Kotaru Kinoshita, president of Yame-based sake brewery Kitaya, visited Governor Ogawa at the Fukuoka Prefectural Office on July 31 to report that his Daiginjo Gokujo Kitaya was named the Champion Sake at this year’s International Wine Challenge (IWC), one of the world’s largest wine tasting competitions. This was the first time that a Fukuoka-based sake brewery took home top honors at the IWC. The IWC’s Sake Division, which was established in 2007, is the largest sake appraisal outside of Japan. This year 235 brewers submitted 583 brands for appraisal. In May, Daiginjo Gokujo Kitaya took top prize in the Ginjo / Daiginjo category, and in July, it was selected as the Champion Sake—the best sake of the top-place finishers in five different categories of sake. President Kinoshita told Governor Ogawa, “We will continue working hard to brew sake that people can enjoy”. To which the governor replied, “Your victory is sure to provide the entire sake industry with joy and encouragement, and I will do all I can to promote Fukuokan sake.” Nishinippon Shimbun, Aug. 1
