Katsuyama Brewery was established more than 330 years ago, in the middle of the Edo period. The brewery was founded in Sendai city in Miyagi prefecture to brew the highest quality sake to be served to the Samurai lords of the local Sendai Domain, led by the famous commander Masamune Date of the Date clan. The name Katsuyama means “Mt. Victoria”, indicating a good fortune for Samurai. Katsuyama is the only designated sake brewery in Miyagi that still has the honour to supply Sake for the Date family today.
Pure spring water from the Mountain Izumigatake
The brewery is situated at the foot of Sendai Izumigadake mountain. Originally, the brewery was located in the heart of Sendai City. In 2005, Katsuyama moved its production site to the current location outside the city, seeking to brew even better quality of sake with an especially good water source. Over a long period of time the mountain cleanses the water and provides the brewery with clean soft spring water for brewing their sake. At the same time the water provides its quality to the local rice fields to grow healthy and nutritious rice grains, which is the basis for Katsuyama sake.
Exclusive brewing
Katsuyama’s sake presents unique characters of noble bouquet, natural sweetness and elegant umami. The fruity aroma of Katsuyama can be described as gorgeous, rich and graceful. KATSUYAMA “Lei”, for instance, presents a juicy aroma of Japanese mask melon and strawberries. KATSUYAMA “Gen” is a dessert sake with ripe pear and honey notes and pleasant sweetness. It pairs well to cheese and rich food such as liver pâté. Katsuyama produces only a small amount of sake in order to ensure the highest quality of their sake. While it is common for breweries to produce seven tanks a week, Katsuyama brews only one tank a week. By focusing on just one tank, they make sure to take best care of each brewing process and to derive the best possible taste from the rice. The brewery building is modern and equipped with the latest facility, for example KATSUYAMA “Diamond” is pressed with a very sophisticated centrifuge press, which extracts the liquid from the fermented mash by centrifuging force. In this way, they can bottle drops of the finest and most delicate taste.
Sake for superior dining experiences
The owner of the brewery, Isawa family has developed a deep understanding of culinary cultures and plays an important role as a catalyst for superior culinary advancement. The family runs a large culinary school in Sendai, Miyagi Cooking College with diverse educational programs covering from Japanese cooking to patisserie. The family also runs a beautiful banquet hall with an authentic Japanese restaurant, Italian restaurant as well as a separate pizzeria. The restaurants are equipped with an impressive collection of selected vintage wines from all over the world with knowledgeable sommeliers in place.
With their outstanding interpretations and insights both to the traditional and modern cuisine, Katsuyama’s sake is brought to a higher level and accompanies not only Japanese but also French and international dishes extremely well.
Highest Awards
The brewery is now run by the owner family’s 12th generation, Mr. Heizo Isawa. He has expanded Katsuyama’s export widely and actively visits different countries to understand the actual needs of the international markets. Just to prove their continuous efforts Katsuyama received two of the best possible awards at widely recognized international Sake competitions in 2019: KATSUYAMA “Ken” became the Champion Sake at International Wine Challenge (IWC), and KATSUYAMA “DEN” received President Award of Kura Master.
Katsuyama offers a range of attractive products, each of them is unique and expressive. It also makes a wonderful gift. Enjoy Katsuyama sake as a companion to your dinner or by itself in a wine glass.
Here you can read an interview with the Katsuyama brewery.