The world of sake is one of constant experimentation and versatility. Breweries with centuries of experience create products that demonstrate their sake making skills, and one brewery that’s particularly innovative in Hayashi Honten in Gifu Prefecture.
This is evident in the brewery’s Golden Amber junmai koshu, a complex drink full of wonderful contradictions.
Continue reading “Hayashi Honten Golden Amber Junmai Koshu Review: Bizarre And Beautiful”
Lockdown may have stopped hospitality venues from operating normally, but the resiliency shown across the sector should be applauded. Businesses have adapted through embracing eCommerce, offering takeaways and launching virtual events to strengthen their connection with customers.
It’s during this time that I toured my first sake brewery and was able to do so from the comfort of my own home. At a virtual tour of Kanpai Brewery in London, I was able to peek behind the curtain and see how nihonshu is produced and the passion of the people involved.
Continue reading “Touring Kanpai Sake Brewery: A Story Of Innovation, Passion And Resilience”
You were born on the day of a storm
The weather matching the thunder and lightning
Rattling inside my chest from the moment
You were due to come into the world
I’ll never forget the gentle heartbeat
Or the tiny hand you placed into mine
The spark of potential that flashed in your eyes
Was preserved inside the kame
Sealed with a handprint
Years of maturation
Cultivated with love and care
Until the boy became a man
And what a man you’ve become
Strong, brave, compassionate
Together we’ll drink the memories
That have aged in awamori
Nuanced flavours of a life
Still maturing
Becoming more complex
With every new experience
Set aside a fresh kame
Fill it with the hopes and dreams of your children
Teach them a life distilled
Is a life worth cherishing
Drink consumers are always looking for the next big thing, the next trend that will come along and transform the industry with new flavours and experiences. I believe the new frontier lies in sake and shochu. Both categories are becoming increasingly known in the western market through the tireless efforts of educators, ambassadors, retailers, restaurateurs and enthusiasts.
The world of sake and shochu is exciting and innovative, with many passionate people linked by a love for what they do. This passion was on full display at the Sake Future Summit 2020, which brought together sake professionals from across the globe for a dialogue on how sake can take over the world.
Podcasts are excellent resources for learning new things, especially when it comes to breaking down a subject as diverse and complex as sake. From the production process to the history of different rice varietals, there’s so much to enjoy in learning about sake and there are podcasts that champion Japan’s national beverage with great content and insight.
Here are three essential podcasts for furthering your sake education and falling deeper into the nihonshu rabbit hole.
Continue reading “3 Essential Podcasts For Furthering Your Sake Education”
It’s easy to brand Takara Shuzo Co. Ltd as nothing more than an offshoot of the Takara Group (Japan’s leading corporation for alcohol-related business and biotechnology) and all the negative connotations that can come with multinational mass-production. Yet, the brewery, based in the Nada ward of Kobe (one of Japan’s major nihonshu producing regions), have skilfully blended the best parts of traditional sake-making methods and the advantages of modern technology, to create beautiful, authentic, contemporary sake.
Continue reading “Guest Post: Shochikubai Shirakabegura Kimoto Junmai Review”
Flights Of Fantasy matches sake with different fantasy characters, using bottles that compliment personality and motivations. If there were ever a character who liked to discover new drinks and get thoroughly sloshed it’s Brasti Goodbow from Sebastien De Castell’s The Greatcoats series.
Irreverent, impulsive and supremely confident in his mastery of the bow, Brasti is the kind of guy who’d make an excellent drinking buddy. His sake flights are brash, masculine and have more to them than meets the eye.
Flights of Fantasy creates a saking tasting menu based on the personalities of different fantasy characters. Falcio Val Mond from Sebastien De Castell’s The Greatcoats series is one of my favourite fantasy heroes because of his complexity, stubborn idealism and swashbuckling attitude.
The First Cantor of The Greatcoats has dedicated his life to bringing justice to his homeland of Tristia, so his choices of sake would be loud, indomitable and have an air of adventure.
Having already provided a profile on Kuncho Shuzo Co. Ltd in a previous review of their fantastic Kaorucho Junmai, there’s not a lot to add about the ever-popular, Kyushu-based brewery here. That online references to their history and methods of production are minimal is perhaps best respected; especially if it allows their wonderful products to speak for themselves!
Instead, I wanted to say a few words on honjozo, the classification of the Kuncho brew I’ll be opening up today.
Sake is the heart of Japan. It’s magical, mystical and historically rich. It tells of stories that are thousands of years old and the tireless efforts of master craftsmen brewing fantastic booze. It’s a bridge between worlds, connecting western drinkers with a beverage that opens up a whole new world of drinking opportunities. It’s transformative, always changing, altering perceptions wherever it’s experienced.
Sake is all of these things and more. Brian Ashcraft’s The Japanese Sake Bible does an exceptional job of capturing all the qualities that make nihonshu one of the most diverse and exciting drinks in the world. Chock full of detail from leading sake brewers and poetic tasting notes, The Japanese Sake Bible is perfect for anyone who wants to worship at the altar of nihonshu.
Continue reading “The Japanese Sake Bible Review: Comprehensive, Entertaining And Unputdownable”
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