APR 26: The Reiwa Rice Crisis

Rice Crisis Comic- PDF version

SUNFLOWER SAKE CLUB - APRIL 2026
THE RICE CRISIS (feat. SEASONAL NAMAZAKE)

When the sake brewing season comes to a close, around March-May for most seasonal breweries, we enter its natural opposite: rice farming season. The agriculture cycle begins anew as weather warms.

I’ve danced around agriculture in past clubs and classes starting May 2023, when I told the story of ikkan-zukuri, seed-to-sake, through the lens of Taka Noble Arrow (here again!) and Izumibashi Megumi Blue. In April 24, we looked at the history and evolution of cool-climate rice, and in December ‘25 we profiled one of our favorite sakes of all time, Daijiro’s As Time Goes By, whose essence is infused with the brewer’s desire to save sake rice farming in Covid. and in January of this year when I looked for the beating heart of Shiga sake, I found it thumping warmly in a story about environmentalism, lakeside farming, and a merchant code of honor.

Having spent my share of time in farms, vineyards, wineries, and sake breweries, I have a special respect for the entire path of production. What I’ve learned working harvest in the Willamette Valley, helping friends in vineyards, managing my own garden at home, is that there’s no shortcut for a deep understanding of the process from start to finish. Winemaking is the last and possibly least important piece of a long puzzle that begins with a farmer and their field. Sake is different– the human element is far more important– but you can’t force a square peg in a round hole, and you can’t force rice to say what it doesn’t want to say, or what it isn’t equipped to say. Does that make sense? So too, you can’t make great food with bad ingredients, but you can very easily make great food with great ingredients. 

The old lesson remains true: don’t bother making caprese salad in winter.

For sake, rice has jumped from key ingredient to existential threat in the last 5-10 years. Climate change, aging farmers, covid demand fluctuations, a weak yen, international trade, conservative and protectionist policies and low consumer demand, are cresting a levee that will force the sake industry to reinvent itself fundamentally to stay above water. The days of buying commodity rice from the Nokyo-- government rice exchange– may soon be over. Interestingly, Japanese rice farmers can look to Japanese wineries to see an example of this path in action.

Sunflower has a lot in store this year but my one resolution for 2026 is to grow my knowledge of rice farming and its relationship to sake. I’d like to make this stereotypically dry subject shine, so I’ll use the best tool I have: silly doodles. As new releases and favorites– Chiyo Shuzo, Moriki Shuzo, Brooklyn Kura, and more! land over the course of 2026, I’ll use these as foils to explain organic farming, methodologies, policy/protectionism, neat blips in history, and my own little rice experiments at home.

First things first, I want to look at the elephant in the room: the last 5 years, or why it’s a small miracle we have these bottles to share in the first place. Both are Spring releases, shipped under the most abysmal global trade/transit conditions since covid, made from rice farmed (in part) by the breweries themselves, and both are glowing examples of what makes Spring namazake great. Thank you for reading (and sipping!) along on this journey.

TAKA “NOBLE ARROW” TOKUBETSU JUNMAI NAMA (SEASONAL LIMITED)

Bright notes of melon, pear and lime leaf greet the nose on this elegant, white wine-like namazake. On the palate, it's a delicate arrangement of banana, kiwi, white strawberry, melon, cucumber, and a  bit of chalky-saltiness. Very smooth, clean, elegant, dry on the finish.

Current brewery president Takahiro Nagayama spent 4 years in the Burgundy cellars of Phillippe Pacalet, convinced that there is common ground between the limestone Chardonnay of Chablis and the limestone-rich water of Yamaguchi. Inspired by the domaine-style approach to winemaking, Taka-san began farming his own rice when he returned to the family brewery. Today, he grows about 30% of his needs with a goal of one day reaching 100%.
The brewery has honed a unique, delicate, high acidity and mineral-rich style of sake that is gorgeous with bistro cuisine and long meals alfresco. To pair, the brewer recommends

"Japanese cuisine and seafood like oysters, or blue-backed fish.The pleasant, citrusy acidity results in a gentle sake that pairs well with most any kind of food. Its crispness can instantly erase the strong, fishy aromas of dishes with oysters or blue-backed fish while it brings out their flavor, and balances both softness and strength."

• Nagayama Honke Shuzojo, 永山本家酒造場 /  Est. 1888 / Brand: Taka Domaine /
• Prefecture: Yamaguchi
• Grade: Tokubetsu Junmai Namazake
• Rice: Hattan Nishiki (kakemai- Hiroshima, grown under a 3-year contract with a specific farmer) & Yamadanishiki (koji- domaine grown rice)
• Polish: 60%
• Starter method: Sokujo
• Yeast: #7 (pasteurized version uses #9)
• Water: medium-hard water from a local spring that runs through ancient limestone deposits
  
  

KIRINZAN “POTARI POTARI GREEN” JUNMAI GINJO NAMA GENSHU (SEASONAL LIMITED)

Vibrant fresh nose with tropical notes of guava, papaya, strawberry and tangerine with an off-dry, smooth, candied hazelnut finish. Jamie Graves made a perfect comparison: this is the Japanese cousin to a Feinherb Mosel Riesling. Laser sharp, great acid and just the right amount of juicy breadth and sweetness. This sake is juicy, aromatic, powerful, classic-- superbly well done!

Founded in 1843, Kirinzan Shuzo lies beneath the majestic Mt. Kirin in the northern prefecture of Niigata. The kirin is a mythical animal like a flying unicorn that brings happiness and luck. Mt. Kirin’s old-growth beech trees and the Tokonami River fed by its runoff provides the perfect filtration system for soft, pristine water: one of the 2 softest waters in our entire shop! This water allows for a long fermentation, thereby creating the delicate, elegant style of sake for which Kirinzan is known.

In order to ensure a consistent supply of the best quality local sake rice, in the summer months Kirinzan’s brewing team works in the local rice fields. The brewery is committed to using 100% local rice (within5 minutes of the brewery!) in order to support the Oku-Aga agricultural community.

• Brewery: Kirinzan Brewery / Est. 1843 / Brand: Kirinzan / Prefecture: Niigata
• Grade: Junmai Ginjo Nama Genshu
• Rice: Gohyakumangoku (farmed by the brewers in tandem with locals)
• Polish: 55%
• Starter method: Sokujo
• Yeast: House
• Water: very soft (Tokonami well water)
• Other: Genshu at ABV 17%. Serve chilled!