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Degustation of Sake - Japanese Rice Wine

Degustation of Sake - Japanese Rice Wine


Let's talk about Sake today which is a traditional Japanese alcoholic beverage brewed with rice.  
 
I am a Japanese person who lives in Canada, but now I am temporarily in Japan to visit my family. This is my first visit to Japan in more than two years. As you might know, I couldn’t come back to Japan for that long because of the pandemic. 
 
I love drinking Sake, so I missed it when I couldn’t visit Japan. Now that I am staying in Japan, there is no reason not to try it. 
 
I would like to share with you the review of the Sakes which I tried so far, but before that, I am going to briefly explain the types of Sake and the terms you may see on the labels of Sake bottles.
 

The Types of Sake

Junmai or non-Junmai

“Junmai” means “pure rice”, so Junmai shu (sake) is the sake brewed only with rice, rice yeast and water. 
 
Therefore, when you sort sake by the raw materials, there are only Junmai or non-Junmai in theory, although you will never see the term “non-Junmai” on the labels. In other words, if it doesn’t say Junmai, it is non-Junmai. 
 
Then, if it is not purely brewed with rice, rice yeast and water, what do they brew it with? 
 
It’s brewing alcohol (distilled alcohol). They say that they sometimes add a small amount of brewing alcohol in order to draw out the distinctive aroma. That is non-Junmai.
 
On the other hand, I could say Junmai shu tends to have a stronger rice flavour than non-Junmai. 
 

Daiginjo, Ginjo, Tokubetsu and Honjozo

Daiginjo, Ginjo, Tokubetsu or Honjozo are defined by rice polish ratio. 
 
At the beginning of the process of making sake, they polish the rice as a raw material, and the rice polish ratio tells you how much they have polished it. 
 
When the rice polish ratio is 35%, it means that they polished 65% of the rice away. They only used 35% of the rice to brew, so you can imagine that kind of sake tends to be more expensive than Sake with a 60% rice polish ratio.  
 
The relationship between the milling ratio and the type of sake is as follows:
 
  • Daiginjo - 50% or less
  • Ginjo - 60% or less
  • Honjozo - 70% or less
 
Also, Daiginjo and Ginjo have to be brewed using a specific method which is called “Ginjo-zukuri.” Ginjo-zukuri is a method in which more polished rice is fermented at a lower temperature for a longer period of time than usual. Ginjo-zukuri could give a fruity and floral aroma to sake.
 
If its rice polish ratio is 60% or less, but it was not brewed with Ginjo-zukuri, it will be classified as Tokubetsu shu (sake). 

Trend of Sake

Sake is a traditional drink in Japan. There are many microbreweries of Sake as well as mass-producing Sake companies all over Japan. 
 
In the 1980s, people paid more attention to microbreweries rather than well-known Sake companies who have provided their products nationwide. 
 
With that trend, the small breweries in the countryside started brewing clean and sophisticated Sake, most of which were Ginjo or Daiginjo with a fruity aroma using highly polished rice. 
 
During that “Jizake boom” which means “locally brewed Sake boom”, it was critical for the breweries to win the Sake contest. If they won it they could extend their share on the market. They focused on producing a clean finished Sake with an elegant aroma, but after a while, some consumers got bored with them.
 
Sake lovers, therefore, started preferring the Sake with unique characteristics rather than easy-drink sake as an antithesis. 
 
With that movement, they started distributing the specific types of Sake such as;
 
  • Muroka = Unfiltered Sake: It tends to be a very deep and full-bodied sake, while filtered sake tends to be a light, refreshing taste and more balanced.
  • Genshu = Undiluted Sake: It has not been water-downed after it has been brewed. Freshly squeezed sake has an alcohol content of 18-20%, but using the traditional method, they add water so that the alcohol content is diluted to around 15%. The addition of water also makes it refreshing and easier to drink. Unadjusted sake has a high alcohol content and is rich in flavour. You can add ice to it to enjoy it on the rocks.
  • Nama-zake: It has never been heated to around 60°C, a process known as "hi-ire".  Hi-ire is a procedure to sterilise the bacteria that can deteriorate sake and to stabilise the quality of the sake by stopping enzymes remaining in the sake. You can enjoy a fresh aroma that is suitable for drinking chilled.
It is fair to say that those types of Sake began to be spotlighted in the market, thanks to improved logistics technology.
 
Alright, I think it is enough. I am now going to share my review of Sake which I tried so far in my stay in Japan this time.
 

Mukhu Junmai Daiginjo (Niigata prefecture)


 
I do not usually buy Daiginjo. This time, I bought this sake because it was made from my favourite rice, Gohyakumangoku. Also, it was because the price was not so high for a Junmai Daiginjo.
 
