Nishi Shuzo is a long-standing and well-known brewery-distillery in Kagoshima prefecture. While known in the U.S. mainly for producing Satsuma Shochu (Kagoshima sweet potato shochu [we carry many of their brands]), Nishi Shuzo applies the same obsessive approach to water sourcing and agriculture for their shochu to their sake brewing.

Pristine and persistent Kagoshima rain softens the soil, imbuing the rice with substantial umami and giving the final brew delicate minerality. This same water is used for Nishi Shuzo's own brand of mineral water, Houmei, and is known for a subtle sweetness. 

This sake is an experience! Heady and complex, a funky and grainy nose gives way to fresh cream, lush and acidic grapefruit, and an earthy tail end reminiscent like gobo enveloped in cola. After it sits in the glass for a bit, ripe canteloupe emerges for one last hoorah before finishing clean.