The Discovery Channel, which broadcasts in more than 220 countries, is broadcasting the content of our Yamamo’s Viamver®︎ yeast and other initiatives. It was filmed and edited by a local Akita team and supervised by British producer Daniel Brookes and French filmmaker Yves Montmayeur.
We are very happy that even from a foreigner’s point of view, we were able to have an impact on the discovery of special yeast through experimentation while unraveling the roots of the land and environment of the snow country and the breweries located there, and the reconstruction of a traditional industry through innovative fermentation techniques that take advantage of this yeast.
We believe that indigenous culture and aesthetics unique to a place and its people enrich the landscape of life and become a value to be preserved for the future. Mankind has made the world more colorful by creating a continuum of these things. We would like to contribute to the land and promote our efforts to be part of the beauty of continuity. We hope you will watch the broadcast._mediainfo._overseas_tv
Discovery Channel produces top-quality nonfiction content that brings viewers into the wonder of a world full of diversity and wonder. 224 countries and territories, the network offers a wide variety of genres that shape our world, from science and technology to exploration, adventure and history, and behind-the-scenes looks at people, places and organizations. The network offers a wide variety of genres ranging from behind-the-scenes looks at the people, places, and organizations that shape our world through engaging, high-end production techniques and crisp, clear cinematography.
At the end of the interview for the November issue of BRUTUS, I accompanied the editorial team to visit Rice and Agave. My conversation with Okazumi-kun during that visit resulted in an article. The title of the article is “Two members of the new generation of fermentation talk about change from the local level. <Yamamo Brewery> x < Ine to Agave Brewery>”While I saw the finished product, a doburoku made with Viamver®︎ yeast, we talked about the future of the brewing industry and the environment surrounding the world. The sense of crisis and current trends that I have felt abroad for trade since 2012 still motivate me to make social changes today. We hope you will take a look at the magazine as well.
Two members of the new generation of fermentation talk about change from the local level. <Yamamo Brewery> x <Ine to Agave Brewery>
Two new stars of Akita Prefecture were visited in BRUTUS No. 972, “A Life-Changing Overnight Trip! Two new stars of Akita Prefecture, visited in “BRUTUS No. 972,” “Life-changing, Delicious! Yasushi Takahashi, the seventh-generation owner of Yamamo Brewery in Yuzawa City, commissioned Shuhei Okazumi, the head of Ine to Agave Brewery in Oga City, to brew an original doburoku using his own proprietary yeast. What is the future of miso, soy sauce, and sake, as discussed by these two men, who are bringing new life to the world of fermentation, during their chance encounter?
Two members of the new generation of fermentation talk about how they are pioneering the future
<Okazumi> I have a lot of respect for Yasushi-san. In the world of miso and soy sauce, there is no one else who is competing overseas like Yasushi-san. What impressed me was that he said he was fighting to regain Japan’s pride in fermentation technology and culture, which is being taken away by Noma, a restaurant in Copenhagen that is now attracting attention from food connoisseurs around the world. I thought that was really cool. I didn’t make sake with that kind of intention. But sake is also being made overseas, and the number of breweries around the world is increasing at a rate of about 10 per year. In Japan, it is impossible for new breweries to enter the market, and with the number of breweries decreasing, I think that at some point the number of breweries in the world and Japan will reverse. If we don’t act now, the future of sake 200 or 300 years from now will be in jeopardy, which is what I learned from Mr. Yasushi. That is why I am simply happy that Mr. Yasushi came to me with this idea of making doburoku together.
<Takahashi> This is the first time I’ve heard that (laughs). When I was studying sake at Aramasa Brewery, Okazumi-kun was working at Aramasa, and we have known each other since then, but we always talked about technical matters, and I was surprised because we had never talked about such things before. In our industry, the traditional way of doing things is the “best” way, but I think that will only lead to self-destruction. I didn’t really want to take over the family business, but I didn’t want others to follow in my footsteps. I do what I do because I believe that if we don’t reform the structure of the industry, there will be no world beyond it.
