How Come Water is so Important in Sake?

Sake’s unique character comes largely from water, which makes up about 80% of the brew and influences everything from taste to texture. It’s not just some filler (although brewers do often dilute their product before bottling). It is a key player throughout the entire sake-making process, used for washing and soaking the rice, the main brewing stage, and even for tweaking the final alcohol level and getting it ready for the bottle. In fact, brewers use anywhere from 20 to 50 times the weight of a batch’s rice in water!

The type of water used, and specifically its mineral content or hardness, dramatically influences sake’s flavor. Soft water, which is low in minerals, tends to make for a light and crisp sake, often described as “female sake” for its elegant quality. Niigata’s soft snowmelt rivers and Hiroshima’s likewise soft water are famous for this. On the other hand, hard water, which is rich in minerals, makes for a bolder style of sake, nicknamed “male sake” for it’s punchier effect. Hyogo-Nada’s Miyamizu water, which is filtered along mineral-heavy Mt. Rokko, is the go-to example, is known to make sharp sake with some heft to it. Medium-hard water, like Kyoto-Fushimi’s Gokosui, is known for having some balance, and it makes for sake with a gentle but present taste that sits comfortably between the two extremes.

Water quality is a must for brewers, who want it to be clean (because nobody wants dirty sake) and odorless. Water containing minerals like potassium and magnesium is excellent as it supports fermentation and helps make the final flavor come out cleaner, but elements like iron or manganese are avoided as they can spoil the sake’s taste and shelf life. 

Breweries often filter their water in house or adjust its composition to hit the right balance for them, which means it complements their selection of rice and yeast. Historically, Japan’s breweries were built near the best water sources around, such as those aforementioned rivers in Niigata, wells in Hiroshima, or springs in Hyogo. Water, aside from rice, is one of the major factors that gives sake its local claim. Ultimately, water isn’t so much an ingredient in sake as it is the sake itself!