Sake’s common nickname, rice wine, obscures that sake is brewed, not simply fermented. As with beer, sake brewers have many opportunities to dictate a sake’s final character. But while only the geekiest of beer fans would know the difference between Endeavor and Conlon barleys, rice varieties are a genuine concern for any sake drinker or beverage professional seeking more than a basic understanding of sake production and styles.
Rice variety information is becoming more common on the front labels of sake bottles, and breweries are increasingly highlighting local varieties as part of their regional identity. Some of these varieties are already well known; others are historic, rediscovered, and revived; and still others are new crossings designed to suit the growing conditions of specific prefectures. Influenced by wine appellations, sake’s Geographical Indications (GIs) have become popular, and some require local rice varieties in their specifications.
In Japan, 2.6 million hectares (6.4 million acres) are designated for rice production—almost 55% of the country’s agricultural land. In general, rice needs fertile land, with abundant precipitation and good diurnal temperature variation.
Wetland cultivation is the norm in Japan. The technique, as the name implies, requires large amounts of water. The season begins with sowing seeds in April or May, and seedlings are planted in early June. Rice plants are perennial and can provide a crop for several years after planting, but yields decline quickly, so starting from new seeds each year is the norm. Ideally, ample space is left between rows to increase airflow and sunlight penetration, reducing the threats of pests and disease, but tighter plantings maximize yields.
At the end of June, mizokiri begins: rice farmers dig narrow trenches through the paddies to ensure even water distribution and flood the fields, which aids yields and growth by suppressing weeds and pests. The water is maintained until the end of the month or into the beginning of July, then drained in a process called nakaboshi. Mature grain clusters form by early August. Temperatures at this point, the grain-filling stage, will determine yields, quality, and the characteristics of the starches. Harvest usually starts in late August and continues through September, depending on the local climate as well as yearly conditions and rice variety.
There are three major subspecies of Oryza sativa, or Asian cultivated rice: Indica, Javanica, and Japonica. The last, traditionally grown in Japan, Korea, and northern China, makes up just under 20% of worldwide rice production; most of the rest is Indica. Japonica, a short-grain, sticky rice, is the only strain used for sake production. Generally, producers rely on the nonglutinous, uruchimai varieties. The sweet, glutinous mochigome varieties are occasionally used during the extra, fourth rice addition when brewing via the Yondan Jikomi method. Here, they heighten the extra sweetness typical to that style.
Only 5% of Japan’s rice is destined for the brewery, and only 1% of rice grown in Japan is sake rice per se —that is, rice varieties specifically intended for sake production. These varieties are called shuzokotekimai, and approximately 120 varieties are officially designated. A great deal of sake is made from food rice, or ippanmai, varieties, but only for nonpremium, Futsushu categories. Collectively, all rice used for sake production is called sakamai, but, since the use of ippanmai for sake production is rarely mentioned in consumer literature, the terms sakamai and shuzokotekimai are often assumed to be synonymous.
Shuzokotekimai differs from ippanmai in several ways. In the fields, the rice stalks are taller. While the typical ippanmai stalk might measure 70 to 90 centimeters (28 to 35 inches), the most planted sake rice variety, Yamada Nishiki, typically grows to 100 centimeters (39 inches) or more, and Omachi can reach 150 centimeters (59 inches). Sake rice grains are also larger. The senryuju—the weight of 1,000 grains of a given crop—of food rice is typically below 24 grams (0.85 ounces), but sake rice weighs 25 to 30 grams (0.88 to 1.0 ounces). Height and grain weight make sake rice plants more susceptible to lodging, or being blown over by wind. A plant that succumbs to the wind is no longer viable for rice production, so sake rice is usually planted in areas that are somewhat sheltered or less windy. Rice farming is skilled work, and sake rice demands extra attention; consequently, shuzokotekimai often costs two or three times as much as food rice.
For brewers, sake rice has several other traits that make it preferable to table rice. In food rice, the starch is somewhat evenly distributed throughout the grain, but in sake rice it is concentrated in the center of the grain—the shinpaku. This “white heart” is easily visible to the naked eye once the brown outer portion of the rice has been polished away. This structure is ideal for koji-zukuri, as the starchy center is less dense, allowing the koji mold filaments to penetrate the center of the grain more easily. For this reason, while ippanmai can serve for rice additions during brewing, it is rarely used for koji making. Sake rice is low in proteins, amino acids, and lipids, making it rather unpleasant to eat but ideal for sake production, as higher levels of these compounds can interfere with fermentation and create unwanted aromas. Sake rice should also have a higher water absorption rate and a trait called gaikounainan, describing a firm exterior and soft interior. Gaikounainan allows the grains to withstand milling while still allowing for even, deep penetration of the koji mold during koji-zukuri.
