The Sake Anatomy › Sake Brand Index › Umenishiki
No.127 · Brewery Profile
Umenishiki梅錦 · Umenishiki Yamakawa 梅錦山川
Umenishiki Yamakawa has brewed in Shikokuchuo, Ehime since 1872, and built a quietly formidable record — 33 Superior Gold medals at Japan’s national sake awards — before joining the Hakutsuru group in 2016. Alongside its core Sake Hitosuji and daiginjo lines, the brewery helped develop Sakaso, an Ehime-exclusive sake fermented with a flower-derived yeast bred jointly with the prefecture and Tokyo University of Agriculture.
Who makes Umenishiki?
Umenishiki Yamakawa, founded in 1872 in Shikokuchuo, Ehime. The brewery built a quietly formidable record — 33 Superior Gold medals at Japan’s national sake awards — before joining the Hakutsuru group in 2016.
What does Umenishiki taste like?
Tagged Elegant & Refined and Rich & Umami. The Sake Hitosuji bottling is the house’s “black label” flagship (rich 3/5); the Junmai Daiginjo is full-bodied and slightly sweet (full 3/5); and Sakaso! is the most aromatic (4/5), fermented with a locally developed flower-derived yeast unique to Ehime.
Which bottle should you try first?
The Sake Hitosuji bottling is explicitly called the brewery’s “black label” flagship — the natural starting point.
How does Umenishiki compare to other Ehime breweries?
Ishizuchi is the only other Ehime brewery in this index, sharing the same Elegant & Refined, Rich & Umami tags as Umenishiki — a house style the two prefecture-mates have in common.
Frequently asked questions
How many Superior Gold medals has Umenishiki Yamakawa won at Japan’s national sake awards?
33, a record built before the brewery joined the Hakutsuru group in 2016.
What is Sakaso!?
An Ehime-exclusive sake fermented with a flower-derived yeast bred jointly by the brewery, the prefecture, and Tokyo University of Agriculture.
Which Umenishiki bottle is the flagship?
The Sake Hitosuji bottling, referred to as the brewery’s “black label” flagship.
The bottles
Sake Hitosuji酒一筋
醇酒 Junshu · Rich“Brewery’s ‘black label’ flagship.”
Junmai Daiginjo純米大吟醸
薫酒 Kunshu · Fragrant“Full-bodied, slightly sweet style.”
Sakaso!SAKASO！
薫酒 Kunshu · Fragrant“Brewed with a locally developed flower-derived yeast unique to Ehime.”
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: umenishiki.com