Shinkogura Daiginjo Genshu Yamada nishiki 7YO (72 cl) (with furoshiki)

To celebrate its 470th anniversary in 2018, Yoshinogawa has released two exceptional sakes: one made from Koshitanrei rice matured for 10 years, representing the 470 years of tradition of the Brewery, and this sake made from Yamada nishiki rice matured for 7 years, representing innovation.

The choice of Yamada nishiki rice is not insignificant: Yoshinogawa generally uses rice produced in Niigata for all its sake production. This sake is therefore the only Yoshinogawa sake that uses premium Yamada nishiki rice from outside the prefecture, a superior variety considered difficult to grow in Niigata.

This is typical of Yoshinogawa’s DNA: a sake Brewery embracing 470 years of tradition, a tradition that begins with rice cultivation, and decides to brew a new taste of Niigata, an innovation symbolised by the colour red.

The bottle was designed by Chiso, a renowned name in the world of Kyoto Yuzen dyeing. There is also a simple version without the furoshiki.

Good to know: recognised by the government since 1976 as a traditional craft and as such protected, Yuzen dyeing is a technique dating back to the 17th century where the designs are painted directly onto the fabric by hand. A paste made from rice powder is applied to the outlines of the patterns to prevent the different colours from mixing, thus allowing great precision in the design.

The patterns on this silk furoshiki have meaning:

– the gourds are both a motif of the Yoshinogawa house and an auspicious motif implying happiness, success, longevity and good health, due to their role as medicine containers. There are 6 gourds here because of the homonymy in Japanese between ‘6 gourds’ and ‘good health’ (mubyô).

– The design then combines the words ‘chrysanthemum’ (菊) and ‘running water’ (流水) to form the classic auspicious motif kikusui (菊水) which is supposed to prolong life. Running water is represented by a string of gourds.

– Finally comes the motif of boats: top right and bottom left, in the gourds. The boat at the top right is the ‘river boat’, i.e. a rice husk emblematic of Niigata’s history. The boat on the bottom left is the ‘boat of the sea’, carrying the takarabune motif, the famous boat of the 7 deities traditionally associated with the celebration of the new year, here a symbol of hopes and expectations for the future.

This 26-colour furoshiki expresses the intention of the two Yoshinogawa sakes: the celebration of its 470 years of tradition and the ambition for innovation in the years to come.

About the Yoshinogawa Brewery

Founded in 1548, Yoshinogawa House is the oldest sake house in Niigata, and the 5th oldest in all of Japan. Based in the Settaya district of the famous brewing town of Nagaoka, Yoshinogawa has been making sake in keeping with the times for more than 470 years, incorporating state-of-the-art technology while maintaining the age-old techniques of sake brewing, and it is no exaggeration to say that this balance has been a key factor in Yoshinogawa’s uninterrupted success over the years.