Slightly sweet and umami.
It is indeed a Shiga sake with a rich umami flavor without much bitterness or pungency.
Perhaps because it is unfiltered, it has a slightly rough texture on the tongue, and it is really good to be able to enjoy the lingering taste of sake on the tongue for a long time.
Shiga sake is really good.
Kawashima Shuzo
Pine Blossom Special Junmai "Dorokogo Chiraku" (Drunken Go Chiraku)
Kawashima Shuzo is a brewery in Shin Asahi-machi, Takashima City, Shiga Prefecture.
The rice is polished to 60% Shiga-grown "Tamakae".
It has a soft rice aroma and a gentle rice flavor,
Mild and mellow taste.
#Japanese Sake
Kyoto Takashimaya Sake Festival
Kawashima Sake Brewery booth at Matsu-no-Hana in Shiga Prefecture. It was the usual brewer.
◉Honjozo Unfiltered Nama Sake
A rare and unseen limited edition. This sake was pressed six months ago. It has a strong, robust flavor. It has an alcohol content of 19%, and the flavor is said to hold up well even when mixed with ice. I might like this one a lot.
◉Junmai Unfiltered Nama Sake
This was pressed in March. The flavor is the usual standard, robust and dark.
◉Ginjo Unfiltered Nama
50% polished, clean, bitter and acidic.
Junmai Daiginjo Unfiltered Nama-Genshu
The 40% polished version is the most elegant and slightly richer.
When I tasted it two years ago, the ginjo was modern, but not this time...
We have a young Noto Touji here now, and this is his third term.
The top management of Kawashima Brewery changed through M&A a few years ago, and I'm glad to see that things are slowly moving in the right direction.
Shiga is Kawashima Shuzo's Toku Jun🍶.
The aroma is quite classical.
Bran-like aroma coming through the nose
From the firm umami of rice
The acidity starts and finishes.
Traditional junmai sake flavor
It tastes better when it is heated up hot.
I feel that the roughness disappears when heated.
Kawashima Shuzo
Pine Blossom Junmai Unfiltered Nama-nazake
Kawashima Shuzo is a sake brewery in Shin Asahi-machi, Takashima City, Shiga Prefecture.
The rice is polished to 60% Shiga-grown "Tamakae".
Soft aroma, mellow rice flavor,
Soft aroma, mellow rice flavor, gentle richness, and a smooth aftertaste.
#Nihon-shu
The brewery was at the department store,
We were allowed to taste it.
We were served a variety of sake from Junmai to Junodai.
We were able to drink quite a lot!
First half of March
The cold days are still continuing.
I wanted a junmai sake that looked good warmed up
I took a bottle home with me.
A classic junmai sake with a strong umami flavor.
Junmai sake
Warmed up and served with a side dish of yokozuna arare (arare)
It's perfect for drinking at a leisurely pace!
Sake Expo 2025 SAKE EXPO10
A sales person who visited Icoma Sake Shop last year was there.
We drank
Josen Honjozo
I already drink it at home, but they said it can also be heated, so we compared cold and heated sake!
At home I drink it at room temperature, but it doesn't change much at any temperature, so I guess it's versatile?
Matsu no Hana Junmai Sake
Classic but easy to drink
Shiboritate Honjozo Nama Sake
I drank this at home a while ago and compared cold sake and heated sake. Surprisingly, the heated sake tasted better!
Honjozo Nama-no-Harazake
This one was quite robust, but had a delicious flavor.
Ginjo Unfiltered Nama Sake
I've bought and drank this in the past, but I tasted this one too.
I was not as impressed with this one as some of the others I drank this time.
Junmai Nama-nihonjyu Shiboritate Light Nigori
I forgot to take a picture💦The label has changed, but it looks like I've had this one in the past. A little spicy?
Matsu no Hana Junmai Ginjo
Well, it tasted a little off-flavored and the taste was subtle...
Matsunohana Daiginjo Fujiki
Forgot to take a picture💦.
Yamadanishiki with a 40% polished rice ratio.
The taste is a little different from the others, probably because the rice is different.
Tamakae is not suitable for high milling because it tends to crack when polished, so it seems to be Yamada-Nishiki.
The salesman was very interesting and unique.
Buy it at Yamaya, which has a larger selection of pine flowers than other stores, because of its retro labels.
I think this is the first time I've seen Matsu-no-Hana Honjozo!
It has a good balance of clear but not too sweet and not too spicy. Easy to drink.
I would also like to tell you that it is very cost-effective at less than 1,000 yen, including tax!
I must try heated sake while the temperature is not too high.
If you chill it too much, you can feel the smell a little.
