If your only sake experience left you less than enthusiastic, trust me this is not your grandma’s sake! Hot, sappy, indescribably bland but weird, we’ve all been there, the sake poured at every Japanese restaurant in cute little ceramic vessels into tiny ceramic cups. Intriguing, maybe. An experience so exciting you have to keep exploring more, no. Good news my friend, the world of sake tasting is actually super duper exciting and I. Want. More!
During our last wine education session, my Tuesday Wine Study Group explored Sake under the deft tutelage of a true sake lover and expert. While I had a basic knowledge of the sake making process, sake quality levels and styles from my CMS and WSET days, I sat through our tasting like a wide eyed toddler watching her first circus! Delicate florals, gripping minerality, nuanced herbaceousness. Each pour so different from the one before! I was mesmerized!
Grandma’s sake never tasted like this!
Our sake lineup included every style from crisp and dry to milky and sweet. Each one delivering a new surprise and journey into every minutia detail the producer wanted to express in his or her own style. Not one single bottle had even the slightest resemblance to the sappy hot stuff at my local hibachi table. Don’t get me wrong I’m all in for the flaming onion volcano and egg flips, but when it comes to the hot house sake, count me out!
Junmai, koji kin, ginjo, nigori all roll off my tongue like classical music – or at least in my mind anyway! I’ll have to save the definitions for a future blog or podcast, but never before has a rice product tasted so delicious! Sake to me! This is absolutely not your grandma’s sake! Get out and discover some for yourself!
Cheers my friends!
#sake #winetasting #wineeducation #womenwhowine #japanese #saketasting
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