Sake Spotlight – Bella Pearson Extols Nagano Prefecture’s “Equilibrium”
We love when our “vendors” come to True Sake to taste us on products that they want us to carry for our customers, especially when they are super stoked about a brew. One of our favorite slingers of sake is Bella Pearson, who is the Field Sales Manager for Vine Connections and covers Norcal, AZ, and HI, and is Kome Collective rock star. In speaking with Bella and all of our sake slingers we like knowing what is going on out in the market from their perspective and their portfolio. Bella mentioned some sushi bar feedback from one of their amazing products called “Equilibrium,” which is one of my favorite names in sake, and we liked taking this info into our True Sake Newsletter. So herewith is Bella’s thoughts on an incredible sake that walks the walk:
Daishinsyu Equilibrium - Where Perfection Meets Philosophy
There are breweries that make excellent sake, and then there are breweries that make you rethink what's even possible. Daishinsyu, nestled in Matsumoto City in Nagano Prefecture, belongs firmly in the latter category. Geography has blessed this place: situated between coastal Toyama and Niigata, Nagano is protected by mountain ranges that create dry, pristine air—no humidity, no mold, no need for pesticides. The water? Snowmelt that takes 30 years to filter through the Northern Alps before reaching their 70-meter-deep well. Soft, almost sweet, with a remarkable elasticity you can feel. And here's what really gets me: 97% of Nagano's rice grades as first-grade upon inspection. When your terroir is this blessed, you don't take shortcuts. You honor it.
And honor it, they do. While most breweries reserve timed rice soaking for premium offerings, Daishinsyu does it for everything—"how you do anything is how you do everything." They chill their already-cold well water an extra 5°C for precision (spending a fortune). They skip the houreki device and use precious floor space for shizen hourei—natural cooling in that pristine air. No tank blending, no thermal tanks, minimal technology. This philosophy was born from legendary Toji Otani, who brewed for 75 years until retiring at 91 in 2008. His tastings were mythological—he could trace a sake's entire journey just by tasting. But what shaped Daishinsyu most was his humility: even after achieving greatness, he listened to younger voices and stayed up late studying so he could pass on knowledge. His wish was that all sake be brewed with equal care, regardless of polishing ratio.
For Equilibrium, they grow their own 100% organic Kinmonnishiki rice, sprinkling their nuka back onto the paddies to improve quality and returning sake kasu as fertilizer. Everything connects. The sake drinks sweeter than its glucose levels suggest (averaging just 1.4)—that sweetness comes from the soft water, expansive rice texture, and natural alcohol sweetness. This is sake made with reverence for land, water, and the master who showed them the way. In a world of compromises, this kind of commitment tastes absolutely glorious.
