“Yoemon” Kawamura Brewery
It’s pronounced like this ( Yo-E-mon), and it’s from Iwate prefecture. I did a piece on this prefecture and another sake here
The brewery, like most sake breweries, has been around for centuries. The unique feature about this sake is the rice. It’s called “Awa Yamadanishi” from Tokushima prefecture, which is located on the island of Shikoku. The capital of this island is called Tokushima, home of the famous festival called Awa-Odori.
For those of you not familiar with sake rice, Yamadanishiki rice is one of the highest grade rice grains you can use for brewing sake. Yamadanishiki rice is grown in many parts of Japan. The milling rate for the sake I am drinking now, Yoemon, is at 70%, which makes it a Junmai. Table rice, the stuff you eat at home, is milled away at 10%, so minus all the vitamins and fiber, which are actually quite bad for a sake.
Iwate Prefecture is located way up in the northern part of Japan, on the main island of Honshu where the winter’s are extremely cold, and is where this sake was finally made. Colder climates tend to help when producing sake with lighter flavor characteristics. Another neat thing about this sake is that it’s an unfiltered type, or not charcoal filtered at the end of the brewing process ( muroka). It’s a nama or draft style sake which means the flavor profiles will be well defined and a bit strong. For those who like sake that has a lot of character and taste then this one could be a good choice, or at least worth a taste.
The classification is called a Junmai, so the full name should read “ Junmai Muroka Nama.” The SMV is plus 5.5 and the acid is 1.6. The alc. is 17%.
Two people will be drinking this sake: Me and my special mom, if you know what I mean.
Me: Faint smell of some distant and lovely flower. I can catch faint notes of grapefruit. The taste is a bit gassy. Muroka type sake will sometimes produce bubbles since it’s usually taken straight from the tank and not transferred. This is not a production flaw, but by design. A beautiful design I might add. In time the bubbles/carbon will subside. The consistency is similar to soda water at first, but then the flavors come bursting through it and giving it a fruity soft texture. It’s a bit dry, which I like and has a clean after-taste.
Special Mom:
She) rice smell and the taste is like yeast with a bit of sourness at the beginning, like a bit of fermented rice. She also said that it had a deeper and more mature flavor than a lot of sake she’s drank this year.
Iwate born Jukujo named Saya.
The silver locket around her neck and black sweater do it for me. A true woman of the north.
Followed by Chirashi Zushi, a type of seafood on vinegar rice. This was a perfect combination with this sake. I made everything from scratch and it only took me five minutes to whip it up. The key is to make the rice very hot first and then place the fish.
This is the Soul of Japan.
The brewery, like most sake breweries, has been around for centuries. The unique feature about this sake is the rice. It’s called “Awa Yamadanishi” from Tokushima prefecture, which is located on the island of Shikoku. The capital of this island is called Tokushima, home of the famous festival called Awa-Odori.
For those of you not familiar with sake rice, Yamadanishiki rice is one of the highest grade rice grains you can use for brewing sake. Yamadanishiki rice is grown in many parts of Japan. The milling rate for the sake I am drinking now, Yoemon, is at 70%, which makes it a Junmai. Table rice, the stuff you eat at home, is milled away at 10%, so minus all the vitamins and fiber, which are actually quite bad for a sake.
Iwate Prefecture is located way up in the northern part of Japan, on the main island of Honshu where the winter’s are extremely cold, and is where this sake was finally made. Colder climates tend to help when producing sake with lighter flavor characteristics. Another neat thing about this sake is that it’s an unfiltered type, or not charcoal filtered at the end of the brewing process ( muroka). It’s a nama or draft style sake which means the flavor profiles will be well defined and a bit strong. For those who like sake that has a lot of character and taste then this one could be a good choice, or at least worth a taste.
The classification is called a Junmai, so the full name should read “ Junmai Muroka Nama.” The SMV is plus 5.5 and the acid is 1.6. The alc. is 17%.
Two people will be drinking this sake: Me and my special mom, if you know what I mean.
Me: Faint smell of some distant and lovely flower. I can catch faint notes of grapefruit. The taste is a bit gassy. Muroka type sake will sometimes produce bubbles since it’s usually taken straight from the tank and not transferred. This is not a production flaw, but by design. A beautiful design I might add. In time the bubbles/carbon will subside. The consistency is similar to soda water at first, but then the flavors come bursting through it and giving it a fruity soft texture. It’s a bit dry, which I like and has a clean after-taste.
Special Mom:
She) rice smell and the taste is like yeast with a bit of sourness at the beginning, like a bit of fermented rice. She also said that it had a deeper and more mature flavor than a lot of sake she’s drank this year.
Iwate born Jukujo named Saya.
The silver locket around her neck and black sweater do it for me. A true woman of the north.
Followed by Chirashi Zushi, a type of seafood on vinegar rice. This was a perfect combination with this sake. I made everything from scratch and it only took me five minutes to whip it up. The key is to make the rice very hot first and then place the fish.
This is the Soul of Japan.
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