Juji Asahi Shuzo

Juji Asahi Shuzo, located in Izumo, Shimane, is a small sake brewery that has been making handcrafted sake since 1869. They specialize in using Omachi rice grown in Izumo and Okayama. The brewery is headed by Eriko Terada, a young woman in her thirties and one of only a handful of female Tojis in Japan. This brewery’s sake is characterized by a high acidity, which makes it taste drier in the mouth. What also makes this brewery unique is that they age their sake in tanks for some years before bottling and releasing them. They believe this aging is necessary for completing their sake before release. Aside from the Juji-Asahi brand, the brewery also makes a second brand, Yachi-Hoko, specifically made for the Izumo Shrine. This is the sacred sake of the Izumo Taisha Shrine, Japan’s oldest and most important Shinto shrine. In Japanese mythology, Izumo is the birthplace of Japan.