Saijo, Higashihiroshima, Hiroshima Prefecture — sake brewing town from 17th century; nansui jozo breakthrough in 1898
Saijo (西条) in Higashihiroshima City is one of Japan's three great sake-brewing towns (alongside Nada in Hyogo and Fushimi in Kyoto), known for its cluster of breweries along a single historic street where the towering white kura (brewery) walls and distinctive red-brick chimneys define the townscape. Hiroshima sake's distinctive character emerged from a breakthrough by Miura Senzaburo in 1898: he developed the soft-water brewing technique (nansui jozo, 軟水醸造) that enabled high-quality sake production from Hiroshima's naturally soft water (which had previously been considered unsuitable for sake brewing as soft water produces weaker, less controlled fermentation). The result was the Hiroshima nansui style — characterised by a slightly sweeter, rounder, richer body compared to Niigata's lean dry tanrei style, with more pronounced rice character and a gentle mouthfeel. The major Saijo breweries — Kamotsuru, Hakubotan, Fuchu Homare, Chugoku Jozo — are located within 300 metres of each other, sharing the same underground aquifer. The annual Saijo Sake Festival (October) is one of Japan's largest sake events, drawing 200,000 visitors over two days. Hiroshima sake pairs naturally with the prefecture's foods: oysters (the roundness of Hiroshima junmai pairs with the sweetness of oyster brine), anago (conger eel), and Hiroshima okonomiyaki.
Round, soft, slightly sweet rice character with gentle mouthfeel — the opposite of Niigata's lean dryness; Hiroshima sake is the warm embrace to Niigata's clean handshake
{"Nansui jozo (soft water brewing) requires longer, more careful fermentation — soft water has fewer minerals to support yeast activity, requiring skilled temperature management","Hiroshima sake (Nada: dry and powerful; Fushimi: soft and elegant; Saijo: round and sweet) — the three cities represent three distinct poles of Japanese sake style","Kamotsuru Tokusei Gold Label is the benchmark Hiroshima junmai daiginjo — round, slightly sweet, deeply fragrant, best served at 12–14°C","The aquifer under Saijo produces naturally soft water at approximately 20mg/L hardness — this geological fact is the origin of the regional style","Hiroshima sake pairs with oysters because the sweetness and roundness of the sake does not compete with the mineral brine of the oyster — it complements by providing contrast"}
{"During Saijo Sake Festival, the kura themselves operate outdoor tasting counters — tasting directly from the brewery where sake was produced is the definitive education","Hiroshima's nansui style sake benefits from slight warming (atsukan at 45–50°C) in winter — the soft, round mouthfeel becomes even more enveloping when warm, unlike Niigata daiginjo which must be served cold","The pairing of Kamotsuru honjozo with grilled anago (conger eel) is a classic Hiroshima combination — the honjozo's clean alcohol cuts through the fat while the sake's rice sweetness amplifies the eel's sweetness"}
{"Expecting Hiroshima sake to have the lean dryness of Niigata — the two regions represent opposite ends of the style spectrum and should not be evaluated by the same criteria","Visiting Saijo outside the October festival period without booking brewery tours in advance — most kura require reservations for tours outside festival season"}
Saijo Sake Brewers Association documentation; John Gauntner — Sake Confidential