Beautiful Sake is Akin to Water
Over 2,000 years old, Sake firmly remains a uniquely Japanese creation. SAKE opens the doors to this Far Eastern tradition
Review by Andy Barnham Photography by Jason M. Lang
This weighty, pale blue, hard bound, 400 page plus tome charts a painstaking and lengthy journey down the main islands through all of Japan’s 47 prefectures, from Hokkaido in the north to Okinawa in the south. Visiting 75 breweries along the way, authors Japanese native Hayato Hishinuma and Canadian Elliot Faber, investigate what makes each brewery tick and what makes their creations special with tasting notes, owners, ageing process and accolades among some of the details listed per location. Interviewing the personalities and families behind the breweries the reader is given an insight into their histories, from recently established breweries (Echigo Den- Emon established in 1996) to the oldest producer in the country (Sudohonke in 1141). The end result offers readers not only an insight into sake as a drink, but is also so rich in associated information that it could almost be taken as a cultural and historical guide to Japan.
Laid out in topographical order from north to south (according to nihonshu, shōchū and awamori), SAKE serves as a guide both to the novice wishing to learn more as well as more educated aficionados seeking to complete gaps in their knowledge. Accompanying Hayato and Elliot on their every step taken and cup drunk was travel photographer Jason M. Lang with the photographs being given almost equal weight in the book. From wide landscape shots of Japan’s mountains to close up details of sake cups and bottles, the range of images fits perfectly and helps readers put faces and details to each prefecture, brewery and Master Brewer without feeling repetitive or clichéd. Indeed some of the images are reminiscent of works by Japanese print artists Hokusai and Hiroshige, which given the subject matter and various times of the year Jason undertook the project is understandable; his snow covered photograph of the old castle town Masuda in the northern prefecture of Akita where the Hinomaru brewery is based being a prime example. 
Enquiries: SAKE: The History, Craft and Beauty of Artisanal Japanese Breweries by Hayato Hishinuma, Jason M. Lang and Elliot Faber is available from Gatehouse Publishing for £75 with a box, limited edition at £160.