To fully understand why a sake such as Born Junmai Daiginjo Muroka Namagenshu is so special, we must first understand what these identifying words mean.
To start, Born is the brewery behind the sake. Born, a brewery located in the Fukui prefecture of Japan, brews a line of sake’s which they tagline as “a series of exquisite sake”.
Junmai Daiginjo is the classification, or seimaibuai, of the sake. Junmai literally translates to “pure rice”, meaning absolutely no alcohol has been added by the brewer. Sake that does not have the “junmai” classification has had a slight amount of distilled brewer’s’ alcohol added to achieve the desired ABV (alcohol by volume). Daiginjo, or big ginjo, refers to the highest grade of sake, brewed with rice that has had at least 50% of the outer layer polished away.
Muroka means that the sake has not been charcoal filtered. Charcoal filtering is a process by which powdered charcoal particles are added to soak up certain bacteria and make a cleaner, more stable sake.
Namagenshu, can be broken up into two words. Nama, meaning unpasteurized, and genshu, meaning undiluted. Most sake’s are pasteurized twice. Once after being filtered, and once after being diluted (dilution can help to achieve a different ABV, flavor, mouthfeel, etc.), in order to help the sake maintain its flavor and aroma. A namagenshu sake is meant to be enjoyed in its more natural state.
Furthermore, this sake is aged at a freezing temperature for a period of time, creating a complex and tight finish.
All of these special processes lead to a sake that is rich, voluptuous, elegant, memorable, and pure in every sense of the word.
