Is it beer or wine?
Saké purists will say that saké is saké. It is not wine or beer. It is it’s own unique beverage and deserves it’s own identity. That is certainly true, but in a world that is trying to understand saké, it is not easy to be so definitive and may not be a good idea.
Saké is like beer in that it is a brewed beverage made from a grain (rice), water and yeast. Unlike beer, or spirits, the grain is not malted to convert starch to sugar and no hops are involved. The finished beverage is like grape wine and often carries some similarities in flavor. While purists would also have you sipping sake from traditional ochoko’s (little shot-like cups), saké, like wine, is best experienced from stemware. Any white wine glass will do, however, there are saké specific glasses made by such companies as Riedel.
Bone Dry – Fruit Sweet
Like wine, saké can be bone dry with steely crisp apple and pear notes or sweet and fruity carrying tropical and stone fruit flavors. Aroma can range from faint citrus to deep earthy floral sweet tones.
Saké is not measured by residual sugar but on a scale that measures the density of saké compared to water. This scale is called Saké Meter Value (Nihonshu-do for those who speak Japanese), or SMV, and is found on most labels showing a plus or minus number. The higher the positive number the drier the saké. The lower the negative number the sweeter the saké. While the SMV number provides a glimpse at sweetness it can be misleading due to the flavor impact of acid, water hardness and temperature. A saké can be rated a +6 but taste fruity and somewhat sweet, what you might consider a -2. Use the SMV scale as a guide but be sure you taste the saké to be sure you know if it is dry and crisp or fruity sweet.
Handling Sake
Saké should be stored in a cool dark space with little temperature fluctuation. Actually, the colder the better down to freezing. Cold storing slows the aging process and allows even unpasteurized saké to hold up longer.
Don’t age it in the typical wine cellar and don’t hold it for years thinking it may improve. Saké is bottled ready to drink. Saké is best enjoyed young and has a 12 – 18 month shelf life if not stored cold. At about a year, saké begins to show more rapid flavor changes as it gets more earthy and mushroomy in aroma and flavor with an increasingly dense body. It’s not going bad but is changing from the expected.
To Be Hot or Not
American’s, with a brief saké history, are accustomed to it served hot in the little pitchers (tokkuris) and cups (ochokos). They are accustomed to drinking it fast, like a shot and not really thinking about its flavor. What they don’t know, is that their hot saké is bulk, cheap, mass produced and if not hot, probably doesn’t taste too good. Think bulk, box wine – the cheapest of the jugs. While in Japan there are some styles that are wonderful when served warm in the winter, very few are available in the states.
The premium saké of today is best served chilled, not ice cold, but chilled about 48 – 55F. As you taste various sake start them out cold, then let them warm in the glass and taste as it warms. The flavor will change and the ideal point for presentation will be clear. Note this and show each sake at the temperature you find the most flavor present.
Serving Sake
We’ve already established that the best vessel to sip saké from is a wine glass. While we would like to stand firm on that as the only way to serve saké, we do understand that many restaurants want an authentic vibe to their presentation. For that, the Tokkuri (pitcher) and ochoko (little cup) are the best method. For special presentation they may want to consider a masu cup (square cup).
It is important to talk about the serving options with your account. Some, like many of the non-Asian restaurants who are adding saké, may find the cost of the traditional vessels prohibitive to adding sake to their list. They need to know that they already have the best drinking vessel for saké; their wine glasses. No further investment needed except the saké.
To Bomb or Tini
The lack of understanding saké, combined with our penchant to innovate and explore, has brought about some interesting concepts like the sakétini and the saké bomb. One is viable, the other simply sad from a saké enthusiast’s perspective.
Sakétinis evolved as a means to get Americans to drink saké in any form possible. Sakétinis were a tasty and easy option. Some wonderful cocktails were created and today we find the nation’s leading mixologists promoting the idea due to the lower alcohol, calorie and glucose option. We have found that saké adds character (body & flavor) to a cocktail with spirits and when mixed in balance with fresh fruit and herbs, the saké flavor becomes a delicious component of a cocktail. Properly made sakétinis are about balance and respect the nature of saké.
Dropping a “shot” of saké into a pint of beer (saké bomb) with a ritual of chanting is fun for a youthful crowd. It is not, however, about drinking saké – more about drinking beer, fast. Some accounts promote saké bombs because they are profitable. We’ll not take that away, but promoting responsible, appropriate consumption is a priority to moving saké forward in America. Drink sake, not bombs.
