SIMPLY SAKE
Saturday, December 6, 2008
Blog Resurrection
Saturday, October 6, 2007
The Joy of Sake Part III
Sunday, September 9, 2007
The Joy of Sake Part II
Unfortunately I can't tell you much about what Koshi no Homare tasted like because I honestly don't remember. My plan that night was to try and remember what each sake tasted like and I am ashamed to say that I failed miserably in my task. This was not because I was too inebriated to remember. On the contrary, the "plastic syringe" that we all used to squirt a small amount of sake into our plastic cups kept me from over indulging this night. No, my palate was simply "shot" that night from all of the complex sake I tasted. You try drinking twenty daiginjo in a row and see how your taste buds fair.
One of the few things I disliked about this event was that all of the sake (with a few exceptions) were served at room temperature as opposed to chilled. I assume this was done purposely since it would be a logistical nightmare to try and keep chilled three hundred bottles of different sake while still allowing people to self serve themselves. Thankfully there were a few tables scattered around the perimeter of the ballroom that were manned by representatives of specific distributors and brewers. While not many, these few tables were pouring chilled sake, and my wife and I took full advantage of this fact as you can see in the above picture.
Thursday, September 6, 2007
The Joy of Sake Part I
Monday, August 13, 2007
Echigo Tsurukame Daiginjo
Brewer: Uehara Shuzou Niigata, Japan
Rice: Yamada Nishiki
Milling Rate: 40%
Sake Meter Value +4
Alcohol Content 17 to 18%
Echigo Tsurukame Daiginjo is the fabled sake mentioned on this blog as well as on malleong.blogspot.com.This sake was highly recommended by the helpful woman at Meishu Center in Tokyo. There is no one word that describes this sake as it had a very complex flavor.True to its SMV rating of +4, it was dry, yet very well balanced. There is the subtle sweetness of rice that was evident with each sip. Like all daiginjo, we tasted ours chilled. The consistency was like heavy water or light syrup as we drank it. It was silky smooth.This sake had a sophisticated flavor that made each of us wanting more after each sip. This was the highlight of the night.
I tried finding the Daiginjo Echigo Tsurukame in Hawaii but was not successful. I found a hon juzou Echigo Tsurukame from Uehara Shuzou locally. However, it is far from the Daiginjo.We see the finer sake locally in Hawaii Selling for $50 + for the 720 ml. The Echigo Tsurukame Daiginjo cost 10,500 yen for the 1.8 Liter bottle. This price and higher is reserved for only a few sake worthy of this distinction. This sake definitely was in that category.
Guest posted by Mr. Dean Sakata
Tuesday, August 7, 2007
Meishu Center
Some of us (including myself) really enjoy drinking sake. Visiting the Meishu Center was one of the things I had looked forward to on this trip. They had a ton of different sake to try and we decided to go with the very best they had. (See the above picture) The green bottle on the far right was supposed to be one of their best. It was a sake that was created and dedicated to the birth of the new male heir to the throne earlier that year. It was excellent! It was so good that we bought their last two bottles to take home with us.
Sigh! Good sake with good friends in Japan . . . it doesn't get any better than that. And again, the best part of this was that we could drink to our heart's content because we would be walking home instead of driving. Well . . . maybe not walking but staggering for sure!
Saturday, August 4, 2007
Joy of Sake
On August 23, 2007 at the Hawaii Convention Center, a few friends and I will be indulging ourselves in what is billed as the largest sake tasting event outside of Japan, the Joy of Sake. Boasting over 300 great sake "in peak condition" and delicious food from some of the best restaurants in Hawaii, this event is a sake enthusiast's dream come true.
While I had not planned for this, I am proud to say that I was the first person to buy tickets for this event from the Marukai Dillingham location. Also unplanned was the fact that my friend Dean had the honor of being the first person to buy tickets from the Maruaki Ward location. (Of course we both know that they sell these tickets online and at a few other retail locations in Hawaii, but it's nice to feel like we were first for something.) The only negative thing about this function is the fact that they have scheduled it for a Thursday night. Those of us who work for a living (me) will have to work the next day.
So this is where I will be a few weeks from now, with ochoko in hand and a big smile on my face. Obviously I will report back on my experience in a later blog posting. See you there!