<Okazumi> In the traditional world, stereotypes are strongest in Japan. I am also wondering which should be the priority, to compete in the domestic market or to spread our products overseas. I want to respect the domestic market, and I want to reach people in Japan, but in order to change the stereotypes in Japan, I need to spread the word overseas.
<Takahashi> It would be faster to gain recognition overseas and then spread the word in a reverse-importation manner.
<Okazumi> That’s right. Overseas fermentation clusters have grown tremendously in the past 10 years, and the number of people who make their own koji, miso, and sake has been increasing, and their influence is growing rapidly. In this context, I have recently been thinking about conveying in English what Japanese fermentation techniques are and what Japanese culture is all about in the world. I think this is the way to preserve Japanese culture. Japanese people who are thankfully buying books on fermentation published by “noma” can be found at ……. (I bought it too, but…). I bought a copy myself (laughs), but I think this is a serious situation.
<Takahashi> I believe that manga and anime have expanded because of the comic market. It is difficult for a single person to open up a new world, and it is necessary to have several outstanding companies. I believe that we are now entering a phase in which we are deliberately creating such a group of people and communicating our technology to them. Akita’s local community is a minority in the eyes of the central government. However, if we create a group like Kaientai and work with people overseas who are close to our ideas, we may be able to change the central government. I believe that is where the method to bring about change lies. If we can do that, we can bring about change from the local level in Japan. Otherwise, I don’t think we can survive in a snow country like Akita. At that time, I think we should take advantage of our good fortune to have people in this area who happen to live and think at the same time.
<Okazumi> It is interesting that in the past year or so, there has been an increase in the number of bartenders, chefs, and business owners who go to Shinsei, Yamamo, and then come to our restaurant. This is an interesting trend. We are at the beginning stage of working together and doing what we can to cooperate, while at the same time communicating to the rest of the world. I hope we can do even more interesting things in the future.
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Yasushi Takahashi Born in Akita Prefecture in 1979, Yasushi Takahashi is the seventh generation of the Yamamo Miso and Soy Sauce Brewery. In 2020, he discovered the yeast “Vianver” and presented it to the Japanese Society of Brewing Science. Obtained a patent for microorganisms.
Shuhei Okazumi Representative of Ina to Agave Brewery was born in 1988 in Fukuoka Prefecture. After studying business administration at Kobe University, he learned sake brewing at Shinmasa Sake Brewery in Akita City. Later, he learned rice cultivation at Ishiyama Nosan in Oogata Village, and founded Inna to Agave Brewery in 2021.
News of Article Publication_BRUTUS®_November Issue
The November issue of BRUTUS® features an article on Yamamo. Under the theme of “A delicious overnight trip that will change your life,” eight destinations from across Japan are featured in the article, “Visit the New Star of Fermentation, Innovation in the Northern Tohoku Region. Our new service is featured under the title “Visit the New Star of Fermentation, Innovating in the Northern Tohoku Region.
The “Dinner Tour,” which allows guests to experience the effects of Viamver®︎ yeast, the core of innovative fermentation, will feature 9 dishes and 9 pairings served in 5 different locations, including a Moromi warehouse with over 100 year old wooden barrels and a tea house associated with architect Chenichi Shirai. The event will be held at five different locations, including a Moromi warehouse with over 100-year-old wooden barrels and a tea house related to the architect Chenichi Shirai. By pairing not only the same yeast but also various architectural spaces, visitors will be able to experience the environment and background that led to the discovery of the special yeast, as well as the culture and climate that has been spun out through the interaction between the Takahashi family and cultural figures.
The article also touches on Chef Sato and researcher Mr. Kimura from the outside team, and captures the efforts that have been made with experts and on an evidence basis. Everyone on the team is delighted that what started as a simple café menu has become a full-fledged restaurant in three years. We hope that this media outlet will be an opportunity for you to experience the new world of fermentation._mediainfo._magazine
Visit to the New Star of Fermentation, an Innovator in the Northern Tohoku Region.
Yasushi Takahashi Born in Akita Prefecture in 1979. <He is the seventh generation of the Yamamo Brewery. In 2020, he discovered the yeast “Vianver” and presented it to the Japanese Society of Brewing Science. Obtained patent for microorganism.
