Houou Biden Wine Cell Junmai Ginjo Hiire (720 ml)

When Masaki Kobayashi took the helm of the 1872-founded Kobayashi Shuzo in the 1990s, he made a decision that nearly defied commercial logic: eliminate every non-ginjo SKU and stake the brewery's survival on labor-intensive, ultra-premium sake alone. That transgression turned a near-bankrupt house into one of Japan's rare dedicated ginjo-only kura. The Wine Cell Junmai Ginjo Hiire is the entry point into that philosophy — and it carries the full weight of the house method.

The brewery sits along the historic Nikko Reiheishi Kaido in Oyama City, Tochigi, drawing water from pure underground springs fed by snowmelt off the Nikko mountain range. That soft, mineral-clean water is the invisible backbone of the house's characteristically clean, dry finish. Rice: Gohyakumangoku (Toyama), polished to 55% seimaibuai — a variety prized for its clean fermentation and restrained ginjo lift rather than heavy sweetness. Koji is made entirely by hand in a multi-tiered humidity-controlled room; fermentation proceeds slowly at low temperature to develop aromatic ginjo compounds. Pressing is exclusively by traditional sase-shiki cloth-bag and fukurozuri gravity drip — zero mechanical pressure, preserving aromatic delicacy. This expression is hiire (bottled pasteurized), stabilizing the profile for cellaring and consistent restaurant service. What sets this apart within the Houou Biden range is its accessibility without compromise: the same no-mechanical-press, hand-koji discipline applied to the flagship daiginjo, delivered at ginjo polish. Drink now through 2–3 years; serve at 10–12°C to preserve the muscat-melon lift, or gently warmed to 40°C to draw out the Gohyakumangoku grain texture.