Jizake boom breweries prefer polishing more than it’s regulated as Daiginjo which is 50% or less. You will see more Daiginjo with 35% or 40% of polishing ratio in Sake shops. It's because the more they polish rice, which means the lower polishing ratio, the cleaner taste of Sake they can brew, in other words easy-drinking Sake.
 
However, this Daiginjo’s rice polishing ratio is just 50%, which is not that low compared with other Daiginjos. It gave the sake a full of rice flavour.
 
I was expecting it to be a full body with a strong and sweet flavour, but surprisingly, it has a light, refreshing taste. In that sense, I could say it was a typical Niigata sake.
 

Gokujo Yoshinogawa Ginjo (Niigata prefecture)


 
Speaking of Niigata's sake, here's another one.
 
Gokujo Yoshinogawa Ginjo. I wanted to buy a Junmai Ginjo, but only Ginjo (non-Junmai) was available in the shop.
 
Anyway, it was another beautiful sake with a sophisticated taste and easy to drink.
 
Very smooth, but full of flavour and well-balanced. It’s dry but there is a slightly bitter after note. That’s why you want to drink more once you open it. 
 

Mutsumi Nama Genshu (Niigata prefecture)


 
I hadn’t heard about this Sake brewery. 
 
The taste was a bit too sweet for me. It’s full bodied and quite heavy. The alcohol content is also high as it’s Genshu and hasn’t been water downed. 
 
If you like sweet and rich Sake, you may enjoy it, but honestly, this is not my favourite one. 
 

Tomizu Tokubetsu Junmai (Yamagata prefecture)


 
This is a Sake from Yamagata prefecture. I have drunk the other brand Sake from this brewery, but it was the first time drinking this brand. 
 
“Tomizu” is “To (ten)” and “Mizu (water)”, which suggests that they brewed it with 10 to 10 ratio of water and rice. Sake is normally brewed using more water than the volume of rice. This sake, on the other hand, used less water than usual, so the rice taste is concentrated.
 
That’s why I found it quite rich in rice flavour with a slight acidity. It was nicer when I drank it warmed. 
 

Masumi Honjozo (Nagano prefecture)


 
Masumi is brewed by one of my favourite Sake breweries located in Nagano prefecture. 
 
I bought a big bottle of 1.8L this time. Actually, it was a gift for mother’s day to my mum. It was nice of my mum to share it with me:)
 
The taste of Honjozo is often not very sophisticated, but it is good for drinking warmed. I chose it as a gift because my mother likes warmed Sake. 
 
It was smooth and comfortably sweet. Next time, I should try it warmed. 
 

Dewazakura Ginjo cup sake (Yamagata prefecture) 


 
Cup Sake is a Sake sold in a little cup containing 180ml. You are more likely to see them in a Kiosk at railway stations or convenience stores in Japan. 
 
The producers of Cup Sake used to be mass producing Sake companies but there was a kind of “Cup Sake Boom” when the smaller breweries started providing Cup Sakes. 
 
You can no longer take it for granted that Cup Sake is a handy cheap option after they began to get into the market of Cup Sake with fancy products. 
 
Look at the image of Dewazakura Cup Sake. 
 
It has golden Japanese calligraphy Kanji letters on the navy background. Slim and cute aluminium cans are helpful to prevent the quality of Sake from deteriorating.
 
The size is handy, but it contains real Ginjo Sake. It is smooth and clean with a floral aroma. 180ml is never enough. 
 

Nanbu Bijin cup sake (Iwate prefecture)


 
This is a Cup Sake of Nanbu Bijin from Iwate prefecture. 
 
I liked the design of its glass. I didn't want to throw the glass away after drinking it. One sip and it's like a sigh of “Oh, yum!” It was a sake that cheers one up.
 
I think I should buy a bigger bottle of it next time.
 
 

Hakutsuru Yamadanishiki (Hyogo prefecture)


 
This is Hakutsuru's Yamada Nishiki.
 
Hakutsuru is one of the well-known Sake companies located in Hyogo prefecture. Actually, we can buy Hakutsuru’s Sake in Canada. There is not much choice, but it is possible to buy some of their basic products.
 
This Cup Sake is brewed with famous Sake rice called “Yamadanishiki”. Yamadanishiki is a king of Sake rice like Cabernet Sauvignon or Syrah for wine. 
 
The label says that this sake was brewed with 100% of Yamadanishiki grown in Hyogo prefecture which is an elite of Yamadasnishiki.
 
It had an elegant aroma and fruity taste, but I have to say it’s an average Sake. 
 
Having said that, it’s good enough to enjoy.
 

More Sake Tasting is Coming!

That’s all for now, but I am going to stay in Japan until the 4th of June. I am sure I will have more chances to taste various types of Sake during my stay. 

I will continue to post about them. If you like, you can find more of them on my Twitter or Instagram
 
https://twitter.com/hana_gardener
https://www.instagram.com/hana_chan81/

Thank you for reading and good luck with your Sake degustation! 
 

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