Enoteca Hong Kong, a leading wine retailer in the city, has added a Japanese sake brand Domaine Kurodasho to its portfolio for the first time, as it diversifies its offerings.
Domaine Kurodasho is the premium sake range from Kuheiji of Banjo Sake Brewery, which is well-known for producing high-end Japanese sake. Located in Hyogo prefecture, the brewery uses what is known as “the king of sake rice” Yamadanishiki for its sake production. The Yamadanishiki grown in Hyogo is regarded as of the best quality in Japan.
In addition to Sake, the brewery also makes wines in France’s Burgundy. It has been making wines from its winery Domaine Kuheiji in Morey-Saint-Denis since 2016. Enoteca is also importing its Bourgogne wines to Hong Kong.
One of the best rated wines on its online store is the 2018 Kuheiji Rouge. The wine is produced in a limited production of 30 to 40 ml hectolitres per hectare. It is produced with 60% Pinot noir and 40% Gamay, a famous type of grapes grown in the Beaujolais and the Loire Valley.
“We are honoured to have the exclusive distribution rights of Domaine Kuheiji and Domaine Kurodasho for Hong Kong. Domaine Kurodasho is the first sake we represent at Enoteca HK and we hope to present more quality sake brands to our customers in near future.” Nick Chan, CEO of Enoteca HK, commented.
One of its special practices is to incorporate Burgundian wine philosophy into its rice brewing process. Different from most breweries emphasizing on brewing techniques, Domaine Kurodashō emphasis the concept of “domaine” and “terroir”. Since 2010, the brewery has started to grow its own rice in Hyogo as it believes the crops must come from its own farmland. The brewery also pays attention to the climate, soil and geography of the rice fields.
The influence of wine culture can be seen on its bottling and packaging process as well. Domaine Kurodashō would state the vintage on the sake’s label.
The sake is filled in Champagne bottles and closed with cork, instead of using conventional sake bottles and metal screw caps. These innovative practices are believed to bring a higher aging potential to sake, which can be more than 6 years old.
Enoteca Hong Kong is part of the Japan-headquartered Enoteca group, a leading retailer of wines and spirits owned by Asahi Breweries. It owns and operates stores across Asia in Japan, Singapore, South Korea, Thailand, Taipei, Hong Kong and mainland China.
