The Nagano Brewery Rice for Premium Sake Production
Hitogokochi was bred by Nagano Agricultural Experiment Station from 1987 and completed in 1994.
The most famous Nagano local brewery rice is Miyamanishiki. Although Miyamanishiki is hard and suitable for high-polished rate, its high protein content and low Shimpaku rate make some breweries decide not to use Miyamanishiki for producing premium sake. Hitogokochi has characters like high Shimpaku rate and high-polished rate (about 50%) that most sake breweries will try different polished rates for brewing personality flavor. Many sake breweries also use Hitogokochi to produce premium sake.
In addition to planting in Nagano, Yamanashi and Araki are also the main producing areas of Hitogokochi. Although the Hitogokochi planting area numbers are less than Miyamanishiki, it still ranked No.7 in 2015. Sake breweries love to use Hitogokochi for its great qualities.