In the fields, rice is further divided between wase (early ripening) and okute (late-ripening) varieties. Wase varieties are generally preferred in colder areas, where farmers might be pressured to harvest before the onset of winter. These varieties tend to have a harder exterior and don’t dissolve as readily during brewing, resulting in less extraction and a lighter, refreshing style of sake. Okute varieties tend toward more depth and breadth. Both cold resistance and height are factors farmers consider when planting sake rice, and yields are important as well (high yields are preferred; there is no evidence that lower yields create a better or more concentrated rice or sake).
In the brewery, rice varieties with large shinpaku are more fragile and difficult to mill, making them less suitable for Ginjo or Daiginjo production. Even the shape of the shinpaku can be a factor; an oval shape is preferable for highly milled styles. Hida Homare, for example, is a versatile variety with a large, round shinpaku. It is similar to the very popular Yamada Nishiki in character, but, while Yamada Nishiki can be milled to extremes, Hida Homare risks cracking and breaking. Some varieties, such as Tamasakae, are also prone to dōware, internal cracking that again can limit the potential for lower-seimaibuai sakes. Other important factors include water absorption (more absorbent grains are better for koji mold penetration) and solubility (rice grains that dissolve more easily in the moromi yield deeper, richer styles of sake). Beyond those factors, different amounts of proteins and minerals will affect flavor and textural development. Higher-protein varieties, such as Omachi, tend to have a more pronounced umami or earthy character.
Because of rice’s importance to the Japanese diet and enormous cultural significance, the rice market has long been heavily regulated in Japan. In 1874, six years after the Meiji Restoration began modernizing the country, the government decided that taxes would be paid no longer in rice but with currency. Rice became a commodity, and yields became more important to growers. This immediately put pressure on the harder-to-grow shuzokotekimai. One of the first notable attempts to stabilize sake rice supplies occurred in 1897, when brewers in Nada and growers in Harima entered long-term collective contracts.
The government began researching rice varieties in 1883, and in 1912 it identified Yamadaho and Wataribune as suitable for sake production and large-scale planting. Neither is common today, but in 1923 researchers thought a crossing of the two would be a logical variety for trials and experiments. The result was Yamada Nishiki, now the most planted variety in Japan. In 1942, resources were strained by World War II, and the government, as part of its efforts to ration the food supply, restricted sake breweries to sourcing rice from within their own prefectures, tightening a connection between breweries and their local rice that continues today.
Before World War II, aristocrats, and later companies, often owned large plots of land that were farmed by tenants. During the postwar occupation, the US encouraged land reform, recognizing the tenant system as a potential breeding ground for communism. The new ideal was the farmer-owner; business entities, including sake breweries, were forbidden to own rice farms. Instead, brewers placed orders with their regional brewers’ association, which in turn negotiated prices and placed orders with the farm cooperatives (known as Japan Agricultural cooperatives, or JA), which bought from the farmers. This is still how most rice used in sake brewing is purchased today. If yields are low, the brewers’ association is responsible for allocating the available rice among its members. Most brewers buy from multiple regions to protect their businesses from volume fluctuations.
Until 1995, brewers could specify the rice varieties they wished to purchase and the inspection grade, but they could not ask for rice from a particular farm or specify farming practices. Today, they can be more specific, and they can contract with a farm directly, outside the JA–brewers’ association system, though this can mean opting out of pricing subsidies available through the brewers’ associations. Since 2009, brewers have been able to grow their own rice, but only if they are recognized as being from “farming families.”
Sake rice varieties are now being grown in the US, most notably at Isbell Farms, in Arkansas, which grows Yamada Nishiki, Omachi, Gohyakumangoku, and Wataribune, which has a long history in the US. It was discovered in 1895 and brought to Texas in 1908 as a table rice. It didn’t gain traction until it reached California, where it was the leading rice variety from 1912 to 1918. Wataribune is also the parent of the ubiquitous culinary rice Calrose, developed in 1948.
While there are some high-profile examples of brewers more directly controlling their rice supply, including Marumoto and Izumibashi, only a few dozen have taken advantage of this opportunity, and even those continue to buy at least some of their rice elsewhere, as this model presents several challenges. First, contracts are based on land area, not rice volume. Brewers can contract to buy all or a portion of the output from a farm, but they cannot specify a certain amount of rice. This puts the burden of yield variation on the brewers; a low yield leaves them without enough rice to fulfill their production demands, whereas a bumper crop leaves them with excess rice to resell elsewhere. For brewers interested in growing their own rice, the cost of land is a barrier. It would take decades, perhaps a century, for land used solely for growing sake rice to pay for itself. Likewise, capital investments, such as farming equipment, are expensive, and rice farming is highly skilled labor. Some brewers are renting fields rather than purchasing them, obviating some of these costs.
