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When it comes to Japanese alcoholic drinks, the first one that probably
comes to mind is Sake, right?Japanese sake has a history of more than 1,000 years and has been produced vigorously as the traditional liquor. In Japan there are many breweries offering a variety of brands. There are also several local breweries here in Hitachi. So we visited one of them, Morishima Brewery, to get information about the production and features of sake. Japanese sake is produced in about 40 days by extracting the unrefined sake “moromi”which is generated in the middle process of fermentation with raw materials of rice, fresh water and malted rice. The key points for good taste are rice cleaning, good malted rice and adequate storage time. They say that higher grade sake are produced under the condition of low temperature and a long period of storage because these conditions give the sake a brighter and more fruitful smell and consequently a more elegant taste. Morishima Brewery serves three brands of rich and dry “Taikan-ginjo”,“Taikan-junmaidaiginjo” and “Taikan-hakushaseisho” based on the “Taikan” which was named after the Japanese artist Yokoyama Taikan who was active between 1868~1958 and contributed in creating a prosperous base for Japanese art. The brand name of“Taikan” was born by through the wishes of the third president, Morishima Koichiro, who acquired Yokoyama Taikan’s approval for using his name for this product. Now, we can’t forget “Toji”.Toji is the chief brewer, an expert in brewing who is responsible for controlling all conditions that ultimately decide the quality and taste of sake. Meanwhile, let’s think of the good effects and merits of sake. Japanese sake is used widely because it is said to have the effect of making the skin beautiful, of inducing perspiration and keeping the body free of bacteria, as well as causing drunkenness. Furthermore, it removes the odor of fish etc. and its affinity with raw fresh foods makes Japanese sake one of the best partners for Japanese cooking. They say the best time  to drink
and consume sake is six months after pressing and the higher grade sakes
should be preserved for 5~10 years at temperature of between 5~10℃, and
but it is generally most desirable to consume within about two years. Recently the popularity for Japanese sake has been decreasing and all of the breweries share the belief that they want to raise the quality of sake in response to customer’s demands and succeed in improving the taste of sake so that it will remain Japan’s natural drink for future generations. They aim to do this by improving the three key points of ① rice cleaning, ② good malted rice and ③ adequate storage time. We recommend you to visit a brewery and see what Japanese sake is all about by yourself. |
| Note：Morishima brewery：Visit is based on 10 persons under reservation. Address 〒319-1411 17-7 1-Chome, Tajiri-cho, Hitachi-shi, Ibaraki Prefecture Phone 0294-43-5334 E-mail taikan@sky.hidecnet.ne.jp URL http://www.hidecnet.ne.jp/~taikan/ |