Yakushima, The Water Island: The Secret of it’s special Shochu

The Hombo Sake Brewery is located in Kagoshima City, Kagoshima Prefecture. In 1960, they started making Shochu with their passion in “Passing down, and revolutionizing local culture”. More than 60 years later, they are brewing Sake with a close relationship with its location.

Mr. Tanaka, the factory chief, states the characteristic of their Shochu as “Made in a Special Pot”. He then explains, “the pot we use is inherited from 1887. The weight we use is also handmade. The Shochu we make is limited in quantity, yet high quality”.

In Yakushima Denshozo, the average amount of Shochu produced annually is approximately 50,000 bottles. That is equivalent to how many bottles are produced in Kagoshima City, in just two days. This shows how rare Yakushima Denshozo’s Shochu is.

Why was Yakushima chosen as the forefront of making Shochu? One cannot explain without the importance of water.

Mr. Tanaka states, “We need a lot of water to make Shochu. We need to make sure there is ample water in the region where we open our brewery”.

Yakushima’s annual precipitation is 2-3 times more than that of Tokyo. Perhaps the largest in Japan. The oceans bring warm and humid air, causing rain, which supplies the entire island with rivers. Even the canal water uses rain water, perfect for a sake brewery.

Mr. Tanaka talks about the quality of Yakushima’s water. “Our Shochu making process starts with creating Malt, preparing fermenting and creating “Moromi”, heating up the “Moromi”, and cooling alcohol water vapors to make Shochu. We end with adding water to the alcohol to lower its potency. We use water in both preparing and diluting, but the water characteristics affect the quality of the Shochu. The water in Yakushima is super soft. Its texture is smooth, which in turn makes the Shochu smooth.”

The hardness of water depends on its Calcium and Magnesium percentage. In Europe, the rain water permeates through the ground, which sucks the minerals in the ground. Yakushima, however, is made of special rocks. The rain water instead flows along the surface, which leads to less minerals, and super soft water.

There are about 10 Shochu labels here at Yakushima Denshozo. The most popular brand is the exclusive “Mizunomori” shochu. Its green, transparent bottle was designed by Yuko Takada, a local artist. The design is majestic, yet simple. Its font, also simple, is unlike other labels. Since its debut in 2011, it has become the new face of our brewery.

“Mizunomori is a potato starch-based Shochu made from Yakushima water. It has a crisp texture, and is easy to drink. It’s best sampled on the rocks or with water. You can also pair it with soft water to enrich its smooth texture”.

Mizunomori uses a potato called “Shiroyutaka”. It has a white peel, and when used in Shochu, it has a citrusy, herb-like aroma, states Mr.Tanaka.

He then later states, “The potato peel has a good aroma. We don’t peel it, and since it smells fragrant, it works well with Yakushima water without overpowering it. This potato is cultivated only in Yakushima. I brought it in to make Shochu, and our local farmers help us by growing it”.

The “pot making” is also important in making the flavor of its Shochu. Mr.Tanaka states, “we cannot create this flavor by using equipment found in other breweries”. There are many old pots. More than 60, and they were made in 1887. The pot has undergone many repairs, and is still used today.

“The pot has a rough texture with various types of yeast inside dating from many years ago. Even though we use the same technique and content in making Shochu the pots themselves work as a catalyst to change the flavor, thanks to the yeast no doubt. We wish people to enjoy the varying characteristics of Shochu”.

The malt is made by hand from the craftsmen. They don’t use any machinery, but use nature to “grow” the malt. Not only do they use the perfect ingredients, they respect the craftsmanship, which creates the one and only Yakushima shochu.

“Please take a look at this. It’s not Shochu!”, says Mr. Tanaka. In the room are many barrels. The brewery opened the “Marth Yakushima Aging Cellar” in 2011. Making 5000 bottles of Whiskey annually.

“You might think Whiskey is made in cold regions, but lately, it's made in warmer regions as well. The climate affects the aging process, creating unique types of whiskey pertaining to the region. We also use Yakushima water to finalize our whiskey”.

To raise awareness of their shochu and whiskey, The brewery hosts tasting events in local hotels, and serves their product in marriage ceremonies. Consuming Yakushima products in Yakushima, is the perfect way of experiencing their culture and nature.