TOJI × Sake Brewery Stories Vol.01: Miyasaka Brewing, The Master Brewer

Sake Is Born from Harmony: Kenji Nasu, Chief Master Brewer of Masumi, on the Origins of Sake Brewing

Across Japan, there are people who have quietly protected the culture and traditions rooted in their land. The toji, the master brewers who have supported sake brewing, are among them.

On a winter day as the stillness deepens, we want to think again about what a toji really is.

Our search for the answer leads to Miyasaka Brewing in Suwa, Nagano, founded in 1662 and known for Masumi sake. Shinshu Suwa lies in the foothills of Kirigamine, blessed with pure water and a cool climate.
Named after Masumi no Kagami, a sacred mirror treasured by Suwa Taisha shrine, and the birthplace of the excellent sake yeast Kyokai No. 7, Masumi has long made sake in harmony with its land. For 40 years, Kenji Nasu, General Manager of Production and Chief Master Brewer, has watched over and supported this brewing on the floor.

What Mr. Nasu talks about is not only technique, such as yeast or water. It is the thinking at the root of sake brewing: the flavor of sake only takes shape when water, land, climate and the relationships between people come together.

In this interview, Tamura of TOJI spoke with Mr. Nasu, Chief Master Brewer of Miyasaka Brewing. Using the brewing of Masumi, known as the birthplace of No. 7 yeast, as a guide, we explore through the master brewer's words the philosophy of making things that TOJI values : where land, culture and human work overlap.

 

 

 

On the Brewing Floor for40Years

 

Tamura:
 Please tell us how you entered the world of sake brewing, and about your path since then.

Nasu:
 After studying fermentation and yeast at Tokyo University of Agriculture, I joined Miyasaka Brewing. I was already fascinated by fermentation itself, and felt sake was its culmination. I grew up here in Suwa, so having a sake brewery in my hometown made it a very natural choice for me.

 But I didn't join intending to become a toji. At first I was in what you might call a lab role, in charge of quality control: analyzing sake, finding the cause when something was wrong, and thinking about how to make good sake more consistently.
Along the way, I felt there was far too much I couldn't understand from a desk, so I became deeply involved in the actual brewing. Koji, the yeast starter, the main mash : each step has its meaning, and subtle differences change the character of the sake. Understanding how these build up, and thinking about how to pass them on to the next generation, gradually became my role.

As a result, my work grew from quality control to leading people, and before I knew it, 40 years had passed.

 

 

 

 

A Toji's Job Was to Bring People Together

 

Tamura:
 How has the brewery floor changed from the past to today?

Nasu:
 When I joined, sake brewing was completely seasonal work. In winter, farmers from nearby areas like Fujimi and Hara came to the brewery in their off-season to make sake, and in spring they went back to farming.
The toji was the person who led this seasonal team and made the brewing possible.

 But I didn't think that system could last forever. As farming changed and more people farmed year-round, brewing that relied on seasonal labor would no longer work.
So we needed a system where employees are the core of sake brewing and the skills build up within the company.

 Today we have a few dozen people in total, including those making polished rice and amazake. Nearly half still work only in the brewing season, but roles such as toji and assistant toji are held by employees. Even so, I don't see much point in drawing a line between employees and seasonal workers. We are all colleagues making the same sake on the same floor.

 When I was young, the great toji taught me the words wajo ryoshu (和醸良酒).
Brew in harmony, and good sake is made.
 A toji's job is not to show off technique, but to create harmony between people. Only on that foundation does sake brewing go well.

 

 

 

 

Information Is Shared, but the Sake Is Never the Same

 

Tamura:
 You mentioned connections between people. In the world of sake brewing, do breweries also connect and exchange information?

Nasu:
 This industry is surprisingly open. When something works well, many people can't help but talk about it (laughs).
In the days when seasonal labor was the norm, people moved between breweries, so techniques and ideas were naturally shared.

 But having the same information doesn't mean you can make the same sake.
Even with the same recipe and the same yeast, if the altitude, water, climate, humidity and temperature differ, the sake will always show a different face.
 In fact, the further you refine it, the less you can hide the difference in the land. That is what makes sake both fascinating and difficult.

 

 

 

 

 

What Decides the Taste of Sake : Pure Underground Water

 

Tamura:
 What do you feel is most important in sake brewing?

Nasu:

 Simply put, yeast and water.
Water in particular, I believe, determines the very backbone of the sake.

 In brewing, water is involved in every step: not only the brewing water, but also the water used to wash the rice. Each of these builds up to shape the flavor of the sake. That is why how far you can align the conditions of the water, and how you face it, is the foundation of sake brewing.

 Underground water flows from the mountains over many years.
It is because of this pure water that breweries have been passed down and sake brewing has continued in Suwa.
 I believe water decides the sake even more than the toji's skill.

 

 

 

 

Masumi's "Return to Origins" : Why No. 7 Yeast Is at the Core

 

Tamura:
 Please tell us about the characteristics of Masumi's sake brewing and the idea of a "return to origins."

Nasu:
 In the past, a major goal was to actively use the newest yeasts of each era and make sake that won at competitions. That in itself drove us to improve quality.
But as technology and information became widely shared and the level of sake rose across the country, we also felt that more and more sake tasted alike.

 That made us ask ourselves again: what makes Masumi Masumi?
The answer we reached was No. 7 yeast. Other breweries can use No. 7 yeast too, but as its birthplace, we take pride in being the brewery that understands its lineage most deeply and has made the most of it.

 Not a sake that competes on aroma, but one with a defined acidity that is pleasant to drink with food.
A sake that naturally accompanies the everyday dining table.
That is the "fine sake for meals" we aim for.

 

 

 

 

What Sake Kasu Is : Not a Byproduct, but an Extension of Culture

 

Tamura:
 How do you think about sake kasu?

Nasu:
 Sake kasu is not something extra.
In the old days it was so valuable that sales of sake kasu alone could cover the wages of the people who worked during the brewing season.

 Fewer people eat sake kasu today, but its value as a fermented food is very high.
Research is advancing in fields like health and beauty, and I think it is a very natural development for it to be used not only as food, but also in the bath and in skincare.

 Sake kasu holds within it the philosophy of sake brewing and the character of the land.
I think it is well worth sharing with the world.

 

Finally: What a Toji Means to Mr. Nasu

Tamura:
 Finally, what does being a toji mean to you?

Nasu:
 Before being someone who makes sake, a toji is someone who values relationships between people and brings everyone together on the floor. Technique and knowledge alone don't make good sake. Only when there is harmony and trust between people does the sake respond.

 That is exactly wajo ryoshu.

 Create harmony, and brew sake within it. ⎯ 。
 Good sake is born from harmony. ⎯ 。

 That is the answer I have reached after 40 years of making sake.

 

 

 

 

 

 Thank you to all our readers for reading to the end.
This time, we spoke with Kenji Nasu, General Manager of Production and Chief Master Brewer of Miyasaka Brewing Co., Ltd. It was a chance to learn deeply about the origins of sake brewing and the role and philosophy carried by the toji.

 

 

From left: Katsuhiko Miyasaka (Head of the President's Office, Miyasaka Brewing), Kenji Nasu (Chief Master Brewer, Miyasaka Brewing), Natsuki Tamura (CEO, TOJI), Tomoyo Uemura (Art Director, TOJI)

 

 Next time, we will publish an interview with Katsuhiko Miyasaka, Head of the President's Office of Miyasaka Brewing Co., Ltd.
It will offer another perspective on the people behind Masumi's sake brewing. Please look forward to it.

(Written by Mie Ozaki)