The Origins of Sake

The origins of Sake trace back approximately 2,500 years and are intimately connected to the development of rice cultivation and Shinto practices. The earliest written references to Sake in ancient texts date to the 3rd century. The production of the first Sake was part of a Shinto religious ritual still practiced not long ago in remote villages of Hokkaido or Okinawa. It was called "kuchikami no sake," which means Sake that is chewed in the mouth! It consisted of a mixture of fresh rice, fermented koji rice, and water, with a texture similar to porridge.

The production of Kuchikami no sake, or Kuchikamizake, was carried out by young virgin girls, considered messengers of the gods, who would chew the cooked rice and spit the resulting liquid into a container where it would macerate. The enzymes in saliva served to transform the rice starch into glucose, which then fermented thanks to yeasts present in the air.

Sake's Arrival at Court

It was not until the 8th century that new mentions of Sake appear in written records. Still within the context of Shinto rituals, it made its arrival at court, but during the Nara (710–794) and Heian (794–1185) periods, when Tang Dynasty Chinese culture heavily influenced Japanese culture, its use became increasingly social, and sake was consumed at banquets.
Official banquets where each person drinks from the same cup are held in the company of the emperor, while private banquets are characterized by excessive alcohol consumption.

The ritual use continues to persist, and the imperial court established its own brewery where sake was produced in quantities matching the number of deities.

Two types of Sake could then be found: the first, called white sake, was produced by women of the court and consumed by the aristocracy, and the other, called black sake, was consumed by the common people and was mixed with herbs or wood ash.

It was during this period that the Japanese began to drink Sake warm, particularly in winter, or to celebrate the blooming of the Sakura blossoms

As an interesting note, the word "Nihonshu" appears for the first time in the Kojiki, one of Japan's oldest texts, written in the early 8th century. It recounts the story of Susanô no Mikoto, who intoxicated the Serpent Yamata no Orochi in order to sever its 8 heads.

The Development of Fermentation Techniques in the Middle Ages

From the 12th century onward, with the withdrawal of the imperial court, numerous independent breweries flourished, organized by various Buddhist temples and Shinto shrines, which increased their production thanks to substantial rice harvests.

The temples commercialized their production in genuine alcohol markets that spread throughout the country, as did the first establishments dedicated to Sake consumption.

In the 16th century, the temples developed a new Sake, Morohaku, a pure sake produced exclusively from polished rice. A temple in Nara—the Kofukuji—used pasteurization for the first time (300 years before its discovery in France) and developed a modern brewing technique.

The Modernization of Sake Production Techniques

From the 17th century onward, Morohaku production, initially limited to the cities of Itami and Ikeda in the Kansai region, expanded to the country's most important cities: Kyoto, Osaka, and Edo (Tokyo). In this latter city, annual production reached 38 million liters—equivalent to an annual consumption of 54 liters per capita!

During this period, the methods of Sake production lost their traditional Kura aspect in favor of modern, Western-style brewing. However, a much smaller quantity of water was added to the polished rice, resulting in a thicker, more liqueur-like Sake that was intended to match the tastes of the era. Wood ash was also added to the moromi (unfiltered Sake) to obtain a less acidic beverage. Finally, it was during this period that breweries began to add alcohol once the rice had fermented to improve its preservation.

In the 19th century, the nerve center of Sake production shifted to the cities of Kobe and Nishinomiya (Hyogo Prefecture), where water rich in phosphate and potassium is found, facilitating the proliferation of koji fungi and yeasts, and thus improving the fermentation of unfiltered sake.
The introduction of the paddle wheel allowed for increased productivity and improved the rice polishing rate, and consequently the quality of Sake.

To reduce the risk of microbial contamination, Sake brewing is now confined to the winter period. Regular production of quality Sake is guaranteed.

Production methods continued to evolve throughout the 20th century, notably with improvements in the machinery used for rice polishing, the use of enamel tanks in place of wooden barrels, and better control of fermentation processes.