By YOSHINOBU MATSUNAGA/ Staff Writer
January 20, 2021 at 07:00 JST
KAKAMIGAHARA, Gifu Prefecture--A brand of sake targeted at health-conscious imbibers that smells like butter has made a splash with French connoisseurs, capturing a prize in its debut at the prestigious 2020 Kura Master contest.
Hyakujuro Yamahai, brewed with lactic acid bacteria, picked up the Platinum Medal award in the “junmai-shu” (pure rice sake) category at the annual competition in France.
The sake, produced by Hayashi Honten Co., is characterized by its thick flavor combining savory “umami” and sour tastes.
“I’m pleased to receive the award for a sake that can be bought by anyone anywhere,” said Rieko Hayashi, president of the brewery. “I think the fact that it goes well with food helped it win the recognition.”
To make Hyakujuro, sake pressed from “moromi” (sake mash) is aged for three years and fermented with lactic acid bacteria using a method the brewery patented in 2019.
Kura Master was first held in 2017 as a sake show organized by French sake lovers for their compatriots. Sommeliers from the country’s top five-star hotels, as well as chefs from Michelin-starred restaurants, serve as jurors to sample sake in blind taste tests.
A total of 824 brands submitted from Japan and elsewhere were entered in the contest’s 2020 edition. Eighty-four brands were selected for the Platinum Medal award.
“I wanted to know how it would be accepted by local people in order to promote additive-free sake outside Japan,” Hayashi said.
Hyakujuro has been marketed overseas. The sake has been approved as a health-conscious sake under the Japan Brand Development Assistance Program run by the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry.
A single 720-milliliter bottle of Hyakujuro sells for 1,450 yen ($14) at supermarkets in the prefecture and elsewhere.
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Rieko Hayashi, president of Hayashi Honten Co., holds a certificate for the Platinum Medal award given to the brewery’s Hyakujuro Yamahai at the Kakamigahara city government office in November. (Yoshinobu Matsunaga)