Despite the challenges, growing rice and buying directly will likely become more common in coming years. With 90% of Japan’s rice farmers over 60 years old, brewers are aware that some farms could disappear.
Sake rice is graded by the percentage of well-shaped grains and the number of broken or defective grains. All Tokutei Meisho-shu must meet one of the classifications in the chart below. Togai, or unclassified rice, can be used only for Futsushu.
For brewers, another important quality-control tool is the annual report from the National Research Institute of Brewing. It outlines temperatures from the growing season and comments on rice solubility across eight different regions of Japan. Brewers use this information to adjust their brewing regimens, in particular the postmilling resting and soaking phases.
Rising temperatures brought on by climate change have resulted in more frequent heat damage. Hotter conditions can lead to brittle grains that break more easily, fissured grains that absorb water unevenly, and poor starch accumulation. Many grains can become unusable—malformed or chalky—causing net yields to drop. Erratic weather can also increase the risk of lodging.
Excessive temperatures during the grain-filling stage can also result in shorter amylopectin chains. Amylopectin and amylose are starches that gelatinize during the steaming phase of brewing, which makes them digestible to koji enzymes. Shorter chains recrystallize (a process called retrogradation) more quickly, reducing solubility and digestibility. This can lead to drastically reduced production volumes—as much as 30% of the sake from a given batch.
The Japanese government tightly controls rice production to ensure supply but also to prevent overproduction and low prices that would make rice farming unprofitable for farmers. As a result, in bad years, prices spike. If prices for table rice increase, farmers often focus on the easier-to-grow food rice varieties instead of the more difficult sake varieties. Heat damage and low yields were widespread in 2024, and the resulting scarcity pushed wholesale prices for table rice above those for the Gohyakumangoku variety and into the typical range for Yamada Nishiki. In response, sake rice prices have more than doubled since 2023. National and regional agencies are working to rectify, or at least ameliorate, the situation. In Yamagata, where prices on some local rice varieties, including Dewasansan and Miyama Nishiki, increased tenfold from the 2023 prices, the prefecture authorities are subsidizing purchases so brewers can afford the rice. In the middle of 2025, the government began making stockpiled rice, including sake rice, available.
The government has long subsidized farmers, withholding those subsidies from those who overproduce. Consequently, 40% of fields designated for rice growing are currently dedicated to other crops. Some argue that exporting excess production instead of limiting total production would provide more flexibility, and the government seems to be moving in that direction. A new package aimed at modernizing rice farming includes a program specifically designed to stabilize sake rice supplies for brewers.
Yamada Nishiki: Japan’s most planted and most consistent shuzokotekimai, Yamada Nishiki, constitutes 36.4% of sake rice grown, with 34,000 tons produced in 2024. Developed in 1923 and named in 1936, Yamada Nishiki is very amenable to brewing, with a large shinpaku, low fats and protein, and good water absorption. It doesn’t break easily during polishing, so it is ideal for Daiginjo and extreme polishing. The variety rose to prominence with the Daiginjo boom that started in the 1980s as milling equipment became more sophisticated. Yamada Nishiki’s fragrant, complex, and well-rounded character epitomizes Daiginjo sake. The rice dominates competitions, so much so that YK35 has become shorthand for an award-winning sake recipe: Yamada Nishiki rice, milled to 35% and fermented with Kumamoto yeast.
While 38 of Japan’s 47 prefectures grow Yamada Nishiki, the best growing area is Hyogo, especially its Special A District, a village classified after World War II under the Muramai Seido qualification (none of the other classified villages grow Yamada Nishiki today). Harima GI requires the use of Hyogo Yamada Nishiki. The sake research center in Hyogo monitors seeds for mutations so closely that no seedling is ever more than three generations from a guaranteed pure, individually checked seed.
Gohyakumangoku: Representing 18.5% of Japan’s sake rice and 17,000 tons of production in 2024, Gohyakumangoku means “five million koku,” a tribute to the 1957 harvest in Niigata, the rice’s home prefecture, when a prodigious five million koku (one koku is equivalent to 150 kilograms, or 330 pounds) were harvested. Gohyakumangoku was Japan’s most planted rice variety until 2001. With its small grain, large shinpaku, and harder exterior, it is prone to breakage, making it less suited for Ginjo and Daiginjo sakes. It absorbs water well, so it suits koji production, but it does not dissolve as easily as other varieties.