A brewery that innovates the basic technology of traditional miso and soy sauce and produces dishes unimaginable from a traditional brewery. And a brewery that pioneers a new genre of sake in the world of sake, which is said to be impossible for newcomers to enter. From Yuzawa to Oga, a trip to visit innovative Akita breweries.
In Akita Prefecture, where miso, soy sauce, sake, and other fermented foods have long been popular, there are two people whose unique approaches are attracting attention in the food world. To meet these two new stars of publishing, we first visited the Yamamo Miso Soy Sauce Brewery in Yuzawa City.
The Iwasaki area of Yuzawa City has long been a popular area for miso and shoyu brewing, and Yasushi Takahashi, the seventh-generation owner of the brewery, has been putting his new ideas into practice one after another. The café-restaurant he has opened in the brewery serves dishes made with a special yeast discovered in the brewery and named “Viamver®. The yeast was analyzed with the help of a microbiologist specializing in microbiology and fermentation, and its characteristics were extracted from the food. We marinate meat and fish in Viamver® yeast solution to soften them, and season them with the flavor and salt necessary for the yeast to ferment,” says Takahashi.
Furthermore, research has shown that Viamver® produces more alcohol than other yeasts. This is surprising because it has been applied to sake brewing.
In the wine world, yeast such as Viamver® is considered a spoilage fungus and is frowned upon, but we have developed an original wine using Viamver®,” says Takahashi. This “Proslogion” wine made with Niagara grapes has no peculiarities and goes well with food. Thus, a single yeast full-pairing course was completed, using Viamver® for all dishes and wines.
1 Yamamo Brewery is a 10-minute drive from Yuzawa City. It has the appearance of a long-established business, but the interior has been stylishly renovated. 2 Yamamo’s mainstay products, including soy sauce, are displayed in the storefront store. The packaging may have been redesigned, but the taste is the same as it has always been. 3 Viamver® also gives lectures on yeast and fermentation. 4 “Viamver® Soy Sauce” (1,836 yen) and “Viamver® Vegetable Salt” (2,052 yen) have a stronger flavor than soy sauce. 5 “Proslogion,” an original wine made by fermenting Viamver®. This was used as the base for the pairing and arranged.
Finally, we were served the full course. Although the photos do not show all of the dishes, the dinner will be held at five different locations, using not only the regular restaurant space but also the entire warehouse space. It is designed as a culinary experience that allows visitors to enjoy the factory tour and dinner at the same time.
The dinner begins at the Moromi-Gura. In a space lined with wooden barrels that are more than 100 years old and bearing the target year and have a strong Moromi aroma, you will be served “Proslogion” wine along with finger foods. Next, we moved on to the “first storehouse”. After the second appetizer, we moved to the restaurant space, where three kinds of fresh seafood were served with doburoku. We used doburoku as a rice to make it look like sushi,” said Mr. Takahashi. The doburoku was made from the up-and-coming brewery Ina to Agave Brewery in Oga, which was to be visited the next day, and doburoku from Tonoya, an auberge in Tono City, Iwate Prefecture. Mr. Takahashi commissioned both of these unique brewers to brew doburoku with Viamver®, and it was a success. The product is scheduled to be commercialized in the near future. After the salad and main dish of fish, we were shown to a tea ceremony room called “Yugen-seki,” which was designed by an architect with close ties to Akita. The next stop was a tea room called “Yugen-seki,” named after the calligraphy “Yugen” by architect Seiichi Shirai, who has close ties to Akita Prefecture. The fact that the tea room was set up between the fish and meat entrees, where soup and tea were served, was quite unique. Then it was back to the restaurant for the meat main course. This lamb was again superb. It was juicy without any smell, and the two kinds of sauce made from fermented grapes and mandarin oranges added a complex sweet and sour flavor. The meal ends with dessert and dessert cocktails in the tatami room overlooking the garden. It was an intense experience for all five senses, not just the palate.
By working with a variety of people across barriers, including sake breweries, we can do innovative things.
