KIKU MASAMUNE SHUZO

Established by the Kano family in 1659 in Mikage, Kobe (the Nada region), today Kiku-Masamune's classic and dry flavor lives on in their sake brewers, who are well-regarded as experts in Kimoto brewing and taru sake production. Their mission to preserve the cultural heritage of Japan through sake extends all the way from producing Kimoto sake with the same techniques as they did in the Edo period, to opening their own on site "Meister Factory" cooperage for the production of cedar barrels, and preserving generations of sake brewing equipment in a magnificent sake brewing museum.  

Their history is steeped in the image of "Dry Sake One Enjoys With A Meal", and to that end Kiku-Masamune utilizes their multiple brewing facilities across Japan to create the ideal sake that one will never tire of drinking.

Dry Sake from Kimoto Method

The smooth, dry character of Kiku-Masamune's sake is a result of the authentic Kimoto method of brewing. This meticulous technique, which represents the very foundation of sake-brewing, involves an ancient method for creating moto (shubo), the yeast starter mash that ultimately ferments water, rice, and malted rice (koji) into alcohol. However, because this process takes about four weeks to finish—requiring roughly twice the time and effort of the standard method—and demands a highly challenging technique to maintain stability and consistency, only a small number of Japan's more than 1,000 sake breweries use it. Most breweries instead use the "quick fermentation" method (sokujo-moto), which involves adding commercially available lactic acid and cultivated yeast, producing results in just over two weeks. Despite this, the traditional Kimoto method, handed down through generations of master brewers, is gaining renewed interest.