Welcome to Sake no Shiozawa

Preparing the rice

1. 1Rice polishing精米Milling away the outer layer of the riceMilling削るGrinding away the outside of the brown rice, little by littleResting枯らしLetting the milled rice restA few weeksTimeAbout 12 hours to 70%, about 2 days to 50%
2. 2Washing and soaking洗米・浸漬Washing the rice and letting it absorb waterWashing洗米Washing off the rice branSoaking浸漬Letting it absorb water, timed in seconds or minutesDraining水切りDraining off extra waterAbout one nightTimeMinutes to hours, sometimes timed to the second
3. 3Steaming蒸米Steaming the rice in a koshiki steamerSteaming蒸すIn a koshiki or a rice-steaming machine40–60 minutesCooling放冷Cooling to the right temperature for each useAround 30–39°C for kojiTimeAbout 1 hour
4. 4Making koji製麹Growing koji in the koji roomBringing in引込みMoving the steamed rice into the koji roomHour 0Adding spores床もみSprinkling koji spores and rubbing them inA few hours laterBreaking up切返しBreaking up clumps and mixingDividing盛りDividing the rice into small trays or boxesAround the morning of day 2Mixing仲仕事Mixing to let trapped heat escapeFinal mixing仕舞仕事Making grooves to adjust the temperatureTaking out出麹Taking the finished koji out of the roomAbout 40–55 hours after bringing inTimeAbout 2 days (40–55 hours)

Brewing

5. 5Yeast starter酒母Growing a large amount of yeastMixing仕込みWater, koji, lactic acid and yeast, plus steamed riceDay 1 (sokujo)Cool rest打瀬Left for a while at a low temperatureWarming暖気入れWarming little by little to grow the yeastResting枯らしResting until it goes into the main mashTimeAbout 2 weeks (sokujo), about 1 month (kimoto, yamahai)
6. 6Main mashもろみ・三段仕込みAdded in three stages, then fermented slowlyFirst addition初添Day 1Pause踊A day off from adding, to let the yeast growDay 2Second addition仲添Day 3Third addition留添Day 4Fermentation発酵The foam changes shape as fermentation goes onAbout 20–30 days after the third additionTime4 days of additions, then about 20–30 days of fermentation

Finishing

7. 7Pressing上槽Pressing to separate the sake from the sake leesArabashiri荒走りThe first, cloudy sake to come outNakadori中取りThe clear sake from the middle of the pressingSeme責めPressing hard at the endTimeHalf a day to a day by machine, about 2 days in a traditional press
8. 8Settling and filteringおり引き・ろ過Letting sediment settle, then filtering for a clean tasteRackingおり引きLeaving it still and drawing off the clear sakeAbout 5–10 days after pressingFilteringろ過Filtering through diatomaceous earth or charcoalTimeAfter a few days
9. 9Pasteurizing火入れHeating to about 60–70°C to keep the sake stableTimeUsually twice, before storage and before bottling
10. 10Storage and aging貯蔵・熟成Resting in tanks so the flavor rounds outTimeAbout 6 months to a year
11. 11Diluting and bottling割水・瓶詰めAdjusting to about 15% alcohol with water, then bottlingDiluting割水Bringing undiluted sake of 18–20% down to 15–16% with waterBottling瓶詰めFilling and capping the bottles. Pasteurized sake is heated a second time hereTimeBefore shipping