Starting this month, we are kicking off a new blog series, Sake Brewery Spotlight. The series starts off with a delightful dialogue with Miho Imada, a female toji (master brewer) at Imada Brewing Company which is known for its famous Fukucho sake.

Ishikawa Brewing Company offers a sake-tasting tour in English and Japanese, and is close enough to Tokyo that you can take a tour there in half a day!

Not all rice is suitable for brewing sake. Certain types of Japonica rice have special components that are used for brewing sake. The most important property is "shinpaku" which plays an important role in saccharification, the conversion of starch to sugar, and influences the taste and aroma of the final product.

Seika studies "Japanese sake" at Niigata University in Japan, which is located at the center of sake production. She explains the basics of "Rice Polishing Ratio" and how that affects the overall quality of sake.

Sake, Japanese traditional alcoholic drink, is mysterious and complicated. Its flavor can easily change depending on temperature, vessels and food. Though it seems drinkable and smooth, you can get really drunk if you don’t know the proper way to enjoy it.