HighSake is proud to represent Kuminoura Ryuguromantan-Dragon Palace Sea Aged Sake. An ultra ultra rare Sake (although our scale doesn’t go that low!), it is only available through 3 alcohol shops in Japan and is not on general sale. Only 120 litres were produced this year and we are very fortunate enough to get our hands on a few of them.

A truly intriguing Sake. Dragon Palace has been slowly aged for 6 months, 27 meters (88 feet) under the sea on the seabed of Kotohiki beach. This beach is famous for it’s “singing sand”, a symbol of the beautiful ocean.

Accredited Sake Quality appraiser says:

When opened, the scent of the rose drifts.
It has a smooth, citrusy, clean taste and is crisp on the throat with a refreshing aftertaste. The taste is delicate as silk and has been gently and softly ripened by the effect of the waves of the Sea of Japan leaving a well-balanced umami flavour and a gorgeous smell like pure rice ginjo.

Kuminoura Brewery is based in Tango, north Kyoto and was founded through the merging of several breweries dating back over 200 years. Their Sake name translates to the Eternal Beauty of the Bay due to the ever-seasonal beauty of their brewery location.

Their brewery master (Toji) was trained by one of the most renowned brewery schools. It with his passion and knowledge that the brewery consistently produces the finest Sake.

They source their rice locally from special contracted farmers to ensure the best quality of rice and they use pure water which is highly analysed to ensure the same quality of water and so, the same taste, every time. This is highly unusual in brewing Sake as the yeast normally requires minerals from water to survive and pure water does not contain these essential minerals. However through their special brewing techniques (honed over many years), and the quality of rice they use, enough nutrients can be maintained to ensure the yeast can thrive.

There were many problems to overcome to produce a fantastic Sake on the seabed: What are the regulations? Where is the governing body? Which seabed is the best? How deep should the Sake be placed? What is the UV light concentration? What is the water temperature? Do liquor bottles withstand water pressure?…..While repeatedly making mistakes, they finally solved all problems to produce Dragon Palace.