Sake varieties are also distinguished by brewing method.

Namazake 　生酒
Sake that is not heated for pasteurization after the final mash is pressed. It is characterized by a light, fresh flavor.

Genshu 　原酒
Sake with a higher alcohol content because it has been pressed but not diluted with added water. It has a deep, rich flavor and an alcohol content of from 17% to 20%.

Koshu (Aged sake) 　古酒
Sake that has been aged for a couple of years, or for upwards of five years or longer. It has a bouquet like sherry, with a flavor profile that includes spices and nuts.

Taruzake (Cask sake) 　樽酒
Sake that is aged in casks and thus takes on the fragrance of the wood from which the cask is made.

Nigorizake 　にごり酒
Sake that is milky white, since the mash is only lightly filtered using a coarse-textured cloth.

Sparkling sake 　発泡酒
Carbonated sake, with a mouth feel reminiscent of champagne

Kimoto 生酛
It is the traditionally orthodox method for brewing sake which has been in use for at least 300 years, though very rare today. The mash is hand beaten, all day long, for four weeks or more, and made into a paste which then ferments. It tends to be tight, layered and rich taste.

Yamahai 山廃
It is a traditional method of brewing Sake introduced in the early 1900’s, where the starter or “moto” is left for a month to allow it to sour. It is carefully controlled the water level, temperature and humidity. The method was originally developed to speed production time, however, now it is used to impart a higher acidity and complex flavors.
Kimoto and Yamahai are much troublesome types of Sake.

The Sake Brewing Process

Ingredients

• The primary ingredients in sake are rice, water, and rice koji. Sake is a fermented beverage brewed using a microorganism called koji and yeast.
• It has an alcohol content of from about 13% to 16%.
• Japanese rice can generally be divided into two types: table rice that is eaten, and sake rice that is used exclusively for sake brewing.
• The rice varieties used in sake are the large-grain, soft varieties with a low protein content. They are more expensive because they are cultivated using more complicated methods.
• The quality of the water used in brewing sake is also important. Brewers take advantage of the various kinds of natural water available in Japan to make excellent sake.

Brewing Sake

• Sake is made by fermentation just like wine and beer, but it involves a more complex brewing process.
• Wine is naturally fermented by pressing grapes and adding yeast. Sake, however, is not fermented by adding yeast to rice, but through the use of koji, which converts the starch in the rice into sugar. The rice begins fermenting once the yeast is added to this sugar. Because the saccharification and fermentation processes occur in parallel in the same container, the process is called “multiple parallel fermentation.”

Sake

Wine

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