Nihonshu Oendan
“Nihonshu Oendan” is a company that aims for people inside and outside of Japan to truly taste, understand, and discover a real good sake, while also reviving historical family breweries in Japan.
They partner with sake breweries in various areas in Japan such as Ishikawa, Shimane, Nigata, Oita, and Saitama and make original Japanese sake from scratch (i.e. starting with growing rice) which are then sold to customers mostly online.
Their marketing approach is unique in a way that they mostly use internet, including SNS to appeal Japanese sake itself and their products which have very stylish label design on the bottles.
Junmai Muroka Nama Genshu – the ultimate “Umami” Sake
All of the sake they make is “Junmai Muroka Nama Genshu,” the purest and freshest form of sake. It literally translates to “sake that is unfiltered, undiluted, and unpasteurized.” The company emphasizes that it extracts best part of Japanese sake in their products which is why we can taste “umami” in their sake. They also insist on using hands in making sake through a brewing process which they think would make sake reach its full potential.
KAKEYA
Today, I’d like to introduce one of their products that Nihonshu Oendan sells which is called “Kakeya” (Please see a picture below). Using rice hand-planted locally, KAKEYA was brewed at Takeshita Honten, a 150 year-old family brewery in Shimane prefecture which is known for clean air and pure water. KAKEYA has relatively strong, dry, and crisp taste which goes well with cheese dishes. I cooked a cheese gratin with macaroni and chicken to pair with KAKEYA the other day and it was a perfect combination! You can purchase their products in the U.S. too so please check out the website below:
