I'm hooked on a sake called Kamikawa Taisetsu Brewery. They use Hokkaido rice and water from Kamikawa and Tokachi to brew their sake. I find the brand's story and development interesting, and the sake itself is sharp and delicious. However, they produce in small quantities and are still relatively unknown, with no national distribution and not even seen at New Chitose Airport. So, when I visited a direct store in Kamikawa town last time, I found a liquor store in Susukino. They had a sign saying "Kamikawa Taisetsu"! I was surprised to find it there! They had Yamahai style! It seems that Kamikawa Taisetsu Brewery intentionally doesn't sell at their direct store, but rather distributes to local liquor stores to support local business. It's a sake brewery where you can't find all their products at the direct store. I bought a bottle. If it's available here, I don't have to go all the way to Kamikawa or Tokachi, haha. Oh, but there's still a part of me that wants to go through the long journey to get it, haha. It's a mix of happiness and sadness, a complicated feeling, haha.

Welcome. Located at South 3 West 3, along the station front, the store is named "Abe Saketen" but carries the brand "Yamasho." The automatic door recognizes faces (or rather hair color) after a few visits, and the staff become friendlier when they do. They are recommended, open from daytime, and flexible, which adds to their charm. I mainly buy labels as a novelty, such as Amabie, Madame Butterfly, Shinomine (a tough critic), Nyan Cup (for glasses wearers), and Mitsui no Kotobuki (referring to Mitsui from Slam Dunk).

They have a variety of alcohol available! I often visit a shop that serves Yamasho sake, and conversations about Yamasho sake often come up. They also have sake like Oze no Yukidoke and Bowmore Shell, so when you take a look, you can find familiar Japanese sake.

When it gets hot, the symptoms of my designated rare disease worsen, especially during the heating season in December. Unfortunately, there is no medication that suits me yet. Likes and comments may be delayed, so thank you for your understanding. "Yamasho Sake Store" is a shop that carries a wide selection of sake from all over Japan. I used to visit occasionally, but due to a tram running in front of the store during my hospitalization, parking in front of the store became prohibited, making it impossible to visit by car. After a few years, I visited with my usual companion. The store is located on the first floor of a building near the Susukino intersection in Chuo-ku, Sapporo. For the exact location of the store, please check on Tabelog. While I usually go for Japanese sake, this time I noticed the liqueur section. (laughs) What caught my eye was the "Aragoshi Momo" from "Umenojuku Sake Brewery." "Umenojuku Sake Brewery" is a sake brewery in Katsuragi City, Nara Prefecture. It was founded in 1893 (Meiji 26). Their flagship sake is the "Daiginjo Sake Katsuragi," and the fruity "Aragoshi Fruit Series" is popular. Among them, "Aragoshi Mikan" is a popular product. "Aragoshi Momo" is not widely available in Sapporo. It was my first time, so I bought a 720ml small bottle. Aragoshi Momo 720ml has an alcohol content of 8% and is made using only domestic white peaches. The peaches are peeled, crushed, and strained to create a rich peach juice. The ingredients are listed in order of quantity, with peaches and sake, with peaches being the most abundant. It is quite sweet and has a taste that is popular with women. The taste is almost entirely peach juice, a fruity drink. It is best enjoyed chilled. It can also be enjoyed when mixed with carbonated water. The price is 1540 yen for 720ml. "Aragoshi Momo 720ml" is a rich peach juice. If you didn't know, you wouldn't realize it contains 8% alcohol. It's like "peach juice." My usual companion quite likes the taste. It's too sweet for me, so I prefer it mixed with "strong carbonated water." The fizzy sensation is also a nice touch. However, the alcohol content becomes low. When mixed with "strong carbonated water" and a little bit of the fruity sake "Jokawa Taisetsu Suisei," it becomes closer to the best taste. "Jokawa Taisetsu Suisei" is sold at "Yamasho Sake Store." The combination of carbonation, alcohol, and peach fruitiness is a nice marriage of flavors. It becomes similar to a champagne-based fruit cocktail. I think the best way to drink it is according to personal preference. Next time, I might go for the usual "Aragoshi Mikan 1.8L." It was delicious, thank you.

