Otokoyama's origins date to the years between 1661 and 1673 in Itami, Hyogo Prefecture, where the sake was so highly regarded that it was appointed the official purveyor to the Edo-period shogunate and was depicted in ukiyo-e woodblock prints by masters including Kitagawa Utamaro and Utagawa Hiroshige. After the original Itami operation was eclipsed and the brand name fell dormant, the tradition was revived and relocated to Asahikawa, Hokkaido in 1887, where the cold climate and pristine snowmelt water from Mount Daisetsu proved ideal for brewing. In 1977, Otokoyama became the first sake in the world to win a Monde Selection award, and began international exports in 1984.
