{"title":"Gensaka Shuzo · 元坂酒造","description":"\u003cp class=\"font-claude-response-body break-words whitespace-normal\"\u003e\u003cem\u003eYanagihara, Odai-cho, Mie Prefecture · Est. 1805\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"font-claude-response-body break-words whitespace-normal\"\u003eSome breweries we work with because we admire their sake. Gensaka Shuzo we work with because we love the people behind it — and because everything they stand for is why we started Otemba in the first place.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"font-claude-response-body break-words whitespace-normal\"\u003eThe brewery sits in the small mountain village of Yanagihara, in the deep interior of Mie Prefecture, close to Ise Jingu — Japan's most sacred Shinto shrine, a site of pilgrimage for over two thousand years. The water that flows through this landscape has spiritual significance long before it reaches the brewery, moving from the mountains through the Miyagawa River, one of the clearest waterways in Japan, and into the soft, almost mineral-free spring water that Gensaka uses for every brew. This is a place with a long, deep history, and the sake carries that weight gently.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"font-claude-response-body break-words whitespace-normal\"\u003eThe brewery was founded in 1805 and has been passed through seven generations of the Gensaka family. Their flagship, Sakaya Hachibei, bears the name of the founder himself. Their sake was chosen to represent Japan at the G7 Ise-Shima Summit in 2016 — quiet recognition that what they make belongs in any company.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"font-claude-response-body break-words whitespace-normal\"\u003eThe story that moves us most, though, began about forty years ago. The village of Yanagihara was slowly emptying. Japan's rural communities were shrinking, farmland was being abandoned or sold for solar panels, and the landscape that had defined the region for centuries was disappearing. Shin Gensaka, then head of the brewery, made an unusual decision: he would start growing rice himself. Not to expand the business — but to keep the fields alive, and the community with them. Starting from scratch, with no agricultural background, the family invested in machinery, learned through trial and error, and eventually revived Isenishiki, a native Mie rice variety that had vanished from cultivation entirely.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"font-claude-response-body break-words whitespace-normal\"\u003eHis two sons have grown up inside this vision. One now serves as toji, the other is learning every part of the business to take over as kuramoto. Together they have come to understand something that most sake producers never have to consider: that a great sake begins not in the brewery, but in the soil, the water, the health of the land, and the wellbeing of the people who tend it. You cannot separate the liquid in the glass from the community that makes it possible.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"font-claude-response-body break-words whitespace-normal\"\u003eTheir newer brand, KINO — written with the characters for \"returning to agriculture\" — is the fullest expression of this philosophy: 100% estate-grown Isenishiki rice, brewed with kimoto and a minimum of intervention, expressing the character of a specific place and a specific family's commitment to its future. They even produce a sake called Kataru Hotaru — \"speaking fireflies\" — made only in years when fireflies appear in the river, their presence proof that the water is clean enough to support life. Fifteen percent of its sales go directly to the town's environmental protection program.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"font-claude-response-body break-words whitespace-normal\"\u003eGensaka Shuzo makes sake that is traditional, honest, and easy to love. But behind every bottle is something larger: the quiet determination of a family to keep their beautiful little village alive.\u003c\/p\u003e","products":[{"product_id":"sakaya-hachibei-junmaishu","title":"Sakaya Hachibei Junmaishu","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cmeta charset=\"utf-8\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003eGensaka Brewery's classic sake is the kind of sake you can enjoy every night. Mild aromas with hints of cypress, caramel and cinnamon. A light yet rich sake with a subtle sweetness and bitterness, before ending with a well-balanced, dry finish.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Gensaka Shuzo","offers":[{"title":"720ml","offer_id":33402064109656,"sku":"006001","price":29.0,"currency_code":"EUR","in_stock":true},{"title":"1800ml","offer_id":33402064142424,"sku":"006002","price":61.0,"currency_code":"EUR","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0276\/0579\/4904\/files\/Gensakashuzo_HachibeiJunmaishu720.webp?v=1779310417"},{"product_id":"sakaya-hachibei-yamahai-junmaishu","title":"Sakaya Hachibei Yamahai Junmaishu","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan data-sheets-value='{\"1\":2,\"2\":\"A sake with rich aroma’s typical to sake’s produced using the Yamahai method. The gentle but impressive aromas can have hints of camembert and nuts. It has a strong taste with a rich sweetness and strong acidity to balance it. The Yamahai production method gives it a lively texture with a strong finish. This sake pairs well with warm and flavourful dishes such as cooked fish or stews with dashi (Japanese fish stock). Brewed from Gohyakumangoku and Yamada Nishiki rice milled to 60%.