Cellar Favorite: 2025 Aramasa No. 6 A-Type Junmai Daiginjo Sake

BY NEAL
MARTIN | AUGUST 25, 2025

Every
time I show my photo of the <a target="_blank">No. 6 A-Type Junmai Daiginjo
sake</a> to a Japanese Sake aficionado, their eyes light up. It was during
supper at my favourite mom ‘n pop sushi restaurant in Ikebukuro that the co-owner,
dressed in his traditional dark navy haori jacket, generously offered a special
sake on the house. It was his way of thanking me for my regular custom. He uttered
few words in English, except for, “Very rare. Very good.” 

He was
on the money there.

Aramasa
is a historic Japanese brewery founded in 1852. Yusuke Sato represents the
eighth generation of the family at the helm. In 1935, the company identified a
natural yeast in their brewery that they named Kyokai No. 6. This was the first
cold-climate yeast that could complete fermentation at lower temperatures, and
it revolutionised sake-making to such an extent that they immediately ceased
using the previous five strains. Many cultivated yeasts used in contemporary sake-making
can be traced back to Kyokai No. 6. Aramasa also employs the Edo-period kimoto
method, using ambient natural lactic acid to create the environment for yeast
to thrive. It is much more labour-intensive since the rice and koji
(malted rice) are ground and mixed separately, which can take up to four weeks.
This process leads to more complex sake, engendering what is said to be a more
traditional taste.<img alt="" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/images.vinous.com/uploads%2F1756132941064-CF_Aug252025.jpg">Aramasa
produces various No.6 cuvées, such as T-Type and S-Type, in different-coloured
bottles to make them easily identifiable. A-Type comes in eye-catching, lucid red
glass and is released on June 6 each year. It comes from 30 hectares of rice
grown pesticide-free in the Uyo District on the outskirts of Akita city. Here,
the Miyama Nishiki rice is fermented in wooden vats and polished at 66%. This cuvée
is highly sought after. Market prices can make Burgundy look cheap. 

The No.
6 A-Type Junmai Ginjo Sake stopped me in my tracks. Served slightly chilled, it
has a startlingly complex bouquet with intoxicating aromas of lanolin, white
truffle and peach skin, hints of pressed dandelion developing with aeration.
The weight and density of this sake is extraordinary. Yet, like a great wine,
the natural acidity effortlessly counterbalances the intensity such that this
is fresh and tensile from start to finish. I noted an almost vinous quality in
its exquisite balance and umami. So refined and almost ineffably complex, I
must confess that, within my limited experience, this redefined my perception
of the heights that Japanese sake can reach. 97/Drink 2025-2040.© 2025, Vinous. No portion of this article may be copied, shared or re-distributed without prior consent from Vinous. Doing so is not only a violation of our copyright, but also threatens the survival of independent wine criticism.

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