Katori - 90 - 19.85%
Terada Honke is located in Katori District, Chiba, Japan . Keisuke Terada , 23rd generation owner, joined the business at 25 when he married the daughter of this long-established sake brewery. He focuses on business transformation by seeking more productivity, operational efficiency and profitability through cost reduction. However, all of these efforts failed to materialize the transformation he hoped to achieve, as the Japanese sake market continued to shrink, putting the company in jeopardy. Keisuke realized that his approaches to transforming the business were derailing the course of nature and disrupting the delicate balance maintained by microorganisms in the brewery. This realization served as the driving force for him to return to the basic philosophy of brewing authentic sake as the "best of all medicines". From the moment Keisuke embarked on this new journey three decades ago, Terada Honke has redefined itself as a brewery that pursues the potential of fermentation and its effects on natural sake brewing in collaboration with all micro -organizations that lend a hand to this powerful process guided by nature.
Koji mold spores sprinkled on the steamed rice begin to work on the mycelial development, which becomes apparent to the naked eye in just about 20 hours. The mold begins to emit fermentation heat and accelerates the transformation of the molecular structure of rice. The process of making kimoto begins with the ritual of brewers singing traditional motosuri songs in unison. By heating moromi daily with a keg of hot water, microorganisms in the water or air, such as nitrate-reducing bacteria Leuconostoc mesenteroides and sake Lactobacillus, create an environment conducive to promotion of fermentation. Over the next two to three weeks, the yeasts inhabiting the brewery begin to settle in the moromi in order to convert the sugar into alcohol, releasing gas which causes bubbles to froth on the surface.
Pesticide-free rice is 10% polished. Katori 90 is a natural sake, without added yeast or lactic acid.
