Tokubetsu Junmai Sake, 'The Gentleman', Bijofu

Brewery: Hamakawa Shoten • Prefecture: Kochi • Rice: Matsuyama Mii milled to 60% •  Yeast: AA-41 •  Water: Soft water from subterranean Nahari river  • Sake Meter Value: +4 • Acidity: 1.6 • ABV: 15%

• Fresh, medium light bodied with a snappy dry finish
• Aroma of underripe banana, notes of passion fruit and finish of lime zest and freshly cut mint leaves
• Pairs well with raw oysters, carpaccio, fatty fish like tuna or bonito.

Defined and precise, the Bijofu Tokubetsu Junmai is a sake with zip, spice and drinkability. Not a heavy or earthy Junmai, drinks light and fresh. Sake from Kochi is typically dry and lean, and while Bijofu has a definitive dry finish the initial flavor is soft and mellow. The village of Tano is located right by the deep waters of the Pacific, and is locally famous for catching fatty, deepwater fish like Katsuo (bonito), making crisp and dry sake the ideal companion to the rich flavors of the ocean. 

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