Hakkaisan Brewery

About Uonuma

The Uonuma region of Niigata Prefecture is home to Hakkaisan Brewery. While it is known for its long Winter months, it is also marked distinctly by its access to soft snowmelt water used for sake brewing.

What is a Yukimuro?

A yukimuro is a natural refrigerator made of a large mound of snow covered with rice straw as insulation that was used in the past to keep perishables fresh. An ancient Japanese history book called the “Nihonshoki” (8th century) recorded the use of a yukimuro to store ice for the imperial family. Yukimuro were a common sight in the snowy areas of Japan until electric refrigerators became widely available in the 1960s.

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Hakkaisan Snow Aged 3 Years Junmai Daiginjo
sold out
Hakkaisan Snow Aged 3 Years Junmai Daiginjo
$72.00

What does “snow aged” mean? If you can believe it, it means exactly that: sake stored for years in a snow-filled room. The end result of the aging process is that Hakkaisan Snow Aged 3 Years Junmai Ginjo is a stellar sake with a richness, full body and structure to enjoy on its own, with red meats or with rich foods. This is the bottle to get to impress even seasoned sake lovers.

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sold out
Hakkaisan Snow Aged 8 Years Junmai Daiginjo
$102.00

Imagine a room filled with snow all year round, then some of the best, well produced sake is placed inside and aged for 8 years. That's essentially what Hakkaisan has done here where they have kept a special snow-filled room called a yukimuro at constant temperature in order to gently condition the sake in order to develop complex layers of flavor.

With this sake, we can get toasted rice notes, alongside a crisp, elegant and clean profile. Exceptionally well balanced. Offer this as a gift for your sake-loving friends or open up for a special occasion. You'll love this bottle.