In 2025, two members of our sourcing team traveled to a sake tasting event in Yamagata that drew more than 40 breweries, many well regarded. The taste of Yonetsuru sake stopped them in their tracks. Every Yonetsuru sake, fruity or dry, shared the same beautiful restraint — nothing overly floral or sharp. That restraint is exactly why it’s so easy to keep pouring glass after glass without ever tiring of it. We didn’t just admire it — we fell for it. Our team members were lucky enough to talk with the brewery’s president on the spot. Fostering that connection allowed us to become their exclusive import partner in the United States.

Prized for the rich sake it produces, Kamenoo is a legendary rice variety that was planted across eastern Japan during the Meiji period through the years before World War II. In the decades that followed, it nearly went extinct due to how challenging it is to cultivate, but Yonetsuru now grows it again in the fields around its own brewery in Takahata. Crafted by brewers whose palates were trained on the region’s own food, the resulting sake is built for the table; its umami, balanced against a clean finish, pairs especially well with local seafood. The brewery has also found the sake rewards patience, deepening in complexity the longer it ages.

The exceptional balance of Yonetsuru sake isn’t the work of one person. Every spring, the brewery invites both customers and staff to plant rice by hand. Brewmaster Satoshi Sugai calls it “wajo ryoshu,” meaning harmony brewing good sake. You can even taste his devotion directly: The brewery’s Junmai Ginjo No. 34, named for its tank number, is reportedly Sugai’s favorite among everything the brewery makes.