Ontario Spring Water Sake Company, Toronto

The hard-core sake loving community of Toronto, back in the day saddened by the state of sake availability in the city, got a virtual “shot in the arm” when The Ontario Spring Water Sake Company opened their facility in the Distillery District. This marked the first opportunity for the locals to try and buy a freshly brewed unpasteurized batch of this rice-based alcoholic beverage, widely available on the west coast already, without having to leave their province.

The Ontario Spring Water Sake Company specializes in manufacturing unpasteurized sake, otherwise known as nama sake, which is a rarity on this half of the continent because it spoils if not kept refrigerated. This type of sake is seldom found in sushi restaurants and is quite expensive to ship over from Japan while kept at a cool temperature.

The proprietor, Ken Valvur, came up with an idea of bringing Canadians this liquid delight after visiting a 350-year-old sake brewery in Japan. With water and rice being the core ingredients, it took a bit of an effort to identify the source of water similar to the specific characteristics of the water used in the Fushimi ward of Kyoto, Japan's premiere sake production district. Eventually, they found the spring water from Muskoka being just what's needed, combined with California-made rice.

Apart from enjoying a variety of completely unpasteurized, freshly pressed, handmade sakes in the bar, the distillery offers visitors a rare opportunity to witness, through the glass window, the handcrafted distilling process. They also sell by-product of the sake production, known as sake lees or kasu (used in gourmet cooking).