This is Japan’s oldest sake rice variety. Unlike many other strains of sake rice, Omachi is actually a naturally occurring strain of rice, which was found in the wild in 1859 by a farmer who was returning from a pilgrimage. It is chiefly cultivated in Okayama prefecture, home of the famous Bizen pottery. Omachi is sometimes called a phantom rice as it had fallen out of favor with farmers due to its challenging nature. One of the only reasons it didn’t vanish entirely was that it was used to parent many other rice strains, some of which are considered the most desirable strains for sake making! Omachi is well loved for having earthy, mellow flavor notes with heaps of complexity. This one is a sake rice lover’s rice, leading to a cult following who call themselves the Omachists.
