Far Space Traveler comes from Matsuo Shuzo in Tosayamada, Kami City, in Kochi Prefecture. The brewery's Matsuokina sake is made for drinking in Tosa, which is why little of it leaves the prefecture. It is light and dry in style, and it uses only Kochi water and Kochi rice.
This one is a junmai ginjo made with space yeast. In 2005 Kochi's sake makers sent yeast into space, where it stayed alive for ten days, and the strain used here, AA-41, comes from that project. The rice is Ginnoyume, grown in Kochi and polished to 50 per cent. It is a dry sake, 16 per cent alcohol, and its sake meter value of plus 3, which makes it a little less dry than its sibling Deep Ocean. The brewery describes a light banana aroma, crisp acidity, rich savoury depth and a long finish.
A small glass and a good chill suit it. The brewery calls it a food sake that goes with a wide range of dishes, and it suggests the bottle for Tanabata, the July star festival, and for moon viewing.