
- Brewery: Kuromatsu Senjo
- Location: Ina City, Southern Nagano prefecture
- Water: Spring water pulled from 60 meter deep wells, fed by snow melt from the locally famous Mt. Senjo.
- Rice: Hitogokochi grown locally in Nagano
- Polishing: 40%
- Grade: Junmai Daiginjo
- Yeast: 1801
- Starter: Sokujo
For intentional food pairing, think winter food and mountain food, particularly pickles, preserved items, and dishes with significant sweetness. Pork chops with a dried fruit and mustard sauce, duck with mango chutney, roasted acorn squash with dried cherry chutney and roasted hazelnuts. Regional specialties in Ina City and Nagano include sansai: mountain vegetables, often pickled, cooked with mirin, soy and dashi, or fried as tempura; oyaki: wheat pancakes stuffed with leafy greens or anko , anything and everything miso (Nagano produces half of the nation’s miso), yakiniku (grilled meat), soba, sweet-salty crickets and other crunchy bugs as drinking snacks, and a dish more or less exclusive to Ina City: romen, which is like a soupy yakisoba made with mutton. A bit powerful and gamey, but great with sake.