Gohyakumangoku typically makes a clean, light, airy sake style known as tanrei karakuchi, which became Niigata’s signature beginning in the 1980s.
Miyama Nishiki: Miyama Nishiki is Japan’s third most planted sake rice, but it composes only 5% of production, with 5,000 tons harvested in 2024. Miyama means “beautiful mountain,” reflecting its snowy white shinpaku and origins in Nagano, where it was developed in 1978. It grows well in the prefecture’s cold temperatures and also thrives in the Tōhoku region. Miyama Nishiki is suitable for Ginjo production and makes light yet well-textured, aromatic sakes. Plantings are declining as individual prefectures increasingly isolate signature varieties of their own.
Omachi: At only 3.2% of sake rice, yielding 3,000 tons in 2024, Omachi is the oldest known sake rice variety, discovered in 1859, and the grandparent of Yamada Nishiki and Gohyakumangoku. Okayama is home to 90% of Japan’s Omachi, but plantings are increasing elsewhere in the country. In Okayama, it is occasionally brewed in the local bizen-yaki, clay pots fired at exceptionally hot temperatures.
Exceptionally tall, Omachi is difficult to grow, and it also has a reputation for being temperamental in the brewery, thanks to its higher protein levels, but it is water absorbent, has a large shinpaku, and dissolves easily. Enthusiasts, dubbed Omachists, seek it out for its rich texture and umami, herbal character. When Omachi is identified on the label, it has become fashionable to indicate the city or village of origin as well.
Akita Sake Komachi: Developed in 1998 and named in 2001, Akita Sake Komachi already composes 2.8% of sake rice. It is successful in its eponymous prefecture, Akita, where it tolerates the cold well and matures before winter. Akita Sake Komachi is popular for Ginjo sakes and tends to produce high amounts of sugars.
Hida Homare: The Gifu prefecture’s signature variety, Hida Homare, is best suited to its warmer areas. The variety’s grandchild, Yoi Musubi, was recognized for sake production last year, and growers hope it will succeed in the region’s cooler areas.
If rice varieties are listed on a label, the percentage of each variety must be indicated. Blending is uncommon, but, when practiced, it is typically done with completed batches, as controlling the brewing process with two different rice varieties can be difficult.
The most frequent exception is using one rice variety for koji and another for the moromi. This is most common in Futsushu sakes, where a shuzokotekimai variety, such as Yamada Nishiki, might be used for koji production, amounting to roughly 20% of the total rice used, and a table variety for the moromi.
Dewasansan: A crossing of Miyama Nishiki and Hanafubuki developed in Yamagata in 1985 and certified in 1997, Dewasansan, or Dewa33, is cold resistant, with a sturdy stalk that resists lodging. If Dewasansan is identified on the label, all the sake’s components—rice, yeast, and koji—must be from Yamagata; the sake must be Ginjo grade or above; and the sake must be approved by a tasting panel. Dewasansan typically produces a smooth, soft sake with a deep flavor.
Hattan Nishiki: Popular in Hiroshima for its early maturation and high yields, Hattan Nishiki is low in height and is disease resistant, qualities that make it easier to grow than many shuzokotekimai. It has two variants: number one dominates, and number two was developed for higher-altitude growing. Both have a large shinpaku and can be prone to cracking, so they are rarely used for Ginjo or Daiginjo sakes. Hattan Nishiki tends to yield a rich, clean style, and a slight grassiness is typical.
Ginpu: Hokkaido’s leading rice variety, composing 70% of production, Ginpu was only recognized in 2001. But, like Akita Sake Komachi, it has quickly grown in popularity and is now Japan’s eighth most planted sake rice. Its sakes are generally rich and mellow.
Kinmon Nishiki: Kinmon Nishiki is a Nagano variety that fell from favor when Miyama Nishiki was introduced, but one Ishikawa brewery, Fukumitsuya, kept it alive for over two decades, buying the entire output of Kijimadaira, the only village where it was still grown. With Fukumitsuya’s blessing and assistance, Nagano brewers focused anew on the variety in 2006, and it has grown in popularity since then, especially for highly polished Ginjo and Daiginjo sakes, yielding rich, clean sakes with aging potential.
Kame no O: First identified in 1893, Kame no O lost favor because of its susceptibility to pests, but today it is being revived. Its rediscovery inspired a manga, Natsuko no Sake, about a young woman who, when her brother dies, takes up his quest to revive a lost sake rice variety and use it to make the world’s best sake.
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