.

  Now that you are the rice, make sure to wash yourself thoroughly in preparation for a successful and relaxing brew-bath to come next.

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  Once the sake rice has absorbed enough water, it is then heated and steamed in a process called “mushimai”. This step not only sterilises the rice, but also changes the starch into paste serving as a perfect environment for the Koji brewing-yeast to grow. All the next steps of growing the Koji, making seed mash or “mother of sake” and creating the main mash depends on this steaming.

  Enjoy the steaming process by taking a bath in our authentic sake brewing tub, or lying down in the “neyu” onsen-style bath. Make sure to not oversteam yourself (there’s still more to come!). When you are heated to perfection, it’s time to start the fermentation process called “hakkou”

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  Finally, the fermentation or “hakkou” can begin! The next three steps are said to be the most important in sake brewing: Ichi-koji; Ni-moto; and San-zukuri.

  • Ichi-koji = Step1 Koji Fermentation

    Ichi-koji is where the fermentation begins, known in Japanese as “seigiku”. At this stage the earlier prepared steamed rice is sprinkled with dry Koji brewing-yeast. The temperature and humidity are carefully controlled to allow the yeast to “activate” and grow at an optimal rate. The slightest changes in these conditions can have a significant effect on the sake produced.

  • Ni-moto = Step 2 Mother of sake

    Ni-moto is the creation of the “mother of sake”, the main ingredient of sake brewing. In a small tank (usually about 700 liters), the pure Mitoyo water, rice malt, lactic acid (for healthy yeast growth), and the steamed rice with activated yeast are all mixed together to create the “mother of sake”.

  • San-zukuri = Step 3 Unrefined sake

    San-zukuri is the third and final stage which produces unrefined sake. The products of the previous steps (alcohol, Koji, steamed rice, and water) are then divided evenly into 3 separate tanks. At this point extra water is usually added as the mash in each tank is left to ferment further.

  Consider this bath powder containing actual sake lees (Daiginjo sake kasu) to serve as your Koji, or fermentation ingredient. Go ahead, put some in the warm bath and dissolve it using the sake paddle or “kaibou”. It’s time to jump in and brew yourself!

  The water used in the bath here at Mitoyotsuru comes from the same water source originally used by the brewery (groundwater from the Shiun’ide Mountains famous for the scenic cherry blossoms). While groundwater near the beach usually has a high salt content, here at Mitoyotsuru there is an abundance of pure and clean water. It is said that because of this pristine water, Mitoyotsuru began as the best place to make sake years ago.

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  Having gone through the various steps (a long day of work!), we have everything needed to create a delicious sake. It usually takes a few extra days of fermentation before we are ready to continue. Using a special sake press, the mash is then squeezed to separate the liquid sake and the solid in a process called “jousou” . The sake is then filtered to remove any remaining fine rice particles and yeast and pasturized. Now the sake is clear, clean, and ready for storage and ageing. (Usually, sake is stored for roughly two months before it can be considered ready for ageing.) Ageing can take anywhere between 6 months to a year. As the sake ages, the flavour will change and develop into something completely different from that of the freshly pressed sake.

  So how was your experience of sake-brewing? Take a moment to reflect on your day, and sleep on it to develop and mature like any good sake should. No doubt when you wake in the morning, you will have certainly brewed a new you.

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