"Joetsu Sake Brewery" restarts Machines and IoT are introduced for sake brewing! | News | Joetsu Myoko Town Information
February 27, 2022 15:00 update
TweetSake brewery Joetsu Sake Brewery, known for "Echigo Bijin" and "Echigo no Wakatake", transferred all shares to a company in a different industry that has no connection with sake brewing and made it a subsidiary in order to overcome human resource shortages such as the aging of Mr. Mori. It has restarted. Sake brewing, which used to rely on the intuition and skill of craftsmen, has changed significantly due to mechanization. Was the taste of the long-established store preserved? We interviewed the situation at the site.
It is Mr. Masataka Kawaguchi, the factory manager, who confirms the quality of sake. Mr. Kawaguchi, I'm a complete amateur for the first time in sake brewing.
Factory manager Masataka Kawaguchi "This is my first time to brew sake. I have never used a machine. I have high expectations."
It is a sake brewery in Iida, Joetsu City, Joetsu Sake Brewery. Known for its beauty in Echigo and Wakatake in Echigo, it is a long-established store that has been in business for over 210 years, the first year of its founding culture.
However, in recent years, there has been a crisis of business closure due to a shortage of successors such as the aging of Mr. Mori.
Under such circumstances, in August of last year, we transferred all the shares to Nippon Totor in Tokyo through the mediation of the prefecture, and made a new start as a subsidiary.
Chairman Mitoku Iino "If you think that it will be interrupted for me, thank you for taking over."
Nippon Totor is not a brewer. A company that operates public stadiums nationwide. Mr. Kawaguchi, the factory manager, was in charge of system maintenance at the auto race site. Is it possible to make sake without Mr. Mori's experience? The key was the temperature control system introduced in the making of Jiuqu, which is said to affect the quality of sake.
Temperature control with a computer or smartphone
In this system, the temperature of the room where the jiuqu is laid down and the tank that makes the mash is sent to the computer or smartphone every 10 minutes. Administrators can check the temperature wherever they are.
Factory manager Masataka Kawaguchi "We control the temperature so that yeast can grow easily. We have created an environment where yeast can move. It also produces alcohol, so it is important for sake brewing."
In addition, the rice washing work has also been mechanized. The process that was previously done by three people can now be done by one person.
With mechanization, sake brewing has changed dramatically. Wasn't Mr. Iino, the chairman who was also Mr. Mori, worried?
Chairman Mitoku Iino "The sake brewing I'm used to is ingrained in my body. I hope (my advice) will be useful as an experience ..."
Factory manager Masataka Kawaguchi "I want to learn the techniques of the predecessors Mori and Iino and make the temperature and operation manuals. I want to proceed so that anyone can make sake."
Chairman Iino and factory manager Kawaguchi are two-legged races. Was the taste of the long-established store preserved? The day has come to understand the results. One month after preparation. The taste of the first squeeze is ...
Chairman Mitoku Iino "I drank it unintentionally. It's delicious, I like it."
Factory manager Masataka Kawaguchi "It has become so delicious"
Kawaguchi Plant Manager feels that the long-established taste can be maintained by mechanization and IoT technology even without "Mr. Mori".
Mr. Masataka Kawaguchi, Factory Manager "I'm glad that the chairman said" delicious ". I was able to make sake that even young people would accept."
Sake brewery business succession is expected to continue in the future
By the way, Joetsu Sake Brewery is not the only issue such as the shortage of human resources and the difficulty of successors. According to the Takada branch of the Prefectural Sake Brewery Association, there were about 60 sake breweries in Joetsu City and Myoko City in the early Showa period, but now they have decreased to 15. Of these, five sake breweries, including Joetsu Sake Brewery, have taken over the business and their management has changed.
Mr. Shigenori Takeda, General Manager of Takada Branch "There are many small breweries in Joetsu and Myoko. The business succession will continue. From the perspective of other industries," Sake "may be attractive."
How to make unique sake
Like Joetsu Sake Brewery, the movement of mechanization tends to spread. On the other hand, Mr. Shigenori Takeda, the branch manager, says that it is important how to make something with individuality.
Mr. Shigenori Takeda, General Manager of Takada Branch "(Mechanization) is quite advanced. What kind of sake is the number one problem? What kind of sake is made?
As the consumption trend changes drastically due to the Korona-ka, a wind of change is blowing at the sake brewing site. Challenges that are not bound by conventional methods have begun.
The new sake from Joetsu Sake Brewery is scheduled to go on sale in early March. For details, please see the Joetsu Sake Brewery website, which will open in March.
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