Regions:
Diversity of flavor and character is often defined by region, or more precisely by Prefecture. Each Prefecture has variation in rice, water, climate and yeasts. In many cases, Prefecture distinction is a source of pride and carries a seal of quality like the “Niigata OC” which defines ingredients and style. It was once said that, in general terms, saké brewed in the North is light and mellow while saké in the South is big and hearty. This is a rule of thumb and does not always hold true.
Storing Sake
Sake is bottled for consumption, not for aging. Unlike wine, more like Scotch. However, unlike Scotch, sake does not hold up for a long time in the bottle, maybe 12 – 18 months at average room temperature. Longer if stored cold. So, it is again, beer like. Freshness matters and buying to consume within a short amount of time should rule purchasing patterns. Should you choose to store it, put it in the fridge. If you put it in the cellar with your wine and allow it to age for a few years it may be better to simply leave it there. A recent tasting of a 5 year old, cellar aged, sake was an unpleasant event. What once was a great bottle of sake had gone very bad. A similar tasting of a10 year old sake that was cold stored presented a very pleasant and surprising evening.
Stylistic Diversity
One of the least common things known about sake is that a single batch can be managed in dozens of ways to end up with dozens of styles. From one Junmai Ginjo could come a Nigori, a Yamahai, Shiburitate, Shizuoku, Genshu……It’s simply amazing. Sake has 7 categories and from these come thousands of styles. Luckily there are a set of core styles to focus on.
Classification
Futsu (Foo-tsu): Basic, table sake made quick and cheap. Think bulk, industrial box wine.
Honjozo (Hon-jo-zo): Sake that contains any amount of added spirits. Can be very little as in the case of artisanal sake or can be a large quantity as in the case of Futsu.
Junmai (June-my): Pure sake, containing only rice, water, yeast and koji. Quality and flavors vary greatly.
Ginjo (G-in-jo): Sake made from rice that is polished/ milled to at least 60% of its original size. Has added spirits in small amounts.
Junmai Ginjo: Sake made from rice that is polished/ milled to at least 60% of its original size. Nothing added
Daiginjo (Die-gin-jo): Sake made from rice that is polished/milled to at least 50% of its original size. Has added spirits in small amounts.
Junmai Daiginjo: Sake made from rice that is polished/ milled to at least 50% of its original size. Nothing added.
Ginjo and Daiginjo can be either Honjozo or Junmai. A label that does not state “Junmai” is Honjozo which is rarely stated on the label.
Stylistic Variation
Infused: An American addition but slowly showing up in Japan. Simply means flavor added whether as raw fruit or flavor concentrate.
Karakuchi: Dry or very dry.
Genshu: Undiluted.
Nama: Raw, unpasteurized.
Nigori: Partially filtered. Literally means “cloudy”
Organic: USDA certified organic sake is important in today’s marketplace.
Shizuku: Saké filtered by allowing it to slowly drip from cotton bags with no pressure applied. Often found with Daiginjo.
Tanrei: Light clean and crisp style.
Tokubetsu: Designates a “special” saké. Often made with rice milled more than standard.
Yamahai: Lactic acid is allowed to interact with the yeast during fermentation leading to more wild and gamey flavors.
Putting A Name Together
The sake name is a string of descriptors that define what is in the bottle. By understanding the classifications and the main styles you can easily know what each saké is. Be careful though, not all terms go together like Junmai Honjozo, or Shizuku and Funashibori. Can’t have both in one saké.
Junmai – Ginjo – Nigori – Genshu – Yamahai
Myths to Squash
1. Sake is not distilled.
a) It is brewed, similar to beer.
2. Sake is not only served hot.
a) Premium sake is best served chilled. Hot sake is typically cheap liquid.
3. Sake is not only for Japanese food.
a) Premium sake pairs incredibly well with a wide range of world cuisines.
4. Sake is not only made in Japan.
a) Premium sake is made in Japan, the U.S., Australia, and British Columbia.
5. Sake is not only for Japanese/Asian accounts.
a) French, Italian, BBQ, South American restaurants are adding sake.
6. Sake is best served in square wooden cups or little shot glasses.
a) The best vessel for serving sake is a wine glass. The Masu, or square cup, is a nice piece of history and tradition but it does nothing for the sake.
7. Sake is for dropping into pint of beer.
a) Sake bombs are for chugging beer, not enjoying sake.
8. Sake is hangover free.
a) Sorry but anything with alcohol in it that is consumer in copious amounts is going to cause a hangover. Sake just happens to be easier on you.
9. Sake is wine.
a) No, it’s sake. Sake. Sake.
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