Using the Waters from Mount Ryuo
The brewery is 5 minutes by foot from Saijo station, Higashi Hiroshima. You will notice a big chimney with the words ”キレイ Kirei” in katakana. This is where Nakata visited, the ”Kirei Brewery”. During the Edo period, it was referred to as ”Yoshida Store’s Sake” with familiarity, but later in the Meiji period, the brewery was officially named ”Kirei 亀齢” the Chinese characters depicting Tortoise and Age, taken from the Japanese saying, ”Cranes live to be a thousand years old, and tortoises live to be 10,000”, in hopes that the company would prosper and flourish for many years to come. They have used the well water drawn from underground waters of Mt. Ryuo since the Edo period, and their ”sake” is refreshing, rich and dry in taste. At the entrance is ”万年亀 Maneki Well (”maneki” has double meaning: 10,000 year old Tortoise / welcome)”, the well of the underground waters of Mt. Ryuo.
Produced by Low Temperature Fermentation
”Sake” of Hiroshima ranges from sweet to dry, light to full bodied, due to the geographical situation of the prefecture: the south faces the Inland Sea, the north the Chugoku mountains, and the temperature varies greatly depending on the different locations. Of all the breweries, Kirei’s ”sake” is noted to be ”the driest in Hiroshima”. This is due to low temperature fermentation. Most ”sake” is brewed during the winter as regular ”sake” and brewed under 15°, while ginjo ”sake” is brewed under 10 ”. Low temperature fermentation takes time and during this period, ”sake” becomes the center of their lives. The ”kura” people dwell together for the entire winter. The people of the ”kura” are united together with a strong bond to nurture their special ”sake” with utmost care.
