Description
Since 1877, the family-owned Tosa brewery has made sakes in the picturesque, mountainous region of Tosa Reihoku in the Kochi prefecture. Today, the family’s sixth generation Muneki Matsumoto manages production, in the original 140-year-old brewery building. The ‘KEIGETSU’ range derives from the Japanese term, ‘Keigetsu’ describing the beautiful evening scene created when the moon hangs over nearby Katsurahama shore. It also pays homage to the famous novelist Keigetsu Omachi from the Meiji era (between 1868 and 1912), who loved Japanese sake and travelling.
The KEIGETSU sakes are made from the organically grown, local rice varieties Akitsuho, Gin-no-Yume and Yamadanishiki. Akitsuho is a rare table rice variety grown in only two mountainous regions in Japan. The sake-specific rice variety Gin-no-Yume is a crossing of Hinohikari and Yamadanishiki, specially developed for the Kochi prefecture. Hinohikari is a table rice variety native to Kochi and was traditionally used to brew sake before popular sake-specific rice varieties, such as Yamadanishiki, were developed. Mr Matsumoto believes that his local rice, grown within twelve kilometres of the brewery, is best suited to the Tosa Reihoku region because it thrives on the brewery’s terraced rice paddies at 300 – 600 metres above sea level. Here, the remote location and elevation create a high diurnal range, as well as a completely clean, natural environment, which lends itself well to premium rice farming.
The ‘Nature’ Junmai Daiginjo is made from Gin-no-Yume rice polished to 45%. It is brewed using the oldest sake starter method, Kimoto. This method uses natural lactobacilli and rice pasted by hand. The resulting sake has an elegant, pure nose of expressive stone fruit and white blossom, complemented by a well-balanced palate and long finish. The ‘Nature’ won the Junmai Daiginjo regional Kochi prefecture trophy, at the 2022 International Wine Challenge.
Sake Nature has enticing aromas of beautifully ripe stone fruit and white blossom on the nose. The palate offers well-balanced, pure flavours of juicy pear and peach with an elegant and persistent finish. This sake has excellent ageing potential and pairs perfectly with poached white fish in a creamy sauce, dishes with aromatic Asian spices or miso-based sauces.