The Sake Anatomy › Sake Brand Index › Daishinshu
No.94 · Brewery Profile
Daishinshu大信州 · Daishinshu Shuzo 大信州酒造
Daishinshu traces to a Matsumoto sake house founded in 1880, later folded into a wider Nagano brewing group that consolidated all production back into a single Matsumoto kura in 2020. The house favors restraint over showiness — dry, refined ginjo with delicate citrus and white-grape aromatics — brewed with snowmelt from the Northern Alps and rice grown under contract, milled separately for every individual farmer.
Who makes Daishinshu?
Daishinshu traces to a Matsumoto sake house founded in 1880, later folded into a wider Nagano brewing group that consolidated all production back into a single Matsumoto kura in 2020. The house brews with snowmelt from the Northern Alps and rice grown under contract, milled separately for every individual farmer.
What does Daishinshu taste like?
Tagged Elegant & Refined and Dry & Crisp, Daishinshu favors restraint over showiness — dry, refined ginjo with delicate citrus and white-grape aromatics. The Bekkakoi Junmai Ginjo is the light, dry standard-bearer of the range; the Junmai Daiginjo Inabikari uses the Nagano-native Kinmon Nishiki rice; the Ihawaiki, named for the brewery’s “harmony is precious” motto, is the most aromatic of the three at 4/5.
Which bottle should you try first?
Start with the Bekkakoi Junmai Ginjo, described as the light, dry standard-bearer of the range.
How does Daishinshu compare to other Nagano breweries?
Daishinshu’s combination of Elegant & Refined and Dry & Crisp matches prefecture-mate Reijin most closely; it shares the Elegant & Refined side with Masumi and the Dry & Crisp side with Nanawarai, which instead pairs that dryness with Rich & Umami.
Frequently asked questions
When did Daishinshu consolidate its production?
In 2020, when a wider Nagano brewing group folded all production back into a single Matsumoto kura.
What rice variety is used in the Junmai Daiginjo Inabikari?
Kinmon Nishiki, a rice variety native to Nagano.
What does the name Ihawaiki mean?
It comes from the brewery’s guiding motto, “harmony is precious.”
The bottles
Bekkakoi Junmai Ginjo別囲い純米吟醸
爽酒 Soshu · Light & Smooth“Light, dry standard-bearer of the range.”
Junmai Daiginjo Inabikari純米大吟醸 稲光
薫酒 Kunshu · Fragrant“Made with the Nagano-native Kinmon Nishiki rice variety.”
Ihawaiki以和為貴
薫酒 Kunshu · Fragrant“Named for the brewery’s guiding motto, ‘harmony is precious.’”
Reading the bars: an editorial flavor reading (0–5) of each bottle — Dry→Rich, Light→Full, Subtle→Aromatic, Low→High acidity — not laboratory values. The colored badge is the SSI four-type classification (薫酒 Kunshu · 爽酒 Soshu · 醇酒 Junshu · 熟酒 Jukushu). SMV and acidity appear only where the brewery publishes them.
Sources: daishinsyu.com · sakenomy.jp