Product Specification of Geographical Indication “東京島酒 (Tokyo Shimazake / Tokyo Island Shochu)”
＜Interim translation＞
Spirits
Ⅰ Matters relating the characteristics of liquor which is essentially attributable to its geographical origin
- (1) Characteristics of liquor
There are 3 types in Tokyo Shimazake produced at Izu Islands, “sweet potato shochu using barley koji”, “barley shochu using barley koji”, and “sweet potato and barley blended shochu using barley koji”.
All of them are characterized by using “barley koji”, which is made from barley, and are honkaku shochu (authentic shochu) produced by using soft water in a lush green environment with a warm and humid climate throughout the year. The common characteristics include a roasted aroma of barley and a refreshing fragrance like grass, and you can feel the richness and umami in silence in the soft and light aftertaste.
In addition, each type has the following characteristics.
“Sweet potato shochu using barley koji” has an aroma like roasted sweet potatoes which are in harmony with a roasted aroma of barley koji and a sweet aroma of potatoes. Sweet potato shochu of Tokyo Shimazake uses various varieties of sweet potatoes including red, white, and purple potatoes. Depending on the variety of sweet potato, some of that has aromas reminiscent of red bean, citrus, honey, or yogurt.
Some “barley shochu using barley koji” has a particularly strong roasted aroma of barley. Some of that has a faint sweet flower-like aroma or soft dairy-like aroma.
“Sweet potato and barley blended shochu using barley koji” is produced by blending the above two types as undiluted shochu or by blending both raw materials in the fermentation process. The characteristics is depended on the blending ratio.
In addition, some of the individual characteristics of each production site can be detected in the aroma like chocolate, nut, or chestnut.
Tokyo Shimazake has been popular among islanders with sashimi which has rich umami taste by fatty fish such as Yellowstriped butterfish (Labracoglossa argentiventris) off Izu Islands, the traditional food “Kusaya” (salted, dried and fermented fish product which has a very strong smell), and dishes using Ashitaba (Angelica Keiskei; herb which has a distinct, bitter taste). The richness and umami of Tokyo Shimazake are layered in a well-balanced manner with the taste of fat, while the fat is washed away in the aftertaste, leaving a pleasant aftertaste by enjoying with fish sashimi. In addition, the roasted aroma of Tokyo Shimazake harmonizes with the characteristic strong aroma of Kusaya and Ashitaba tempura, making rich taste of the dish, while the high alcohol content of distilled spirits quickly counteracts these strong aromas and leaves no aftertaste. In this way, Tokyo Shimazake has both harmonious and refreshing effect on dishes, and is suitable to drink with meals. - (2) Essential attribution of its geographical origin to characteristics of liquor
- A. Natural factors
Izu Islands consist of 9 inhabited islands of Oshima, Toshima, Niijima, Shikinejima, Kozushima, Miyakejima, Mikurajima, Hachijojima, Aogashima extending approximately 120 km to 650 km south of Tokyo Bay which faces the capital Tokyo, and other isolated islands and affiliated islands. Izu Islands have a warm and humid oceanic climate, with a warm current (Kuroshio Current) flowing in nearby waters, whose annual average precipitation is approximately 3,000 mm. The relatively warm climate, especially during the season of producing shochu from fall to winter after the sweet potato harvest, has made it easy for shochu production to take root, as fermentation of moromi (mash) proceeded vigorously. This climate is surrounded by lush nature, and the combination of the diversity of microflora in this nature and the unique producing methods of each shochu distillery gives the products a variety of unique flavors. Furthermore, this warm climate promotes the dissolution of oily component into the undiluted shochu during storage period, and gives the product richness and umami.
The water used for producing comes from small rivers and groundwater, as each island is a small volcanic island with a narrow catchment area. In addition, due to the high annual precipitation, much water available on the island is soft water with little dissolved minerals derived from the geology. This water is used not only as water for shochu distilling, but also as adding water to undiluted shochu, and gives Tokyo Shimazake its soft and gentle taste.
There is little soil suitable for paddy fields in the Izu Islands because there are volcanic islands. Grains such as barley and millet have traditionally been cultivated. These geological features were the underlying cause of the formation of the characteristics of Tokyo Shimazake, which is based on barley koji. - B. Human factors
-
The beginning of shochu production in Izu Islands dates back to the Edo period (1601~1868). At that time, Izu Islands were a destination for people who were exiled to the island, and there were some intellectuals and cultured people with a relatively high level of education among them, including those who were considered political and ideological offenders. One of them was Tanso Shoemon, a merchant from Akune in Satsuma Province (located in southernmost region of Japan) who was exiled to Hachijojima island in 1853 on charges of smuggling. According to the reference literature “Hachijo Jikki”, He is said to have taught the islanders how to produce shochu using sweet potatoes as the main ingredient, based on his knowledge from his hometown at Miyakejima where is the transit point and Hachijojima where is the final destination. Coincidentally, at the time, the cultivation of sweet potatoes as a emergency crop was spreading in Izu Islands, and this shochu producing method is thought to have spread to other islands in Izu Islands.
