The Brewery That Gave Up Its Name: Fukui’s BORN Climbs Higher on the Sake Staircase
The Sake Staircase, Episode 2 | Step One: Sake (Part 2)
In the realm of sake, a single number often reveals the depth of a brewer’s devotion: the rice polishing ratio. It indicates how much of each grain remains after the outer layers have been milled away. When rice is polished down to 50% or less and brewed using the ginjo method, sake made only from rice, koji, and water is classified as Junmai Daiginjo, while sake with added brewer’s alcohol is called Daiginjo.
In the city of Sabae, Fukui Prefecture, there is a brewery whose average polishing ratio across its entire production is just 34.5%.
This is not a figure reserved for a single flagship bottle; it represents the brewery-wide average, already surpassing the standard required for Junmai Daiginjo and Daiginjo. The brewery is Kato Kichibee Shoten, and its sake bears a single name: BORN.
In Episode 0, we looked at Japanese alcoholic beverages as a staircase with five steps. In Episode 1, we began climbing the first step, sake, through Tamba’s Shokotsu. This time, we remain on that same step, because we have yet to discover how high this first step can truly rise.
This brewery was not born as a master of highly polished rice.
Founded in 1860, during the final years of the Edo period, the family behind the brewery had served as both money changers and village leaders before beginning sake production in Sabae. By the early Showa era, their sake was sold under the label Koshinoi, which won the highest award at the Hokuriku Sake Competition for four consecutive years. It was also selected as an official regional sake for Emperor Showa’s enthronement ceremonies.
In other words, the brewery already possessed a respected and celebrated name.
Then, in 1963, it abandoned that name.
Every product would carry a single brand.
The name they chose was BORN.
Derived from the Sanskrit word Bon, it conveys ideas such as pure without impurity and the pursuit of truth. Written in the Roman alphabet, it becomes BORN, sharing its spelling with the English word meaning “to be born.”
It was an extraordinary decision: to give up a name built through decades of domestic acclaim and instead bet everything on a single word that could be remembered anywhere in the world.
That boldness did not stop with branding.
According to the brewery’s history, in 1968 it became the first brewery in Japan to commercially market Daiginjo sake on a full scale. The following year, it released BORN Cho Tokusen Deluxe, recognized as Japan’s first commercially sold Daiginjo sake. In 1971, it followed with BORN Gokuhizō Daiginjo and BORN San-Nen Shu Old, regarded as Japan’s first commercially available aged sake.
Long before the term Daiginjo entered everyday vocabulary, this brewery had already brought the category to market.
Today, BORN’s philosophy rests on three pillars.
First: Rice. Every bottle is made exclusively from rice, koji, and water, without unnecessary additives. The brewery uses only three varieties of rice: contract-grown Yamada Nishiki from Hyogo’s prestigious Special A district, Gohyakumangoku from Fukui, and Sakahomare, also from Fukui.
Second: Water. Brewing water comes from underground springs drawn from approximately 184 meters below ground, fed by the pristine snowmelt of the Hakusan mountain range.
Third: Time. Every sake is aged at sub-zero temperatures before release. Even the youngest spends at least one year maturing, while some rest for over a decade. Highly polished rice is merely the prelude; the brewery invites time itself to shape the final expression in the stillness just above freezing.
These three elements define the character of BORN.
The ultimate expression of this philosophy is BORN Chogin.
Its rice is polished down to 20%, meaning 80% of each grain has been carefully removed. The blend centers on sake matured for approximately five years at –10°C, resulting in one of Japan’s most celebrated Junmai Daiginjo. It is not merely an exercise in polishing, but in refining time itself.
Internationally, Chogin has increasingly been discussed within the language of fine wine.
In U.S. distribution materials, it has been introduced with a 93-point rating associated with Robert Parker’s evaluation system. More significant than the score itself is what it represents: sake being judged not only for its fragrant aromatics or delicate sweetness, but also for the depth, structure, and lingering finish developed through aging, qualities traditionally reserved for the evaluation of fine wines.
