Brand Story

history

Pursuing the ideal sake along with two hundred years of tradition

The Yokosuka area of Kakegawa City, close to the Enshu Nada. The castle town of Yokosuka Castle built by Tokugawa Ieyasu has been around for about 300 years, in his 20s, and is an old street with old merchants and streetscapes still remaining.
Going back to this history, we find that the Yamanaka family, an Omi merchant, started a sake brewery in today's Fujinomiya city during the Bunsei era. They set up a sect in the area around Fuji, and then set up a sect in Yokosuka, seeking good water with plenty of water. In the early Showa era, the current Enshu Yamanaka Sake Brewery, which was a branch, became independent, and they began to pursue their ideal sake brewing in this Yokosuka brewery. The building dates to 7th year of Ansei. It is a wooden storehouse that retains pillars and beams from the end of the Edo period, but it also has a three-story workshop. Brewing tanks lined up on the first floor, with scaffolding for work being installed around them like the mezzanine floor, and on the floor equivalent to the third floor, there are koji rooms, a cooling room, and sake bar rooms. The structure is designed to take into consideration the ease of work in the order of sake brewing processes. There is no other wooden building with such a high ceiling.

 

 

Origin of the sake name

The sake that takes over the world and brings peace to life

Yokosuka Castle, which Tokugawa Ieyasu ordered his vassal, Osuga Yasutaka, to build the castle in response to the western advancement of Takeda's army, and the area, became Enshu's bases as Ieyasu achieved unification of the country. After that, it became the country of Tokugawa, and a peaceful world would last for 300 years.
Due to this historical fact, the previous generations of Enshu Yamanaka Sake Brewery were named "Aoi Tenka" after the family crest of the Tokugawa family. In the mid-1980s, a young master brewer entered the storehouse. With his high ambition and skill, he was able to bring out the "Aoi Tenka" stock, with the desire to "ensure that he can win the world." Without waiting for time, Aoi Tenka won the National Gold Award, and from there it was awarded the gold award for the third consecutive year.
From a world of war to a world of peace. The name "Aoi Tenka" is a source of joy and desire for a peaceful world where you can enjoy delicious sake gently.

 

 

Commitment to water

Beautiful water that you can be proud of as the best in the world

Water is also known as the life of alcohol. Here, Yokosuka Enshu is blessed with such good waters that you'd want to call it the best in the world. Its origin is the Akaishi Mountains of the Southern Alps. It is said that the rain and melting snow that have soaked underground will take 200 years to travel long distances to the Enshu Nada coastline. The slowly polished underground water is pumped into the brewery from 120 meters underground.
Not only is its ultra-soft water suitable for sake brewing, but its abundant water content is particularly noteworthy. It provides 260 liters of pure water per minute, and is used not only as a prep water, but also for washing rice, which requires a large amount of water. In the past, glass manufacturers that checked the water quality and water level of this brewery decided to enter the area, and other breweries sometimes came to ask for water to be separated.
The advantage is great that water can be pumped inside the storehouse and used as is. This is because it prevents deterioration in water quality and changes in water temperature due to transportation and storage. When the water temperature varies, it even affects the way water is absorbed during washing rice. The abundant and refined groundwater is maintained at 16°C all year round regardless of temperature. This is where the origin of Aoi Tenka's flavor and quality.

 

 

Commitment to sake brewing

Conviction to continue to seek quality over quantity

"I don't know what good sake, I still don't know," he said, and inherited the desire of his previous generations for pursuing delicious sake brewing, and brewer Yamanaka Hisanori is working on sake brewing that spares no effort.
For example, steamed rice. Recently, there have been an increase in the number of sake breweries that use mechanical steam, but Yamanaka is particular about steaming using traditional Japanese kama. This is because the heat strength and transmission method are ideal, and the subtle amount of steaming can be controlled. Conversely, this is a technique that shows the maker's skill level after steaming.
There is a commitment that has been passed down in the squeezing process. Instead of an automatic press, it is a tank squeeze using an old tank -- a sake bag containing moromi is laid out into the tank and pressure is applied from above. Of course, it takes time, but the gentle squeeze is gentle and stress-free, and this will definitely lead to a clean, clean sake with no impurities. Furthermore, when squeezed, it is likely to give off a bitter and astringent flavor, so it is not to be squeezed as much as possible. In some cases, pressure is applied only once to extract only the best quality parts.
In particular, "Aoi Tenka Tobiraki" uses bag hanging. This is a technique in which a sake bag containing soy sauce is hanged and squeezed using only gravity. The time and effort will increase dramatically, and the amount of squeezed will be reduced, but the pursuit of the ideal sake with a more natural construction.
Don't mischievously pursue efficiency. Sometimes they don't care about profitability. I'll continue to use old or good things. The only thing that supports sake brewing is that it has a stubborn desire to deliver good sake. And this commitment is not just about inheriting tradition. For example, without simply riding on the Junmai Daiginjo trend, we are pursuing new flavors in various rice polishing ratios and Honjozo. Or, exploring a fresh marriage with Western cuisine. Looking at the possibilities and future of sake, Yamanaka continues to take on the challenge today in search of the answer to "good sake."

 

 

Taste

A flavour that makes you want to drink again after finishing your drink

Yamanaka describes it as "confining the aroma inside the sake." Instead of a post-additional scent that quickly flies away, it fills the original scent of sake into each drop with a delicate technique. The fragrance is full of excitement the moment you pour it in. As you drink it, the fragrance in your mouth spreads softly, and the lingering aftertaste will invite you to the next drink. A refreshing sweetness. A deep, wide, refreshing feeling that penetrates. Its refreshing taste is easy to pair with a variety of appetizers, whether cold or hot, but the bittersweetness of raw sardines and spicy sansho peppers bring out the nuances of each other.
This is an honor to win the National New Sake Tasting Review for nine consecutive years since 2001. Would you like to enjoy it quietly? Sharing the deliciousness with friends and family? Aoi Tenka is a pure sake that brings peace to the world.