Daisekkei Karakuchi Usunigori Nama
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Fizzy at first (open carefully, well chilled!) this usunigori-- a light nigori, in this case, just a bare haze-- from Daisekkei undergoes a really fun curve over the course of a week. As I've grown to expect from Daisekkei, notes of soft vanilla frosting, lemon meringue, sweet Summer corn pudding and Mexican wedding cookies round out a soft yet flavorsome profile. The palate begins on day one with lots of CO2 trapped in the bottle, giving it a zingy lemony edge and sharp mineral brightness, with deep bass notes of vanilla and meringue. After a few days, once the CO2 has fizzled out, you land on a profile with considerable richness and a longer than average finish, just a tiny bit of powdery texture from the rice particulate.Ā
This fizzy, lively usunigori should be icey cold and opened carefully to prevent overflow. A tiny amount of ricey sediment (just a bare haze really) allows a secondary fermentation to take place in the bottle, giving it fizz. Daisekkei uses all-local ingredients including my favorite rice, Miyamanishiki, and a blend of their own house yeast + the classic strong fermenter #701. As the effervescence airs off, notes of 7-UP, muscat, & herbaceous brightness give way to rich, deep earthy notes of raw pumpkin, corn pudding, & steamed rice after 5-10 days open.
āI devote my life to making sake and always think about sake first. I personally control every aspect of the brewing to ensure the whole process runs happily.Ā Our brewing policy isĀ to do nothing special, but be honest and sincere.ā
-Toji Mamoru Nagase
Brewery: Daisekkei Shuzo ( 大éŖęø)
Location: Azumino, Nagano
Grade: Tokubetsu Junmai Nama Usunigori
Rice: Miyamanishiki (Nagano)
Polishing: 59%
Prefecture: Nagano
Yeast: Proprietary & #701
SMV: +0
Located beneath the silver ridges of the Northern Alps, in the vast grain belt of Azumino with its abundant spring water, our sake has long been popular under the brands "Kikyo Masamune" and "Seikozakura". At that time, the company was called "Ikeda Brewery Limited Partnership Company",Ā but after the war (1949), the name was changed to "Daisekkei". In 1953, our sake won the top prize at Japan's National New Sake Tasting Competition, and was also selected as a gift sake for the Imperial Family. The master brewer at the time, Hanaoka Jukanji, received the Yellow Ribbon Medal in 1966.
The brand name "Daisekkei" was chosen in honor of the magnificent scenery of Mt. Shirouma, where one of the three largest snowfields in Japan is located. Our standard products, "Josen" and "Kuradashi", feature aerial photographs of this magnificent natural scenery. The calligraphy style was created by Oka Fumoto, an Araragi school poet with ties to our brewery. Oka Fumoto was a disciple of Masaoka Shiki and the teacher of our company's previous president, Usui Kazuo. The calligraphy style for "Daisekkei" was written by Oka at the Usui family home, where he passed away.
This sake is labeled karakuchi (dry taste) by the brewery and indeed drinks on the drier side, particularly in the first 1-3 days. Pretty melon-muscat notes are like treble while a deep ricey-umami-vegetal quality forms a bass that emerges with
time. I really enjoyed this with tempura, as the vegetal notes in the sake itself were set off by kabocha, okra, and corn fritters, and that light, crispy dry finish was most welcome.
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