BORN has also become a regular presence at the highest levels of diplomacy.
Its sake has been served for toasts at official state banquets welcoming foreign heads of state. In 2000, BORN Gin no Tsubasa won the Grand Prix at the International Wine & Spirit Competition in London. Following that achievement, the brewery renamed it Wing of Japan later that year.
In 2007, it became the first officially selected sake served aboard the Japanese Government Aircraft. Beginning in 2008, it was also offered in the newly introduced First Class service on Japan Airlines’ Narita–New York route.
Wing of Japan blends Junmai Daiginjo polished to 20% and 35%, each aged for approximately two years below 0°C before blending.
At Kura Master 2025, the prestigious sake competition held in France, it received the Gold Award in the Junmai Daiginjo (1–35% Polishing Ratio) category.
Today, BORN is exported to 118 countries, and its trademark is officially registered in more than 100 countries and regions, including Japan.
The single word chosen in 1963 with global ambitions has, over six decades, become exactly what its founders envisioned.
If you encounter BORN at Kanpai Thailand 2026, remember what lies behind the bottle.
If Shokotsu introduced us to the entrance of sake in Episode 1, BORN reveals just how high that same first step can reach.
Within a single step of the staircase, there is astonishing breadth.
The story of BORN continues in three places.
To immerse yourself in the brewery’s philosophy, visit Salon du Japonisant, where its tasting bar offers a thoughtful journey through the range. To deepen your understanding through expert curation, explore Nadaya Saketen, a traditional Japanese sake retailer with extensive knowledge and selection. And to rediscover Junmai sake through the lens of fermentation and koji culture, experience KOUJI ALCHEMIST by Salon du Japonisant.
Together, they offer three different perspectives on the same remarkable brewery.
Koji’s Note (Koji Hara)
What fascinates me most about BORN isn’t the polishing ratio.
It’s the fact that every single bottle, regardless of price or prestige, spends at least one year aging at ice-cold temperatures before release. There are many breweries devoted to polishing rice, but very few that devote this much time to every sake they make.
I see that same unwavering commitment in the brewery’s decision back in 1963 to abandon an award-winning brand name and embrace a single word with global appeal.
If you’re discovering BORN in Bangkok, I’d recommend beginning with BORN Gold.
From there, take your time climbing toward Wing of Japan and eventually Chogin.
The journey is part of the reward.
56 days until opening day.
Next time, we remain on the first step of The Sake Staircase and climb a little higher into the world of sake.
This article is intended solely to explore the brewing philosophy and cultural heritage of Kato Kichibee Shoten and the BORN brand, and does not aim to promote or encourage the consumption or purchase of alcohol. Participating producers and products at KANPAI Thailand 2026 may change before the event. For those aged 20 and over; please drink responsibly.
บทความนี้จัดทำขึ้นเพื่อนำเสนอข้อมูลเกี่ยวกับปรัชญาการผลิตและมรดกทางวัฒนธรรมของ Kato Kichibee Shoten และแบรนด์ BORN เท่านั้น มิได้มีเจตนาเพื่อส่งเสริมหรือโฆษณาการบริโภคหรือการซื้อเครื่องดื่มแอลกอฮอล์ รายชื่อผู้ผลิตและผลิตภัณฑ์ที่ร่วมงาน KANPAI Thailand 2026 อาจมีการเปลี่ยนแปลงก่อนวันงาน สำหรับผู้มีอายุ 20 ปีขึ้นไป โปรดดื่มอย่างมีความรับผิดชอบ
Related Articles
“A Sake Named by a Poet—Tamba’s “Kotsuzumi,” the First Step into Japanese Sake” / “Map of Washu — The Five Steps at a Glance” / “Sake Chosen by the Hand That Brews It” / ““Daiyame,” the Kagoshima Spirit Whose Name Means “Healing the Day’s Fatigue” ” / “The Virtue of Time”
Related Product(s)
BORN Gold / BORN Chogin / BORN Tokusen Junmai-Daiginjo / BORN Junsui Pure Junmai-Daiginjo / BORN Dreams come true
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