It is not clear when the producing method using “barley koji,” which is a characteristic of Tokyo Shimazake, was established. However, in the reference literature “Hachijo Jikki”, there is a description about the results of shochu production as “Without spending a single grain of rice (omitted) the farming of the island made huge profits”. There is almost no evidence that rice was cultivated in the area based on its nature of soil, and it is said that barley and millet were cultivated as grains. From the above, barley has been used as the raw material for koji since Tanso Shoemon introduced the method of producing shochu. Furthermore, modern research shows that the producing method for barley koji had been established by the late Meiji period (1868~1912) at the latest.
The above is said to be the historical background to the birth of “sweet potato shochu using barley koji”, the first type of Tokyo Shimazake.
While shochu production became popular on the islands, the demand for sweet potatoes as a cultivated crop on the islands declined due to improved food transportation and distribution conditions from around the early Showa period (1926~1989), and the crop was shifted to cultivating profitable foliage plants. Furthermore, the supply of sweet potatoes was drastically decreased due to the catastrophic damage to sweet potato fields caused by a typhoon in 1975. This caused the “sweet potato shochu using barley koji” temporarily reduced, which is the production of the first type. Under this situation, the main ingredient for shochu began to switch from conventionally sweet potatoes produced in the islands to barley produced outside the islands, which was easier to transport. As a result of the above, “barley shochu using barley koji”, the second type of Tokyo Shimazake, was born, and its flavor, which was different from sweet potato shochu, got support from the islanders and began to take root.
Additionally, at distillery that produces both of two types, "sweet potato and barley blended shochu using barley koji" has been developed as the third type utilizing the characteristics of both.
In addition, in the middle of the Heisei period (1989~2019), as attracting attention of sweet potato shochu during the 3rd shochu boom in Japan, the procurement routes of raw materials such as restarting cultivation on the island and purchasing sweet potatoes from outside the islands was developed and “sweet potato shochu using barley koji”, the first type, began to be actively produced again. Even in these changes, edible sweet potatoes such as red sweet potatoes have been consistently used as the main ingredient, and the characteristics of Tokyo Shimazake are formed by the aroma and flavor of each variety.
Shochu producers in the region have also introduced new techniques, such as using vacuum distillation method in addition to the traditional atmospheric distillation method. The atmospheric distillation method have a stronger “roasted aroma of barley” derived from distillation at high temperatures than the vacuum distillation method which have a clean and refreshing taste.
With the above history, Tokyo Shimazake was mostly distributed and consumed only on the islands until the advent of the 3rd shochu boom in the mid-Heisei period in Japan. For 150 years, from the time Tanso Shoemon handed down his techniques to the mid-Heisei period, Tokyo Shimazake has been an important factor of the Izu Islands' food culture, which has been strongly connected to the cuisine of the islands and the life of the islanders, and passed down from generation to generation. These historical and cultural backgrounds have contributed to the formation of the characteristics of Tokyo Shimazake.
- A. Natural factors
Ⅱ Matters relating to ingredients and production method of liquor
- (1) Ingredients
- A. Only sweet potatoes harvested in Japan must be used.
- B. Only barley must be used for koji.
- C. Only water collected within the Izu Islands must be used.
- (2) Production method
- A. Fermentation, distillation and storage must be carried out on the Izu Islands.
- B. The undiluted shochu and the product must be stored at room temperature.
- C. Moromi fermented using barley, sweet potatoes, koji, and water as raw materials must be distilled using a pot still, or mixed of these.
- D. Shochu must be packed within the Izu Islands into containers intended to be delivered to consumers.
Ⅲ Matters relating to management for maintaining the characteristics of liquor
- (1) Role and Location of the "Control Body"
In order to use the geographical indication (GI) “Tokyo Shimazake / Tokyo Island Shochu”, the liquor that uses the GI is required to be confirmed by the following control body (hereinafter referred to as “the control body”) pursuant to guidelines for work implementation, prepared by the control body as to whether the relevant liquor satisfies “1. Matters relating the characteristics of liquor which is essentially attributable to its geographical origin“ and “2. Matters relating the raw materials and production method of liquor” by the time the relevant liquor is shipped to places (excluding places subject to the provision of Article 28, paragraph 1, of the Liquor Tax Act) from its brewing place (including places deemed as brewing places with the permit to produce liquor by the provisions of Article 28, paragraph 6 or Article 28-3, paragraph 4 of the Liquor Tax Act).
Name of control body：GI Tokyo Shimazake Control Committee
Representative name: Okuyama Kiyomitsu (Hachijojima Shuzo Co., Ltd.)
Address: 1299-banchi, Mitsune, Hachijo-machi, Hachijojima, Tokyo, within Hachijo Kohatsu Co., Ltd.
Telephone: 04996-2-0555
Ⅳ Matters relating to liquor classes
Pot distillation shochu (Article 3, Item 10 of the Liquor Tax Act)