Mr. Takahashi plans to purchase an old house near this site and turn it into an auberge. His innovation has not yet stopped.
Moromi-Gura The starter is a space filled with the aroma of Moromi. Finger food of pork marinated in Viamver® sommelier (marinade), served on a pie with grapes and blue cheese. The meat is soft and tender.
The first storehouse Gibier is also an elegant dish with improved meat quality. At the Hatsudai no Kura, Yamamo’s oldest restaurant. Mushrooms are served with pork, sweet potatoes, maitake mushrooms, and other ingredients. The meat has no odor and melts in the mouth, making it hard to believe it is venison.
Restaurant Fresh seafood and doburoku are used as a sushi appetizer. Octopus, bonito, and flatfish are served with a mixture of mizumoto and lime, mizumoto and red wine, and mizumoto and doburoku, respectively. The glass is a Gali-style chandigafu.
Restaurant Salad representing the Iwasaki area. The leafy vegetables are hydroponically grown using geothermal heat from Yuzawa City. Fermented sweetfish liver and tofu, spinach mousse and edible cricket powder are also available. A cup of fermented cherries and prothlogion.
Tea Room Tea and soup at the tea room to refresh the palate before the main course. A small amount of iburigakko was added to hojicha tea from in Shizuoka. The tea has a slight smoky flavor, and the addition of Viamver® salt gives it a dashi-like taste. The soup is Shadow Queen Vichyssoise.
Restaurant The main dish is the essence of Viamver®. The main meat dish is lamb from Shirakami, Akita Prefecture. The lamb is marinated in a yeast sommelier solution, so it is very tender and has none of the characteristic odor. The drink is “Nama-Hashiroshi,” a doburoku made by Toonoya.
Zashiki (tatami room) Finish off your meal with a dessert in the living room-like tatami room. Soy gelato and crème brûlée made with 20-year-aged miso. For the first time, dessert tastes like miso soy sauce. Served with Proslogion, which is arranged like a noble rot wine.
Yamamo Brewery Established in 1867. Products such as Amashio soy sauce, Ajijman (men-tsuyu), and low-temperature-aged miso “Yukikaze” are also popular. Lunch 11:00 – 15:00, Dinner 18:00 – 22:00 (reservation required). Cafe 10:00-17:00. Closed irregularly. Full-pairing dinner tour 33,000 yen.
Viamver® yeast has now been granted a microorganism patent as an entity and a process patent for a fermentation product made with it, due to its ability to produce large amounts of succinic acid, a seafood-derived umami ingredient.
The discovery of Viamver® yeast in innovative test brewing products, such as fermentation with bacteria outside the industry, which had been considered taboo, is assumed to be due to the possibility of genetic hybridization and changes in products due to environmental changes. We in the basic seasonings industry have found value in the repetition of past production methods because of the demand for an unchanging taste. However, innovation is born from new areas. We believe that this is the result of our belief that experimental efforts will bear fruit, even if the market does not demand it, and we have continued to do so solemnly.
We felt that unless we objectively proved this fact, we would not have accurately communicated it to society and the industry, so we made a presentation at an academic conference and applied for a patent. I believe that the patent approval this time was a touchstone for us. From here, we intend to create products that specialize in the umami of succinic acid, as well as new products that transcend industry boundaries. _Microbiology
Title of the Invention Salt-resistant yeast and fermented products using the yeast Patent No. 7138354 Patent Holder TAKAMO&Corp. Inventors Kiichi Kimura, Takayuki Watanabe, Kenji Uehara, Yasushi Takahashi Registration date September 8, 2022
Notice of Change of Representative and Appointment of New Board Members
Dear Sir or Madam, I would like to take this opportunity to express my sincere gratitude for your continued support and patronage. I am pleased to inform you that I am assuming the position of Representative Director by resolution of the Board of Directors. Although I am a novice, I am determined to make my utmost efforts to develop the company’s business, following the policy of the former representative. I would appreciate your further guidance and encouragement. Sincerely yours
September 2022
Yasushi Takahashi, President, TAKAMO&Corp.
President Yasushi Takahashi Chairman Yoshihiko Takahashi