TENTAKA SHUZO Co., Ltd.

Information

Description

1）About Us
Tentaka Sake Brewery was founded in 1914 and is located at the southern end of the Nasu Highlands in northern Tochigi Prefecture, in a rural area between two rivers, the Naka River and the Broomstick River. The brewery brews sake in an environment rich in nature, with clean air and soil, and an abundance of groundwater from the Nasu Mountains.

2）Why the company name “Tentaka”?
The company name "Ten-Taka" was named after the founder's dream of a goshawk soaring in the sky. The company has been brewing only dry sake since its establishment, believing that "if it is not dry, it is not sake. From early on, the company has been refining its rice and producing "ginjo-shu," and has a record of successively winning awards at various national and international competitions. Furthermore, since more than half a century ago, when the term "junmai-shu" did not exist, we have been selling "rice-only sake" under the name of "Kissui Mutenka Seishu (additive-free sake) Tentaka Kokoro".
We have always been ahead of the times, never afraid to change, and have always been "brewing sake that challenges", such as the introduction of "rice-only sake" more than half a century ago, when the term "junmai-shu" was not even used.

3）Be an Organic Sake Brewery
In order to deliver "safe, secure, and enjoyable" products to our customers, Tentaka has always been ahead of the times and continues to produce high quality products. In recent years, we have started organic sake production, which is rare in Japan. We use not only the rice but also the materials of the machinery and equipment used to ensure the safety of the products. For this reason, the company has now obtained organic certification not only in Japan, but also in the United States and the European Union, which are leading organic countries. There are many breweries that use organic rice, but only a few dozen or so in Japan can call themselves "organic sake. In 2017, Tentaka became the first organic sake brewery in Japan to win a gold medal at the National New Sake Competition held by the National Institute of Sake Research, the most prestigious public organization in Japan with over 100 years of history. In addition, we have received various other awards in Japan and overseas, including Kanto Shinetsu Regional Taxation Bureau, International Wine Challenge Sake Category (UK), Kura Master (France), U.S. National Sake Appraisal (USA), Milano Sake (Italy), and others. Sake (Italy), etc.

4）Difficulties to brew organic sake
In order to farm organic rice, the soil must first be converted to organic. It takes at least two years to convert the field to organic and obtain certification to complete the "organic field. In addition, certified organic "seed rice" and "tools" must be prepared. We grow our own organic rice and use it as a raw material for organic sake and organic rice koji.
One of the key points to keep in mind with organic sake is to avoid non-organic things' contamination. Organic products are concentrated at a certain time during the brewing season each year to prevent contamination of non-organic products, such as raw materials.In addition, before brewing organic products, all tools used must be cleaned, boiled, and sterilized. We clean and sterilize the tools more meticulously than usual to prevent dust, debris, and remnants of previously manufactured raw materials from entering the equipment. Although this requires more labor and manpower, it allows us to provide safe and secure organic products. In addition, we have renovated our facilities so that the entire production facility can be washed with water. The floors, walls, and ceilings have been replaced with materials that can be washed with water.

5）Our purpose
In 2018, we established "Tentaka Organic Farm Co., Ltd.", an agricultural corporation specializing in organic farming, with the aim of establishing an environmentally friendly production system that integrates everything from direct soil preparation in the rice paddies to cultivation of raw material rice and sake production. Furthermore, the company is aiming for "gentle sake brewing" by sterilizing utensils with boiling water, using many reusable bottles, and generating 30% of the electricity used by the company through solar power generation.
In 2020, the British Vegan Society, the world's oldest vegan certification organization, approved all of our sake, shochu, liqueurs, and food products as vegan, with the exception of mead.
All of our employees are committed to providing "safe, secure, and enjoyable" products to our customers.

Région viticole

Kanto

Country

Japan

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Production mode

Year of certification

2023

Quality approach

Fairtrade

Packaging

Glass bottle

Product type

Other organic alcoholic beverages

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Distribution networks

Current customer(s) type

Café / Hotel / Restaurant

Caviste

Courtier / Agent commercial

Détaillant

Détaillant Bio

E-commerce / VPC

Exportateur

GMS

Grossiste

Importateur

Sommelier

Current countries

Japon

Type of target customer(s)

Cafe / Hotel / Restaurant

Wine merchant

Broker / Commercial agent

Retailer

Organic Retailer

E-commerce / Mail order

Exporter

GMS

Wholesaler

Importer

Sommelier

Target country(ies)

France

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Website

Visit the TENTAKA SHUZO Co., Ltd. website

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Main contact

First name

Shunsuke

Name

OZAKI

Function

Cellar Master