生 (nama) means raw. On a sake label it is about pasteurization — hi-ire (火入れ), a gentle heating that settles the sake for shipping and shelf life. Most sake is heated twice: once before it goes into storage, and once on the way into the bottle. The nama words tell you which of those steps was skipped.
One table
| Label | Before storage | At bottling | How it tends to taste |
|---|---|---|---|
| (standard sake) | Heated | Heated | Settled and stable |
| 生酒 namazake | Raw | Raw | The freshest and liveliest; sometimes a faint prickle |
| 生貯蔵酒 nama-chozo | Raw | Heated | Fresh character kept from the tank, stabilized in the bottle |
| 生詰め酒 nama-zume | Heated | Raw | Calmer and rounder — autumn’s hiyaoroshi is this style |
An easy way to remember it: the word tells you what stayed raw. 生貯蔵 — stored raw. 生詰め — bottled raw. 生酒 — raw all the way.
Why it matters at home
Raw sake still has active enzymes, so it changes faster. Keep any nama style in the fridge, from the shop to the glass, and drink it within a reasonable time once opened. Labels often say 要冷蔵 — keep refrigerated.
Two “nama” words that are not about heat
- 生酛kimoto
- Read “ki-moto,” not nama. A traditional way of making the yeast starter with natural lactic acid. Nothing to do with pasteurization — a kimoto sake can be fully pasteurized.
- 生一本kiippon
- Junmai sake brewed entirely at a single brewery. Again, about where it was made — not about heat.