Nada-ken (Nadashu Kenkyūkai)

【English】
The Society for Nada Sake Research (SNSR, “Nada-ken”)

The  Society for Nada Sake Research (familiarly abbreviated to Nada-ken) is a body made up of brewing specialists from Nada  and neighbouring areas. It was founded with thirteen members in March, 1917, with the aims of fostering brewing technique and friendly exchange. It can be said to be the first non-government association of brewing technicians in Japan. At one point, there were more than 180 members, but currently there are around ninety.

A wide range of research is carried out in six sections (for water, rice, brewing, sake quality, administration and publishing). In 2010, a quality testing panel was set up as a special research group in order to carry out tastings to check and certify the quality of  Nada no Ki-ippon  products.

The publishing section annually publishes the Report of the Association for Nada Sake Research, which is distributed to members. In 1969  “Nada-shu “ (灘酒, “Nada Sake”,) was published as a compendium of Nada brewing expertise. A revised edition (published in 1988) was also put on general sale (for non-members), and has contributed to the improvement of brewing practice.

In 1972, the film “Nada Sake: Traditional Sake Making” was made as a visual documentation of disappearing techniques, and is preserved as a precious record.

The Society published “The Nada Sake Lexicon”, a dictionary of  nihonshu  and Nada-sake-related terms, in 1979. This, and the revised edition published in 1997, is used by sake brewers across the nation. The present SNSR Sake Glossary is based on that 1997 revised edition, and was prepared in celebration of the 100th anniversary of the Society’s foundation.