Back in the days when samurais still roamed the streets, the feudal lord of Katsuyama, Lord Ogasawara, gave the symbolic name ‘Ippongi’ to the sake brewed exclusively for him.

The name ‘Ippongi’ comes from the Zen term ‘Daiichigitai’, which means ultimate truth. When Ippongi Sake Brewery was founded in 1902, the company inherited this historic sake name. Since its founding, Ippongi has been brewing high-quality dry sake and within 10 years of its founding, it became the top brand in Fukui Prefecture. Ippongi still holds the top position to this day, having done so for over 100 years. Around the 1950s, having already made a name for himself with his excellent dry sake, Ippongi started looking for a way to create an even more elegant and refined taste.

The taste Ippongi was aiming for was something pure with a beautifully articulated aroma and taste. To achieve this, Ippongi turned to the Nambu brewing method (developed among brewmasters from the southern Iwate prefecture, which was famous for producing sake with a clean, clear taste).

The company began using a toji well versed in the Nambu methods, and since then Ippongi has consistently worked to produce quality sake that embodies these ideals of purity in both taste and aroma. In the 89th Nanbu-Toji Sake Competition (2007), Ippongi won the grand prize out of 586 entrants, achieving the highest possible honor among all sake made using the Nambu method.

Denshin Yuki (Snow) Junmai Ginjo is an elegant sake with the nose of green apple, pear, banana and red roses. Tender light refreshing palette with a silky texture and a sheer finish.

This junmai ginjo is brewed with water that started as snow in the mountains around the brewery and melted over many years and then filtered through the earth. This gives the sake a pure, refreshing taste, but enough transparency to allow you to notice its nuanced smoothness. Like catching snowflakes on your tongue or frolicking in fresh powder: the taste takes you to the beautiful slopes of pristine, snow-capped mountains.