Old-fashioned old house

Meiji to Taisho period (1868 to 1926 years)

Statue of Takamori Saigo

In 1853, Admiral Perry from the US Navy led an 6 black ship to Uraga (Yokosuka City, Kanagawa Prefecture). This is a black ship that has shaken all over Japan.

ThisJapan was forced to open its country, and the times moved to the end of the turbulent period. 15 generation general, Yoshiki Tokugawa, will return to the Imperial Court the government that he held for about 260 years.

And the end-of-life group declared that it wanted to abolish the Edo Shogunate and establish a new government centered on the Emperor (the Great Order of the Restoration of the King). After that, he won the Shogunate army in the Sakai War and established the Meiji government.

The beginning of the Meiji era.

-Reinforcement of liquor tax-

Japan has been taking a national isolation policy for more than 200 years. Due to the lack of contact with foreign countries, I was greatly behind the progress of the world.

The Meiji government considered the urgent need to catch up with the Western powers, and raised the policy of “Fulfilled country soldiers” to enrich the country and create a strong army.

In order to realize this policy, the country will start to strengthen tax collection. The first thing that was mentioned"Liquor tax".

Tax revenue at that time was limited to land tax (tax imposed on land) and liquor tax, so the percentage of liquor tax in the country's financial resources was originally high..

First, it was established in the Edo period“Sake Brewery Co., Ltd.” (a system that allows sake brewers to be allowed only within the specified stock price range for those who have a label indicating the amount of rice for brewing) has been abolishedWill be. If you have brewing technology and capitalAnyone can freely make liquorIt is

そ し て,`` Stone-making tax ''The new tax system was introduced in 1878 (Meiji 11). thisThe “stone-making tax” means that tax is generated at the moment of squeezing sake.That's it.

In other words, the liquor will rot while it is squeezed and stored, but it will leak and disappear,When squeezedI had to pay the tax imposed.

By the way, the tax currently levied on sake is`` Take-out tax (storage tax) '' (Kuradashize)Is calledAt the point when the sake you made sells and shipsTaxes will occur.

In addition, in order to collect taxes more smoothly and reliably in 1899 (Meiji 32) year,Completely banned sake brewing and consumption by homebrewing.

For a long time, many farms across the country have made "Doburoku" as usual. At that time, there were more than 100 million farmers with private brewing licenses.Private brewing was treated as a “counterfeit” and no longer allowedIt is

Even today, it is illegal for ordinary people who do not have a sake brewing license to make homemade dolls. Fines and, in some cases, imprisonment may be imposed as a violation of the liquor tax law.

By the way, in order to obtain a brewing license, it is necessary to clear conditions such as the minimum production quantity standard and certain facilities.

The minimum production quantity for sake is 60 kiloliters per year. Since it is equivalent to 1 books in terms of 33,000.8 liters, it would be impossible for an individual to obtain a liquor manufacturing license.

~ The victory of the Sino-Japanese Russo-Japanese War is thanks to liquor tax ~

The Meiji government will continue to raise taxes while repeating trial and error, such as revision and addition of liquor tax.

The momentum of the increase in liquor tax during this period was tremendous. The ratio of liquor tax to national tax is1881% in 14 (Meiji 17) year, jumps to about 1899% in 32 (Meiji 35) year. I pulled out the land tax and stood at the top of the national tax revenue.

By the way, in the year of 2016 (Heisei 28), the share of liquor tax in the national tax revenue is a little2.2%.

Japan continued the great wars of the Sino-Japanese War (1894 to 1895) and the Russo-Japanese War (1904 to 1905) during the Meiji Era.Much of the war expenses were covered by a strictly collected liquor taxIt is said that.

In particular, in the Russo-Japanese War, there has been a sudden collection of liquor tax in order to raise war expenses that were lacking during the war.

-Introducing a scientific approach to secure liquor tax-

The Meiji era is a time when science has advanced and modern technology has made great strides. The latest technology and academics from Western countries were actively incorporated. The same applies to sake brewing. Sake brewing is reviewed by foreign brewers.

Analysis of sake brewing using a scientific approach and analysis of sake itself were also promoted. by the way,It is said that the name "Sake" was born in the Meiji period.

A foreign brewer interested in sake made only from rice, rice bran and water,To distinguish it from your own brewIt seems that the beginning of “Sake” is the beginning.

In this era when liquor tax was the cornerstone of national income, the government was under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Finance (currently the Ministry of Finance) in 1904 to ensure more stable tax revenue.National Brewing Laboratory(Currently, the National Tax Agency direct research institute, National Research Institute for Liquors).

