Here we are! It’s that time of year again when we all stop what we’re doing, forget about all the worries of the world and anything else we may have going on in our life and shift our focus to World Sake Day.
October 1 is the official day of sake and we trust all of our SIN readers will be celebrating accordingly. Usually at this time of the year we like to give a shout out to the brewers who put in all the hard work to make this beverage we all love, but let’s also give ourselves a pat on the back. We’re all out there, putting on events, showing up to events, telling our friends about sake and doing the most we can to promote the sake industry. And the industry needs more people like you.
As we’ve said before, we needn’t convert everyone into a complete sakephile, we just need more people to try sake and to enjoy sake. There could be no better day to put a glass of sake in someone’s hand, so enjoy World Sake Day however you see fit and keep doing what you’re doing.
Kampai!
And now for the news…
Hyogo- Back in SIN#159, we reported on the goings on at Oimatsu Shuzō in Shisō City, Hyogo Prefecture where it appeared the brewery was going through some transitions. It seems the brewery was unsuccessful in finding a replacement tōji after its previous leader left, forcing the brewery to halt production last year.
Now, the brewery is preparing to resume sake production under the unlikely leadership of a local former high-school mathematics teacher. At the tender age of 39, Takayuki Maeno left the education game to become not only the new toji, but new CEO of Oimatsu Shuzō, despite having no previous brewing experience.
In a warming example of local cooperation, neighbouring brewery, Sanyohai Shuzō, maker of Banshu Ikkon, has been training Maeno and one of his former students – who has joined Maeno in this new chapter – in hands-on sake production. Under the new management, Oimatsu Shuzō is now aiming for its first pressing in November, with the collaboration helping preserve one of Shisō’s two remaining sake breweries.
JG: This, in all honesty, looks like a challenge. But I am sure there are a lot of people cheering Maeno on, and he has a great mentor in Sanyohai Shuzō. I hope it turns into a success story, and let us all do our part: if you see their sake, buy it.
老松酒造
Niigata- Adding to a number of recent collaborations with Taiwan, three Niigata breweries are collaborating on a project to produce sake in Japan using Taiwanese-grown sake rice for export back to Taiwan.
The initiative was launched by Yilan County, a major rice-producing region, as Taiwan looks for new ways to support farmers amid declining domestic rice consumption and growing sake imports. Tokamachi’s Matsunoi Shuzōjo is among the participating breweries, with the three producers expected to produce 5000 720ml bottles. The project was facilitated by the Tokamachi City Sports Commission, which had developed ties with Taiwan through ski training programmes. The finished sake will be exported to Taiwan and sold through supermarkets and other retailers, creating a unique Japan-Taiwan supply chain, linking Taiwanese agriculture with Niigata brewing expertise.
Source – Yahoo News
JG: This looks like a complicated project, but it is nice to see sports and international cooperation taking place with sake as the vehicle.
松乃井酒造場
