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Straddling the mountain ranges of the Japanese Alps in the center of Honshu is the prefecture known as Nagano. This attractive inland prefecture, blessed with clean air, mountain lakes, deep valleys, abundant hot springs and rugged terrain,is often referred to as the "Roof of Japan."
Largest of the lakes within Nagano Prefecture is Lake Suwa, located within the Suwa Basin at an elevation of over 700 meters. The area around the lake has long been know for the industriousness of its people, which has helped give rise to a remarkable tradition in local crafts.
Among these crafts, arguably the finest is that of producing exellent sake, Japan's national drink. Sake is an extremely complex brew, but it is in fact made from the simplest of components: the main ingredients are just water and rice. For good sake, though, it is essential that these ingredients be of the absolute-finest quality.
One local sake-maker that prides itself on using only the best ingredients is Masumi, based in the town of Suwa. As one might expect from a brewery that has been making sake since 1662, Masumi knows a thing or two about crafting the rice beverage. Not only has Masumi brought its expertise to bear in brewing its own sake, but a superior variety of yeast cultivated by Masumi has now become the industry standard in sake-making.
The name Masumi means "purity," and purity of taste is certainly evident in Masumi's Yomedono, a super-premium sake of the type known as daiginjo. With its fresh, brilliant fragrance and rich, yet ephemeral flavor, Yumedono has won Masumi top honors in scores of national sake competitions.
As visitors to Cella Masumi, the brewery shop, discover, such daiginjo are best drunk chilled, and to sample a glass of this elegant sake is to wonder how such subtlety of flavor can be achieved in a drink made from just rice and water. |
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