A national research institute established to improve and further develop the method of brewing at that time, which had only relied on techniques that had been passed down since ancient times, to scientifically study brewing techniques for alcoholic beverages and contribute to their improvement and development is.

The National Brewing Laboratory held the first national sake review meeting in 1911 (Meiji 44). We surveyed new sake nationwide,The purpose is to clarify the current situation and trends in liquor quality and to improve quality.

The National Brewery Laboratory had early adopted Western studies in the field of microorganisms such as yeast and bacilli. Part of that was culturing and distributing yeast from sake breweries with excellent results at the appraisal.

So-called“Kyokai Yeast” startedIt was. Even today, this “Kyokai Yeast” is widely used in many sake breweries because it can stably produce good quality sake.

Japan currently leads the world in the field of biotechnology, but the National Brewing Laboratory has contributed greatly to its development..

The so-called “Red Brick Brewery Factory” (Takinogawa Kita-ku, Tokyo), which was used as the first factory of the National Brewing Laboratory, was designated as an important cultural property (building) by the Minister of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology in 2014. Received designation.

It is currently used as a venue for brewing seminars and practical training, tasting sake screenings, and other events.

In preparation for public release (as of 2017 in 11 year), the inside will be specially released for several days during the period of “Tokyo Cultural Property Week” held from the end of 10 to the beginning of 11 every year. It has been.

On the opening day, there is a tour guide where you can visit the inside while listening to detailed explanations about buildings and Japanese brewing techniques. If you are interested in the history of Japanese sake, why don't you visit it once.

-Breakage of new brewing methods "Yama ruins" and "Fast sake lees"-

When we started introducing a scientific approach to sake brewing, we achieved results in a few years, and new technologies were developed one after another.Among them, there is a remarkable discovery that should be noted in the field of `` sake mother (sake) making ''.

Sake mothers are cultivated excellent yeast using steamed rice, rice bran and water.is. Before you start making sake with a large preparation pot, you make it with a small preparation pot and grow the yeast needed for alcoholic fermentation.

However, various bacteria that interfere with sake brewing tend to propagate in this process. To get rid of these extra bacteria and increase only the sake sake yeast,It is necessary to borrow the power of “lactic acid”.

そのIn the past, in order to obtain lactic acid, a method of taking in lactic acid bacteria present in the air was used..

Put steamed rice and rice bran soaked in water and pile them up like a mountain. As it is crushed and melted with a stick called kai, lactic acid bacteria will adhere to the ground rice.

This lactic acid bacterium produces lactic acid. thisThe process of crushing rice piled up like a mountain is called `` mountain wholesale ''.. It's a lot of hard work that needs to be done in the midst of extreme cold from midnight to early morning. Until the end of the Meiji era, the Sake was exclusively made with the “ginger” method of making this “mountain wholesale”.

But,In 5 (Meiji 1909), just 42 years after the establishment of the National Brewing Laboratory, this common sense was overturned by the power of science..

You do n’t have to do the trouble of crushing a pile of rice.If the rice bran enzyme is first dissolved in water before adding steamed rice(This is called "Mizuhama"), and it was clarified that sake can be done in the same way.

In other words,Just change the order of raw materials. With this alone, this recipe was spread because liquor that was comparable to ginger was produced.

Because the work called “mountain wholesale” was abolished (omitted), it was called abandonment → mountain abandonment. The sake mother who made this way"Mountain Ruins"Is called.

However,Innovative technology was developed in 1, just 1910 years after the discovery.. When you make a liquor motherNo need to rely on natural lactic acid bacteriaThat revolutionary thing.

In addition to steamed rice, rice bran and water,Add liquid lactic acid called brewing lactic acidIt is a way. A technique that can produce a stable quality sake mother in a shorter period of time than ginger and mountain ruins,"Fast brew"It is called.

It is also excellent in terms of cost, and nearly 90% of the current sake is made with this quick brew. Sake made from quick brewer tends to be light.

Therefore, there are also sake breweries like Daishichi Sake Brewery (Nihonmatsu City, Fukushima Prefecture) that have continued to pursue “ginger” since its establishment in search of dark umami and depth of taste.

-From Kiso to enamel tank-

Until the Edo period, all sake was made and stored using Japanese cedar mushrooms. But,The enamel tank was developed in the Taisho era.

Enamel is a material with a glass coating on the surface of a metal such as iron.is. Compared to Kiso, it has become more popular because it is easier to control the action of microorganisms, easier to manage and store, and considered superior in terms of hygiene.

Also, when stored in a mallet, it seems to have the purpose of preventing the mallet from absorbing alcohol and losing it naturally.

