The Nada District

Nada is the eastern part of Kobe city, a city in the western part of Honshu, the main island of Japan. Kobe is the capital of Hyogo prefecture and lies approximately 430 kilometers (270 miles) west of Tokyo. Kobe is also known for being one of the most international cities in Japan, and its delicious beef is famous throughout the world.

The Five Areas of Nada

The Nada region is generally split into five sake-brewing areas, which are called gogo 五郷, meaning "five districts." The areas stretch from west to east, with the Nishi, Mikage, and Uozaki areas lying in Kobe, and the Nishinomiya and Uozaki areas lying in the city of Nishinomiya. Altogether, the five areas of Nada produce just over 1/4 of Japan's sake (26.4% as of 2003), more than any other region.

The areas, from west to east: Nishi, Mikage, Uozaki, Nishinomiya, Imazu

Nada's Sake-brewing History

According to ancient records, Nada's history of sake brewing stretches back almost 700 years, starting around 1330. However, it was not until much later that Nada became famous throughout Japan. In the early 1600s a man named Bunzaemon Zakoya moved from the sake brewing center of Itami to Nishinomiya city and started a brewery there. He was soon followed by a number of others during the late 1600s and early 1700s.

Tokyo (which was called "Edo" at the time) became the capital of Japan in 1603, coincidentally overlapping with the rise of Nada sake. Nada's location next to Kobe port allowed for convenient shipping by boat to Tokyo, and it was not long until Nada's sake was favored by the Shoguns ruling the country in Tokyo.

A great number of breweries were destroyed or heavily damaged when the Great Hanshin-Awaji Earthquake struck the area in 1995, but the region is back in full force, and once again has the honor of being the number one sake brewing region in Japan.

The Secrets of Nada Sake

Nada Sake's popularity is not just a coincidence. The rice, water, skilled workers, and climate of Nada are all perfect for sake brewing, and allow the production of the best sake in the world.

Yamada Nishiki Rice

Much like wine is influenced by the quality of the grapes that go into it, a proper variety of rice is essential to a delicious sake. Among the rices used to make sake, Yamada Nishiki is often considered to be the best of the best. It has all the traits of a good sake rice, including a dense white core, low protein content, and consistent size and texture.

However, Yamada Nishiki is also one of the most difficult strains of rice to grow, requiring good soil quality, weather, fertilizer, pest removal, and water management. Because Yamada Nishiki can only be grown in ideal conditions, it is only grown in a few areas throughout Japan, the most notable of these being Yokawa, a small town north of Kobe where the rice was first grown.

Miya-mizu Water

Approximately 80% of sake is water, so it goes without saying that good water is important for creating good sake. If the water used in sake production is mineral-rich, fermentation proceeds quickly, resulting in a strongly flavored sake. If mineral-poor water is used, the sake will have a softer taste.

Miya-mizu comes from a vein of underground water discovered in 1840 by a sake brewer named Tazaemon Yamamura. The vein is fed by the Shukugawa river, spring water that pushes through the granite of Mt. Rokko, and water that flows in from the sea. Miya-mizu is hard water that contains the ideal mix of minerals to stimulate fermentation, resulting in a hard, full-bodied sake.

Tamba Toji

While ingredients make or break sake, skilled crafstmen are the key to bringing out the best in those ingredients. Thanks to Nada sake's 700 year tradition, some of the best sake brewers in the world work in Nada's breweries.

In Japanese, a "toji" is the chief brewer at a brewery, in charge of the brewery's every day operations. The talents of toji from the Tamba region of Hyogo Prefecture are well known for their talents in creating Nada's full-bodied sake.

The Winds of Rokko

The final ingredient in Nada's sake is the ideal climate for sake brewing. The Rokko mountain range lies north of Nada, and the cool winds that blow down from Mt. Rokko were an essential part of the region's development.

These famous winds are called "Rokko Oroshi," and were used by early sake brewers as a way to quickly cool the steamed rice used in sake production. It is for this reason that the windows of most of the breweries face north, towards the mountains.