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Asahi Shuzo - Dassai

旭酒造 - 獺祭

Asahi Shuzo - Dassai

Brewery | 旭酒造

Asahi Shuzo - Dassai

Through crises and difficulties, Asahi Shuzo has carefully innovated their own unique way to brew sake. Over the past few years they adapted their work to produce sake year-round (instead of just during sake season), something all but unheard-of in the industry. By producing sake steadily, they have succeeded in minimizing variables, allowing them to focus on the minutiae of the craft. These details include labor-intensive hand-craft methods that have been proven over centuries to yield better sake, but also the most modern technology applied in the right measure, in the right places.

Founded

1948

Employees

235

Flagship

Dassai 23

Location

Yamaguchi Prefecture

Yamaguchi prefecture is the westernmost prefecture on the main island, and is surrounded on its three sides by three different oceans—the Japan Sea, Setouchi Sea, and Sea of Hibiki. Yamaguchi is famous for their gorgeous coastal views as well as their blowfish. 25 miles Southwest of Hiroshima, Iwakuni is most famous for the structurally unique Kintai bridge, especially beautiful during cherry blossom season.

Yamaguchi Prefecture

Brewery Head

Kazuhiro Sakurai

Kazuhiro Sakurai

Instead of taking the traditional "Toji" (master brewer) system, Asahi Shuzo has a full-time brewing team that works collectively. CEO Kazuhiro Sakurai is the fourth generation of the Sakurai family to head the brewery. After graduating from Waseda University in 1999 with a Social Science degree, he worked in a field unrelated to sake. After happening to come across and tasting his family's sake, Dassai, at an izakaya in Roppongi, he realized afresh how good his family's sake was, and joined Asahi Shuzo in 2006. In 2016, he became the CEO of Asahi Shuzo.

Recommendation

Favorite

Dassai 23 Dassai 23 $103.00

Notable

Awards

  • Kura Master 2019 Gold
  • The Wonder 500 certificated 2015 & 2016
  • International Wine Challenge 2013 Trophy
  • International Sake Challenge 2013
  • Silver Junmai Daiginjo (DASSAI 39)

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From the Brewery

Dassai 45

Dassai 45

$37.00
Dassai 45 Nigori

Dassai 45 Nigori

$38.00
Dassai 39

Dassai 39

$51.00

Mission

I think sake is meaningless if it isn't delicious. Following traditional brewing methods, implementing high-tech machines, hand-crafting in certain stages, or utilizing data analysis, we pursue delicious sake at every possible step leading to the final product. Dassai the sake is ever-changing and evolving.

Kazuhiro Sakurai, CEO