Ilaka Sake Atelier Silver-Black

Ilaka Sake Atelier is Japan's newest sake brewery, born in November 2024 when master brewer Katsumi Tanaka (formerly head toji at Daishinshu for roughly 30 years) and representative Keisuke Sato revived the license of a 1665-founded kura and rebuilt it from scratch in Matsukawa Village, Nagano - a village with no prior brewing history but some of the country's purest "ultra-soft" spring water, filtered for 20 years through 300-million-year-old bedrock beneath the Northern Alps. Silver-Black (Gin-Kuro) is the brewery's flagship, the most balanced expression in its five-strong Silver (Gin) series, brewed from specially cultivated Hitogokochi rice and pressed at sub-zero temperatures (-5°C) to lock in delicate volatile aromatics. Light and immediately appealing, with fresh apple, banana, and pear on the nose, natural rice sweetness and umami up front, and a light, dry, gently effervescent finish. Won a Gold Medal at IWC 2025, the brewery's first year of production, with judges praising its "elegant harmony of pear and bubblegum with a refreshing aftertaste."