Process
Daily Life in the Kura
Open-ended Observing Change
Each year’s rice and the environment within the kura shape how fermentation unfolds.
It never follows exactly the same course from year to year.
We brew Ryusei sake with a plan as our starting point, observing the changes as each batch progresses.
We watch the foam, check the aromas, and compare these observations with temperature readings and the results of our analyses.
What is happening now?
Our daily decisions begin with that question.
Three Pillars
01
Ambient Fermentation
We draw on the activity of the microorganisms living in the kura to brew sake with a taste particular to this land and this brewery.
Our focus is kinsō: the whole community of microbial life within the kura.
The term encompasses the microorganisms and the relationships they have formed over time, through coexistence within the kura and alongside the people who work there.
Resident yeasts and lactic acid bacteria are part of this community, as are microorganisms whose roles we do not yet understand.
Kinsō, the building and tools, temperature and humidity interact over time.
We call this whole environment, shaped by those relationships and particular to this kura, Kuraroir.
02
Structure through Kimoto
Kimoto is a method of developing the fermentation starter through the activity of lactic acid bacteria, without adding lactic acid.
The starter is the basis of fermentation.
As lactic acid bacteria produce lactic acid, conditions inside it change, creating an environment in which yeast can work.
At Fujii Shuzo, we use kimoto for all our sake.
The time spent developing the starter helps shape the structure of the finished sake.
03
A Dialogue with Temperature
Temperature affects the activity of microorganisms and the course of fermentation.
We check temperatures and the results of our analyses, alongside the aromas, foam, and movement of the moromi, the fermenting mash.
Together, these tell us whether to change the temperature, keep it steady, or move on to the next step.
The Human Role Attunement
Attunement means reading what is happening in fermentation and within the kura, then adjusting the conditions that allow sake to take form.
The way we handle the rice, the proportions in each brew, temperature, the timing of each task, and when we press the sake all shape the course of fermentation.
Cleanliness, safety, and quality come first.
From there, we decide how much to intervene.
We take responsibility for those decisions and their results.
Yohaku Room to Emerge
Yohaku means leaving room for microorganisms and time to play their part, without deciding everything ourselves.
Some days we intervene.
On others, we watch and wait.
We make each decision with both the plan and what is happening that day in mind.
Convergence Coming Together
The land and the kura.
The life within.
Time, and human attunement.
Together, they take shape in a bottle of sake.
It leaves the kura and becomes part of someone else’s day.
