Sake History
Sake has an interesting and lengthy history. Its origins are rooted in ancient China, where as far back as 4000 B.C., rice was used in fermentation of alcoholic beverages. Wet rice cultivation, the practice of growing rice in soaked or flooded paddies, brought the first type of sake to Japan, perhaps as far back as the 3rd century C.E. This “chewing in the mouth sake” or kuchikami no sake was made by the chewing of rice by villagers, spat into a communal mash. The villager’s saliva contributed enzymes necessary to the fermentation process of this early sake. The practice was abandoned with the discovery of koji-kin.
Koji-kin, or aspergillus oryzae, is a commonly used fungus in Asia. In addition to sake, koji is also used in the production of miso, soy sauce, and natto, fermented soybeans. Koji-kin is created when koji spores colonize rice. The initial discovery of koji-kin most likely was an accident. Koji spores, floating in the air, likely colonized inside batches of kuchikami no sake, resulting in sake with a much greater percentage of alcohol. Some of the mash from this “naturally” occurring sake would be kept to use in subsequent batches once the chemical reaction was better understood.
Once the discovery of koji-fermented sake was made, sake brewing technique improved steadily over the next century. Sake was brewed by families, villages, and Shinto monasteries; it was used in temple purification rituals, weddings, and a wide variety of rituals and customs. Sake brewing had won a place in Japan’s rich history, both in home brewing and commercial brewing.
Commercial brewing of sake came to a peak during the Meiji Restoration, 1866-1869. The Japanese government allowed anybody with the knowledge to run sake breweries. Wealthy land owners would use left-over rice from their annual crop to brew sake. These families grew wealthy not only due to the number of koku they harvested annually, but also from the sale of sake. Many of these wealthy families still brew sake today.
The Russo-Japanese war of 1904 saw the end of legal brewing of sake by those not running a licensed brewery. Sake accounted for so large a portion of Japan’s tax revenue that the unlicensed brewing of sake was seen as a threat to Japan’s prosperity. Even though sake does not contribute significantly to Japan’s taxes today, the law banning it’s home production is still in effect. Today, unless you run a licensed brewery, it is illegal to produce your own sake at home.