While wandering around Susukino, I happened to come across a liquor store. Since I was in Hokkaido, I wanted to buy some Hokkaido sake, so I decided to stop by. ◼️ The store is clean and has a modern exterior, making it easy to enter. It's not very spacious but has a clear layout. ◼️ There were two male staff members, one a bit blunt and the other more friendly. ◼️ The store was somewhat crowded, with a mix of local regulars and some tourists. The staff seemed to give a more casual response to the tourists' sake inquiries. ◼️ They sell a variety of sake from Hokkaido as well as other regions, with a good selection. ◼️ I purchased Hokkaido sake, as well as some interesting options like Shirokage Masamune from Numazu. They also offer wines and shochu. ◼️ The total cost for the Hokkaido sake I bought was 8,559 yen, including the shipping fee to Yamanashi (cool delivery). Here are my thoughts on the sake I purchased: ▼ Upikawa Taisetsu Suisei Junmai Ginjo: Fruity sweetness with acidity and a strong spiciness. Delicious sake with a slightly foamy texture. ▼ Niseko Junmai Ginjo Sake: Sweet aroma with a mellow sweetness, fruity acidity, and a strong spiciness. Another tasty sake. ▼ Junmai Ginjo Sake Wakakura Namazake: Made by a young brewer, this sake has a complex mix of sweetness, fruitiness, and spiciness. A unique and interesting sake. ▼ Fukushi COCOROMI Junmai Sake: Made with Kitashizuku white koji, this sake is sweet, fruity, and slightly spicy. It's like a sweet white wine, a very interesting experiment. Overall, I was very satisfied with the delicious and interesting sake from Hokkaido to other regions. I would definitely visit this store again when in Susukino. At the time of posting, the store had a rating of 3.05 on Tabelog, with 2 reviews and 38 saves.

On April 30, after having a few drinks at a bar, I stopped by Yamasho Liquor Store to purchase a sake that I had seen on Facebook the day before and was very interested in. The staff at the store were extremely happy when I mentioned that I came to buy the sake I saw on Facebook. I ended up carrying a 1.8L bottle on my way there and back. The sake is from Rishu Brewery in Okayama Prefecture, using their own locally grown rice called "Tougai-mai" from Akaiwa-cho. It is made with 75% polished rice, has a sake meter value of +3 to +4, an acidity of 1.8, and an alcohol content of 16.5%. Although it is brewed as a Junmai-shu, it is categorized as Futsu-shu due to the use of Tougai-mai rice. The label text is reversed, possibly due to the use of Tougai-mai rice. The color is darker due to the 75% polishing ratio. It has a noticeable acidity and a slightly firm taste, but with a refreshing mouthfeel. It has the umami flavor of rice typical of Junmai-shu and a long finish. It is best enjoyed at room temperature rather than chilled, and may also be suitable for warm sake. At only 2000 yen, this sake is a great value for money. I don't drink a lot of sake, but this has added to my enjoyment of drinking at home. Yamasho Liquor Store shares information on sakes that can be enjoyed in the summer season, so if you are interested, it's worth checking out their Facebook page.

Yamasho Liquor Store is an official store of Dassai sake! Located just a 1-minute walk from Susukino intersection in Sapporo's Chuo Ward, this liquor store is in a great location. I have a habit of popping into liquor stores on a whim, hoping to find some good sake. Inside the store, there is a large refrigerator stocked with sake from all over Japan. They seem to have a relatively wide variety of options. On this particular day, I noticed that they had Dassai sake from Yamaguchi Prefecture! While it's not uncommon to find Dassai being sold in many places these days, the store had a rich variety of Dassai types, including the Dassai 50 Sparkling. It was rare to see not only the usual Dassai 50, 39, and 23, but also the "Beyond" and "Sparkling" varieties. Since I had never seen Dassai Sparkling before since coming to Hokkaido, I decided to buy a bottle to take home. I also noticed that they had one of my personal favorites, "Yuki no Bosha" from Akita Prefecture, as well as a wide selection of local Hokkaido sake. When I asked if they had "Juyondai" from Yamagata Prefecture, I was told that it is unlikely to be stocked in Hokkaido. When I got home, I made some snacks and enjoyed the sparkling sake. I wonder if there are any places selling "Juyondai" around here...

When I lived in Sapporo, I could easily buy alcohol that is now unavailable in the Kanto region. One thing I always buy when I come to Sapporo is the special junmai sake made by Kitashizuku Kita-Shuzo using Kitashizuku rice. I was also able to purchase the rare Yamahai special junmai. I will have it sent to my home and enjoy it slowly.

I heard that there was a recommended sake that sells out quickly, and when I passed by, I asked about it and they had it. There were two limited editions, and when I asked about the differences, the explanation was brief and kind of unclear. I thought that in such situations, they would try to explain in a different way or try to convey the information better, but no matter how many times I asked, it wasn't like that. I'm not an expert on sake, but I'm not completely clueless either. It would have been nice if they could have explained using different terms or described what a certain term meant. Even though it's in such a great location near Susukino intersection, I realized why I haven't been using it until now. I had the same feeling before. Nothing has changed. Maybe they have enough customers already. I bought what I wanted, but I probably won't go back for a while. I don't think there's anything I can only buy here. When I paid, they did explain how to handle the sake properly. That was good.