About the brewery : Sakemochida Honten is a small family brewery that has been producing traditional sake for over 140 years in Izumo, Shimane Prefecture. Izumo has been deeply involved in sake-making since ancient times, and is considered by many to be the birthplace of Nihonshu. Legend has it that all the gods - and there are eight million of them in Shintoism - gather at the Izumo Matsuo shrine for a feast lasting 180 days. The street where the Sakemochida Honten is located is called "Kitano Kaido", a classic district where you can still admire the old wooden buildings, a must-see.

Detailed tasting notes : Produced from rice grown in Shimane, it's the rate and method of polishing that are interesting. Only 90%, and the work is carried out directly by the toji himself, using a household seimai machine used for consumer rice! A technique that may seem too traditional for a sake made available to the public, but that's without taking into account the level of perfection achieved by Sakemochida Honten's toji. A perfect mastery of the material for a unique result: a sake where the fruity aromas of banana blend with the cereal and flavour of rice. And precisely because the rice is unpolished, the sake is smooth and rich. Mastery brings the rest, a balance between acidity and umami for this exquisite, complex sake with surprising freshness.

Serving suggestions : A thirst-quenching sake, ideal with izakya, smoked and dried fish, sake no sakana. Also great with generous family-style dishes.