Junpei Kubo — Signor Sake

Seven with Signor Sake: Junpei Kubo (Kubo Honke, Nara)

I’m asking seven questions to my favourite sake makers to hear their story and get their take on the centuries-old craft.

In a 300-year-old brewery, Junpei and his team of brewers devote themselves to preserving tradition. Namely, an old, labour-intensive fermentation starter that goes back to the 17th century. The choice to go the more laborious, traditional route was not apparent at first.

When Junpei got relocated back to Japan after a stint overseas, he left his promising career in finance to take over the family business--despite having zero experience in brewing or brewery management. Under the full weight of being the 11th generation owner, he began making contacts in the industry to help him find his footing. That’s when he met Kato, a brewer who was looking for a new place to express his creative side. Since that meeting, the two of them have gone from strength to strength.

Undeterred by fashions and trends, they focus on harnessing the power of natural microorganisms using the Kimoto method and ‘kanzen hakko’—best translated as ‘perfect fermentation’—which sees the team fermenting as much of the starch to sugar as possible and creating a sake that doesn’t fight with food.

1. You’re located in the Ouda area which has a population of just 7,000. Can you tell us about the area and how your family came to be here?

In the old days when the capital was located in Asuka (today’s Nara), it was a place where the imperial family hunted. It’s located near the Kumano Kodo and Ise Kaido roads, and prospered as a post town. In the Edo period (1603-1868), there were as many as twenty sake breweries and the population was much larger than now. There’s a lot of history here, and even today there’s still a lot of nature. I think it's a blessed area for sake brewing because the local climate and culture has a great influence on the sake.

Our ancestors came here from the Yoshino area in 1702 and wanted to make a name for themselves. It’s now a country town, but in the old days it was a castle town along the interstate highway with many liquor stores and restaurants. We came here to run a successful business 300 years ago. I lived in the brewery until I was 18 years old. When I was growing up, there were wooden barrels drying around the river. I have memories of kicking over the barrels with my muddy shoes and getting yelled at.

“I have memories of kicking over the barrels with my muddy shoes and getting yelled at.”

2. Nara is the birthplace of the Bodaimoto yeast starter, but you and your team decide to use the Kimoto method instead. Why is that?

When it comes to sake that pairs well with food, I think Kimoto is the best method. Sake that is crisp, with a good umami, and matures well is made with a Kimoto starter. After watching our master brewer’s approach, I came to believe that the roots of sake brewing lie in Kimoto. It’s costly and technically difficult, so it’s a constant struggle. It may be possible to express the same kind of flavour with a Bodaimoto starter, but since our master brewer joined our brewery to make sake using this method, we followed his wishes. From a business perspective, sake brewed with a Kimoto starter sells well too.

3. What made you decide to join the brewery after working in the UK?

When I was working for a bank, I got transferred to London. While it was my company’s decision to transfer me back to the Japan office, I was also beginning to think that it would be a shame not to continue the family business, which had been in existence for generations. After I got married, I became more aware of all the connections I had made. Since the time when I was in London, my friends would ask me why I wouldn’t go for such an interesting job, but when I was in my twenties, I didn't want to go back to the brewery. However, as my father was getting older, I felt a need to go back. I didn't think too much about it. I knew that although sake brewing was hard work, I could handle it. There were issues regarding the survival of the brewery, and I knew we couldn’t go on like this.

“There were issues regarding the survival of the brewery, and I knew we couldn’t go on like this.”

4. What were your initial goals when you joined the brewery?

I was trying to figure out how to increase sales and keep the business going. There were breweries that were doing well because they were using automated large liquefied brewing systems, but we didn't want to go in that direction. We were running the business while searching for our own style, but I realised that we needed something solid. That’s when I met our current brew master, Kato, and things changed. I learned a lot from him. Without him, we would not have been able to make a traditional Kimoto yeast mash. It wasn’t our decision to quit ‘minouzei’ (a previously common industry practice where small breweries supplied sake to large breweries). We lost the contract with the major manufacturer who we were making sake for. Major manufacturers are cost-conscious, so subcontractors who couldn’t meet their demands were rapidly cut off.

When I came back to the brewery, I don't remember having a tough time at work. It was very friendly and harmonious. Back then, we mainly produced regular table sake and only one brand of Daiginjo for the sake competition, so we didn't have to work so hard.

“That’s when I met our current brew master, Kato, and things changed. I learned a lot from him.”

5. I heard that before signing the contract with you, Kato, who you met through Shinkame, had several requests. Can you tell us about that?

He asked us to invest in a lot of equipment to make Kimoto and storage facilities, such as an additional warehouse for ageing. However, these requests weren’t made before he joined our brewery, but after (laughs). Of course, we needed financing to build new facilities, so we borrowed from the bank.

6. I also heard that Kato insists that all brewers at Kubo Honke have shaved heads.

I heard that rumour, but it's not true (laughs). Since Kato has a shaved head, the brewers naturally follow him as an example and shave theirs. He once asked me if I wanted to shave mine, but I refused, saying I don't want to go to the bank to borrow money with a shaved head.

A while ago, a female brewer joined us, and one day, she came to work with a shaved head. I yelled at Kato and told him not to force people to do that. But apparently, she shaved it voluntarily. She wanted to show Kato and us that she was determined enough to do it. I asked her if her father and mother were sad that their daughter had shaved her own head, and she told me that they liked the boyish style on her. She joined the brewery in her early twenties and worked for us for about eight years.

“A while ago, a female brewer joined us, and one day, she came to work with a shaved head. I yelled at Kato and told him not to force people to do that. But apparently, she shaved it voluntarily.”

7. What can you tell us about storage temperature and flavour development?

We age some of our sake at room temperature. We also produce some Daiginjo sake that hasn’t been fully fermented and then age it at a low temperature. The best thing about sake made with the Kimoto method is that the flavour deepens as it matures, and it pairs well with food. We aim for a complete fermentation in all our production.

If the quality of the sake is unpleasantly sour, it means that it has gone bad, but this is rare. It doesn’t matter if it’s a sake made with Sokujo (a modern yeast starter) or Kimoto method, it’s possible for it to go bad. Fully-fermented sake has less glucose, so it’s less likely to go bad, and the quality is less likely to deteriorate. And some sake needs to be kept in the refrigerator even after being pasteurised.

Find out more about Kubo Honke in Nara here;

https://kubohonke.com/