However, the enamel tank that became mainstream in this way,The goodness of Kiso has been reviewed in recent years. In 2008 (Heisei 20) year, the NPO corporation “Kyoto Preservation Society” was established to revive and pass on the traditional culture of Kiso.

Sake breweries who agreed with this idea have begun to use sleeping wooden caskets and make new cocoons,Kiso revives in various formsI am doing it. One of the reasons for the resurrection is that you can get a taste that can only be made with a wooden crab.

~ Birth of the first bottle ~

Lots of sake bottles

Currently, sake is often sold in a bottle of sake. Actually this isHabits that began in the Meiji eraSuch you.

Until then, we were selling by weight with firewood and firewood,There were quite a few places in liquor stores where frauds such as padding were carried out.. The one bottle was born to prevent such fraud.

In addition, The bottle is more hygienicThat also encouraged the spread. By the way,One cup is 1.8 liters.

As an aside, in recent years, the demand for quadruple bottles (720 milliliters) has increased. In ordinary household refrigerators, it is difficult to store a bottle, and it takes time for all of them to be consumed in a small family or a single household due to the declining birthrate.

It is said that fresh liquor whose quality is easy to change is particularly good to drink while it is fresh, and if it is sold by Yunacho Shuzo (Gosho City, Nara Prefecture), unfiltered, non-hydrolyzed raw raw wine `` Kaze no Mori '' in 4 bottles. Announced in 2018 month of 30 (Heisei 1), became a hot topic in the sake industry.

-Development of rice suitable for brewing-

A wave of change also came to rice, the main ingredient in sake brewing. I mentioned earlier that the sake-brewing rice currently used for sake brewing is different from the edible rice we usually use. The development of this sake brewing suitable rice has begun, it is approaching the end of the Edo periodFrom around 1860.

It was also in the late Edo period that Yamadaho, the mother of Yamada Nishiki, the highest peak of brewing rice, was found. There are various theories about the origin of Yamada Ho, but Shinzaburo Tanaka, who lives in Yoshikawa-cho, Michibu-gun, Hyogo Prefecture (currently Miki City), brought home the rice ears found in Ise Yamada and made alcoholic beverages while visiting Ise. However, the theory that a high-quality product was made is powerful. “Yamadaho” was recognized as rice for sake only in the Meiji period.

In addition, “Omachi” (Omachi), also known as “Yamada Nishiki”, was also discovered in Okayama in 1859 (Ansei 6).. What I found was Tsutsumi Kishimoto, a farmer from Oomachi, Takashima Village, Bizen-Kunimichi-gun (currently Ooyama, Okayama City). It was very popular because it was rice that made delicious sake.

“Oomachi” is difficult to cultivate, so the production volume decreased dramatically"Phantom Rice"Is called, butProduction increased again due to eager sakeIn recent years, however, many sake breweries throughout the country prefer it.

It is supported by an enthusiastic fan called “Omatist” because it has a rich and rich taste that makes it feel unique sweetness and swelling.

In 1893 (Meiji 26), a person named Kabe Abe discovered Kameno in Yamagata. It is the ancestor of popular brand edible rice, Sasanishiki and Koshihikari, and is the varieties that are the parents of many rice as brewing suitable rice.

“Turtle tail” was almost forgotten after the war and was forgotten. However, its excellent characteristics have been reviewed in recent years, and the number of creators is increasing.

The revival drama of “Kamenoo” has also become a model of the phantom sake rice that tackles the revival that is handled in the story of the comic “Natsuko no Sake” (Akira Oze, Kodansha).

-Beer and wine are becoming popular, and the elimination of sake by the "Sake Hazard"

During the Meiji era, the Japanese lifestyle changed completely with the opening of the civilization, and it rapidly became Western-style.

A lot of Western food was introduced in the food culture, and Western liquors such as beer and wine have risen accordingly.. Especially beer was often drunk.

At first, beer relied on imported products from abroad, but as demand increases, brewing in Japan will become popular.

In 1885 (Meiji 18), a new company called “Japan Brewery Company”, the predecessor of Kirin Brewery, was born. Built by 1900 (Meiji 33)Brewery exceeded 100That's right.

The opportunity to drink wine has increased, but it seems that this was not just because of Western food.

Actually, at this time in the government"Sake Hazard"What was to be issued.It was the theory that a so-called foreigner who had been hired by the government advocated to import more wine into Japan.It is said that.

And because it is bad for the body by the government officials of the western rash who really received this,Sake disappeared from Imperial Palace events such as Miyanaka Banquet. Also,Abolished the brewing license that the court hadIt was also during this time.

While consumption of beer and wine increases,Sake gradually decreased consumption due to its heavy tax..