Rice and water. Koji and yeast.
Complex, beautiful relationships.

Sake is made from four fundamental ingredients: rice, water, koji (rice malt), and yeast. Within the brewery’s koji-making room, the action of koji spores transforms steamed rice into koji through saccharification. Throughout this process, the amount of water in the steamed rice is key to determining the quality of the finished rice malt.

Then, more steamed rice, together with the koji and water are transferred to the fermentation tank. Further saccharification as well as alcoholic fermentation by yeast now take place in parallel, the composition of the unrefined sake always changing. Accordingly, each day, we analyse the composition of our unrefined sake must. We use all five senses to check its taste and flavour, enabling us to control the action of our koji and yeast.

Such a parallel fermentation process produces a rich and complex taste and aroma that cannot be achieved with rice alone. Indeed, it is the equilibrium of the various components that determines the quality of the flavour, most of all the water. This is one reason why Zaku is brewed in relatively small tanks, allowing us to be nimble as we craft our sake. We strive to be as consistent as possible, knowing that each year will provide different challenges, whether that be the weather outside or the character of our rice in a given harvest.

Achieving the delicate balance needed to brew our ideal sake therefore lies in our everyday work. Whether is it preparing for the day ahead, cleaning up after each task, or handling our tools with care, it is this attention to detail that holds the secret to brewing good sake.