Our mirin is made from three simple ingredients: glutinous rice, malted rice and rice shochu. Since these ingredients determine the final flavor profile to a large degree, we allow no compromises when selecting our raw materials.

This is especially true of the glutinous rice since it influences the sweetness qualities. At Kokonoe Mirin we select only the finest quality glutinous rice to use in making our mirin.

After the moromi (brewing stock) undergoes saccharification through brewing for two to three months, it is put through a traditional Sase-type presser, unchanged from ancient times, to separate the actual mirin from the mirin lees.

"Sase-type" refers to the method by which the moromi is stuffed into sake bags, and then laid in the fune (bed), where it is slowly and carefully squeezed over time. Although presses that apply the complete pressure at all once from the beginning of the process are widely used, squeezing out the mirin quickly does not produce a satisfactory flavor.

Since we always desire a rich and full-flavored sweetness for our mirin, we continue to use this slow and careful pressing method originating to the inception of our company.

Our mirin is brewed and aged in a 300-year old cellar with a long and storied history. The mirin is carefully aged for over one year inside this cellar.

Every cellar has its own natural yeasts and molds living in it, and these determine the flavor profile and characteristics of the product brewed in the cellar. For this reason, those existing in the oldest cellar of Kokonoe Mirin are what allow us to produce our mirin with its unique flavor profile.

Our creed at Kokonoe Mirin has been "No changes" since our founder Nobuatsu Ishikawa-Hachirouemon the 22nd first started making mirin over 240 years ago. Slowly, over time, our molds do their work, the moromi trickles and the mirin is allowed to mellow. We believe that the genuine flavor of our mirin cannot emerge before its time.

Our job is to continue making our original mirin and to maintain our genuine flavor. This also means that we must maintain the flavor which long-established restaurants have come to expect and of which chefs can be proud. Today still, all of us at Kokonoe Mirin put our heart and soul into producing mirin that preserves unchanged the delicious flavor passed down for generations.