Tatenokawa Brewery has launched its first Japanese sake under the new project "SAKERISE," named "Gyoko" (暁光), available on its official online shop.

"SAKERISE" is a project dedicated to creating a new era for Japanese sake and discovering new value. Tatenokawa Brewery initiated this project in response to a survey conducted in December 2021 among 10,000 people nationwide, which revealed that approximately 70% had not drunk sake in over a year or had never tried it. Driven by the desire to "become a beacon of hope for Japanese sake" to preserve and pass on this culture, the project was launched.

The inaugural sake, "Gyoko," evokes the hopeful light of dawn, heralding the start of a new day. Its "red" bottle is inspired by the vibrant colors of the sky just before the sun rises.

Brewed with the pure, cold waters and crisp air flowing from the Ou Mountains, the sake uses the rice variety "Yuki-onna." The rice is meticulously polished over approximately two weeks, focusing on bringing out the best qualities of Yuki-onna. The brewers carefully control the temperature, adjusting it to within 0.1°C increments. The resulting sake fully expresses Yuki-onna's characteristics, offering a "gentle, refined" profile with an unprecedented "pleasant aftertaste."

This is a sake that Tatenokawa Brewery, with over a decade of specialization in "Junmai Daiginjo" and a recent focus on brewing with a polishing ratio below 20%, could uniquely achieve.

The raw rice for "Gyoko," Yuki-onna, is ideally suited for "Daiginjo sake" due to its characteristics, yielding a clean and elegant sake. By combining the distinct qualities of Yuki-onna and highly polished sake, the brewing process was designed to create a sake profile intended for enjoyment in a wine glass.

The allure of "Gyoko" lies in its exquisitely delicate and gentle flavor, complemented by a beautifully sustained aftertaste. To fully appreciate this, it is recommended to first savor the "aftertaste" of "Gyoko" on its own in a wine glass, and then enjoy its evolving flavors as it pairs with food and its temperature changes.

Furthermore, in a first for the sake industry, an "Rice Cultivation Indicator" is presented. This indicator denotes the area of rice paddy required to brew one bottle of sake, signifying the size of the farmland preserved through the purchase of the product. This indicator is not solely determined by the rice polishing ratio (the remaining percentage after polishing) but also fluctuates based on the sake rice variety, cultivation methods, rice farmers, brewing year, and brewing techniques.

"Gyoko" uses enough rice to correspond to 3.90m² of paddy field per bottle. In other words, drinking "Gyoko" helps protect 2.36 tatami mats' worth of farmland. The raw rice for "Gyoko," Yuki-onna, is specially cultivated using reduced pesticides and chemical fertilizers in collaboration with contract farmers. By increasing this type of cultivation, the brewery aims to reduce environmental impact and contribute to sustainable, eco-friendly agriculture in the Shonai region alongside its farming partners.

As an early purchase bonus, one original SAKERISE logo glass (manufactured by ZWIESEL GLAS / gift boxed) will be presented with each purchase of "Gyoko." This is a limited quantity offer, so don't miss out.