\"}' data-sheets-userformat='{\"2\":15235,\"3\":{\"1\":0},\"4\":[null,2,16777215],\"10\":0,\"11\":4,\"12\":0,\"14\":[null,2,0],\"15\":\"Calibri\",\"16\":10}'\u003e\u003cspan data-mce-fragment=\"1\" style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003eA sake with rich aromas typical to sakes produced using the Yamahai method. The gentle but impressive aroma has hints of camembert and nuts. It has a strong taste with a rich sweetness and the acidity to balance it. The Yamahai production method gives it a lively texture with a strong finish. \u003c\/span\u003eThis sake pairs well with warm and flavourful dishes such as cooked fish or stews with dashi (Japanese fish stock). Brewed from Gohyakumangoku and Yamada Nishiki rice and milled to 60%.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Gensaka Shuzo","offers":[{"title":"720ml","offer_id":33402070761560,"sku":"006003","price":32.5,"currency_code":"EUR","in_stock":false},{"title":"1800ml","offer_id":33402070794328,"sku":"006004","price":65.0,"currency_code":"EUR","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0276\/0579\/4904\/files\/Gensakashuzo_Hachibeiyamahaijunmai.webp?v=1779311373"},{"product_id":"sakaya-hachibei-junmai-ginjo-isenishiki","title":"Sakaya Hachibei Junmai Ginjo","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003eA rich and dry Junmai Ginjo sake with a mellow sweetness and the right amount of acidity for a fresh finish. It has a slight bitterness to complement the rich umami. This sake is brewed with a special local sake rice called Isenishiki that Gensaka brewery produces in its own fields. This sake is very suitable with cold dishes using white fish.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cdiv style=\"text-align: center;\"\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"Gensaka Shuzo","offers":[{"title":"720ml","offer_id":33402053591128,"sku":"006005","price":35.5,"currency_code":"EUR","in_stock":true},{"title":"1800ml","offer_id":33402053623896,"sku":"006006","price":71.5,"currency_code":"EUR","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0276\/0579\/4904\/files\/Gensakashuzo_HachibeiJG720.webp?v=1779310081"},{"product_id":"sakaya-hachibei-junmai-daiginjo","title":"Sakaya Hachibei Sen Junmai Daiginjo","description":"\u003cdiv class=\"gmail_default\" data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e\u003cspan face=\"trebuchet ms, sans-serif\" style=\"font-family: 'trebuchet ms', sans-serif;\" data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003eAn exquisite sake with mellow aromas of green apples and banana. It has light umami and a plump, round sweetness that slowly spreads. It has a pleasant long finish, harmonised with a slight sharp bitterness. Enjoy this sake on its own or with light dishes such as white fish, sashimi, sushi, or light desserts such as white peach compote.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv class=\"gmail_default\" style=\"text-align: center;\" data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e\u003cspan face=\"trebuchet ms, sans-serif\" style=\"font-family: 'trebuchet ms', sans-serif;\" data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"Gensaka Shuzo","offers":[{"title":"720ml","offer_id":39744662077528,"sku":"006007","price":74.5,"currency_code":"EUR","in_stock":true},{"title":"720ml with box","offer_id":39744662110296,"sku":"006017","price":89.0,"currency_code":"EUR","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0276\/0579\/4904\/files\/Gensakashuzo_HachibeiSenJDG720.webp?v=1779291769"},{"product_id":"kino-2","title":"Kino 2","description":"\u003cp class=\"p1\"\u003eKino stands for ‘going back to farming’. This sake is a homage to this concept. Ise Nishiki is harvested by the cultivation of our own rice field and is brewed using the Kimoto method. This is KINO’s second cuvée, which aims to create sake that is as effortless as possible for both people and nature, while thinking about the continuity of local agriculture.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cdiv id=\"gtx-trans\" style=\"position: absolute; left: 245px; top: 256.531px;\"\u003e\n\u003cdiv class=\"gtx-trans-icon\"\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"Gensaka Shuzo","offers":[{"title":"720ml","offer_id":40011356340312,"sku":"006014","price":42.0,"currency_code":"EUR","in_stock":true},{"title":"1800ml","offer_id":40011356373080,"sku":"006015","price":76.5,"currency_code":"EUR","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0276\/0579\/4904\/files\/Gensakashuzo_Kino2_d463c7f4-649f-4bb1-b769-35d7a8eac7a8.webp?v=1779291791"},{"product_id":"sakaya-hachibei-shiken-jozo-sp","title":"Talkin' Loud","description":"\u003cp\u003eThis sake is an experimental project to explore new brewing possibilities. Here they utilise a special yeast, called MLA-12, which produces high levels of malic acid. This makes the sake juicy and refreshing with green apple notes. It is well-balanced with a natural sweetness, and is a sake that follows their philosophy “an entire night of relaxation rather than just a single glass”. As a music lover himself, the brewer recommends to drink this chilled in a small glass, listening to your favourite loud music.\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Gensaka Shuzo","offers":[{"title":"720ml","offer_id":40011358273624,"sku":"006018","price":35.0,"currency_code":"EUR","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0276\/0579\/4904\/files\/Gensakashuzo_talkingloudshadow.webp?v=1779312384"}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0276\/0579\/4904\/collections\/gensaka-0.jpg?v=1581265821","url":"https:\/\/otemba-sake.com\/collections\/gensaka-shuzo\/aromatic.oembed","provider":"Otemba Sake","version":"1.0","type":"link"}