Did you make sake all year round in the past?

At typical sake breweries, the long-awaited new sake appears around December. When the cold winds start to blow, sake brewing for the year begins, but most breweries carry out what is called "cold brewing" in the cold season from winter to early spring. This is because the cold winter is perfect for the brewing conditions that allow long-term aging at low temperatures, but many people may be surprised to hear that sake used to be brewed all year round. Even today, there are sake breweries that carry out four-season brewing in air-conditioned, low temperatures, but what did they do in the days when such equipment did not exist?

An official notice prohibiting anything other than cold brewing

Up until the beginning of the Edo period, sake was brewed all year round except in summer, starting with new sake brewed in September (using old rice from the previous year), followed by mid-season sake, kanmae sake, kanshu, and spring sake. Of these, the late autumn kanmae sake and kanshu sake made using new rice are considered winter brewing. Sake brewed when it was still hot had trouble preventing over-fermentation, but there are also records that "bodaimoto," a process currently under research in Nara Prefecture, was used during this period.

In the midst of this, the Edo Shogunate issued several edicts from 7 onwards prohibiting the brewing of new sake from around September. This was intended to limit the use of rice and stabilize rice prices. It is believed that this triggered a gradual shift to winter brewing, where sake is brewed only in the winter.

The Toji system was born from winter brewing

Winter brewing had many advantages. It allowed for hygienic brewing of high-quality sake at low temperatures that made fermentation easier to control. Another advantage was that it allowed for the securing of labor by migrating from rural areas during the winter agricultural off-season. At the time, sake breweries in Itami and Nada, which had the most advanced brewing techniques, accepted many migrant workers to meet the large orders from the city of Edo. Among these experienced brewers, some were invited from the local and regional areas to provide technical guidance on sake brewing, which led to the later Toji system.

Winter is the long-awaited season for new sake!

This year's new sake, brewed in the cold season, will soon be available. The fresh taste of new sake, including freshly pressed unpasteurized sake, is a treat that can only be enjoyed during this season. Let's enjoy this year's new sake while giving thanks to the master brewers and brewers who work hard in the brewery, freezing with the cold!

Writer/Sake Master Eriko Fujita
Expand your world to a sake specialty store in Osaka and encounter a variety of sake and sake breweries. Favorite sakes are Akishika, Ohgi, and others.
Other than drinking, my hobbies include collecting minerals and raising swallowtail butterflies.