Juyondai, Bessen Hakutsuru Nishiki Junmai Daiginjo NV

Juyondai is a white whale for many sake aficionados, a hard-to-find sake brand that has developed a cult following due to its glamorous and mysterious reputation in the sake world. Despite being founded in 1615 in the northern Japanese Yamagata Prefecture, the Tagaki Shuzo brewery only really made a name for itself relatively recently when its toji (master brewer) retired and left the direction of the kura unclear. The company president’s son, Akitsuna Takagi, then took over and set out to craft a different sake experience to contrast with the light and dry sakes that were popular at the time. Under the Juyondai label (meaning 14th generation, named in honor of Tagaki’s father, who was the 14th generation to run the brewery), Takagi oversaw the creation of bold and bright sakes that quickly garnered a legendary reputation.