Kobayashi Shuzo Co., Ltd, a sake brewery in the town of Kuriyama in central Hokkaido, began its online sales ‘Autumn Sake Festival’ on September 10. Two types of sets containing three 720 ml bottles, are available: one ‘dining’ set suitable for drinking with meals and another ‘night drink’ set suitable for post-meal drinking with snacks. Labeling with regard to the difference in the polishing ratio of the sake rice can also be enjoyed. The sales will end when stocks run out.

According to the brewery, sake with a good balance of acidity and umami (savory taste) goes well with meals, while more fragrant sake is suitable for drinking over a long period. The rice polishing ratio (proportion of rice remaining after polishing) ranges from 45 to 70%.

The ‘dining’ sets cots 3,500 yen and are limited to 400 sets, each containing a bottle of Junmai Ginjo, a bottle of Junmai, and a bottle of Honjo, which go well with salt-grilled Pacific saury and the like. The ‘night drink’ set costs 5,500 yen and is limited to 360 sets containing Junmai Daiginjo, Junmai Daiginjo Origarami, and unrefined Daiginjo. The Origarami has a ‘silky sweetness’ and the unrefined sake has a slightly high alcohol content of 17%.

This is the third time the brewery has assembled a limited-edition set of sake, following the ‘lucky box’ set in November last year and the ‘brewery festival at home’ set in March of this year. The sets were conceived based on the fact that, due to the influence of the COVID-19 pandemic, consumption of sake has shifted to the home. The sake sets can be purchased from the Kitanonishiki online shop. https://kitanonishik.official.ec (Japanese language only).