The “Beau-Zone” Layer – Koshinohomare “Kiki” Kijoshu
From Niigata Prefecture
Muroka Kijoshu
SMV: -13 Acidity: 2.2
This is a first for the Beau-Zone Layer I think! This is the first Kijoshu that I have written about. There is a chance that I wrote about the other two Kijoshu that we carry “Monsoon” by Emishiki and Kijoshu by Mutsu-Hassen, but I don’t think I did. I should have because Kijoshu is an excellent segment in the sake industry. Why? Because Kijoshu is almost like double sake. Huh? Basically, the way to make Kijoshu sake is rather than adding proportional parts of koji rice, steamed rice, and water, you actually add sake instead of water. Whoa! And yes you are correct in your thinking that Kijoshu is generally sweeter than regular sake.
What is really cool about "Kiki" is that the sake they use when adding in is Koshinohomare’s “90% Pink” which is a very fresh and lively and less polished brew that is a seasonally released favorite in the store. That is also why we have a limited quantity of this Kijoshu, because we had to pre-order it for their fall releases. I think the brewers had fun making this brew, because it drinks fun! It’s not heavy. In fact, it drinks bright, elegant, balanced and with just the right amount of sweetness. It’s a great food pairing sake as well, because it performs like a riesling with some good glucose. They also have fun with the packaging because they boiled the concept of Kijoshu down into the catch phrase, “Sake meets sake.” That’s it. Instead of adding water to the brewing process, they add sake where sake meets sake.
If you have not tried a Kijoshu, this is a great starting point! And as you may surmise, water doesn’t cost a thing. However, brewing with sake instead of water means you have to pay for a good sake to use, and that is why Kijoshu tends to be a little more expensive than Ginjo sake.