Taru-Sake from Kiku-Masamune

Aged in cedar barrels, this sake from Kiku-Masamune is soft, round and slightly sweet. A fine appertif.

Kikusui Junmai Ginjo Sake

A lively, bright Japanese sake, Kikusui Junmai Ginjo pairs well with a summer afternoon. From Niigata, this sake demonstrates the toji's considerable skill via its notes of cherry blossom and delicate finish.

Japanese sake: a timeless beverage adapts

I'm very pleased with the way my story on Japanese sake for Montage Magazine (p. 44) turned out. Thanks to interviews with Philip Harper of the Kinoshita Brewery when he was in L.A. earlier this year, as well as help from Beau Timken at True Sake, there's a lot of basics covered as well as mentions of the USA's sake-only stores. Kampai!

Sake cocktails: El Morocco's Morocco-tini

Sake cocktail at Desert Hot Springs' El Morocco

A welcoming cocktail at a small B&B is a very nice touch; even more refreshing when it's made from sake.  At Desert Hot Springs' El Morocco, guests are welcomed to the casbah-themed inn with a cool pitcher of sake cocktails.  I found their Morocco-tini just right for the warm desert happy hour--served in a plastic martini glass so you can drink it in one of the inn's fabulous hot mineral water pools.

The recipe:  Mix in a pitcher with lots of ice: sake (I imagine a domestic brand will do nicely), orange juice, cranberry juice, some sweet vermouth and lemon seltzer served over ice in a sugar rimmed glass.

Cheers!

October 1 2011: Celebrate National Sake Day

Celebrate Sake day: try a Nigori or less filtered sake

In honor of National Sake Day, a reminder to try a new kind of sake. Above is Tozai Snow Maiden, which I tasted at the LA's Nisei Week sake tasting, a lively event. (I won a bag of premium Moatsuri rice!) Snow Maiden is sold in slender pink bottles, and is quite vibrant and not too sweet --unusual for a nigori.

Also check it out: a new kura in the U.S.. Today, the Texas Sake Company opened in Austin, Texas. (Thanks to HomeBrewSake.com for the tip).  While Texas might seem an unusual location, it is a great rice growing state and the rice used is organic and Texas grown.  Looks like they are releasing a nigori (Rising Star) and Whooping Crane, their Tokubetsu junmai sake. Would love to hear how they taste.  Good luck Texas Sake Company, Kampai!

And here's a link to my post on the Top 5 thing to know about sake for National Sake Day for LA Weekly's Squid Ink.

Two cool weekend sake tastings: Nisei Week sake tasting and Learn about Wine

"Lolitas" at L.A.'s 2011 Nisei week parade

Little Tokyo came alive with the sound of pounding Taiko drums during the 71st Annual Nisei week parade on August 21st.  Streets were lined with happy parade fans including costumed parade watchers who celebrated Japanese pop culture in their own colorful way.  Capping the festivities will be a sake tasting on Saturday August 20 at the Kyoto Grand Hotel. Sponsored by the Social Sake  Club, more than 50 kinds of Japanese sake will be poured.

Japanese fan dancers

Parade fans with dinos

 

 

Some of the sake available at Toranoko in Little Tokyo

For a sure to be well informed and guided sake tasting seminar, Sunday August 21, Learn about Wine presents a delightful afternoon at Toranoko.  The restaurant's in-house sake expert Kurtis Wells will lead the presentation and introduce the eight sakes from a nama (draft) genshu to daiginjo.

Sake flight at Chaya Downtown L.A.

Sake flight in the beer garden

Summertime there's a Japanese beer garden in downtown Los Angeles. You'll find a grill outside and Kirin on tap at Chaya Downtown's popular patio. Sake flight ($12) lets you taste Rock sake and Gekkeikan- correct temperature and fine presentation but not finessed enough to rock your world. However, the lovely, Japanese lantern-lit setting will.

 

 

Chaya downtown's Japanese beer garden

Help Japan's sake brewers: drink more sake.

Tasting sake from Akita at Gonpachi restaurant.

The news from Japan has been devastating. Sympathy and heartfelt condolences to those who lost family members and all those who have been impacted by the earthquake and tsunami.  There are many ways to help: the Japan America Society has established a relief fund.  The American Red Cross lists organizations that are providing aid.

A traditional cedar ball often found outside sake breweries.

Sake brewers have been hard too and the impact on the industry is now being realized: from complete destruction of breweries to damage to facilities to power outages that impact sake making. Hardest hit are sake brewers in the Iwate, Miyagi and Fukushima prefectures as Elin McCoy of Bloomberg news details. Sake and miso makers are now just beginning to pick up the pieces per The Daily Yomiuri.

The most comprehensive list of kuras affected can be found at John Gauntner's Sake World. He cites a heartfelt plea from Kosuke Kuji that was posted on the Nanbu Bijin brewery blog (translation courtesy of John Gauntner), "For the time being, no one in this area feels like drinking sake. To avoid secondary economic damage, we want to earnestly ask everyone around the country and in other countries to eat and drink products from the Tohoku region. That is the most supportive thing you can do for us."

Fine Japanese sake lists at Little Tokyo's Toranoko and Lazy Ox

Aburiya Toranoko Little Tokyo has an extensive sake list

I rushed out to Abuirya Toranoko the first weekend it opened in Los Angeles' Little Tokyo because I knew owner Michael Cardenas is a true Japanese sake connoisseur. I was not disappointed in the sake list: more than 34 premium Japanese sakes to choose from as well as shochu and Japanese beers. Behind the bar is beverage director/mixologist Kurtis Wells who actually knows A LOT about sake (refreshing) and was happy to share his enthusiasm.  The ultra-mod izakaya, with gleaming bar, vibrant graphics and a small sushi bar, presents a serious menu of sake from sparkling, to Nama sakes like Rin from Fukushimi to the an ultra premium, crisp Ken daiginjo also from Fukushima ($118 for the bottle).

The sake list is very clear: sakes are divided by their flavor profiles and aspects from aromatic (floral and fruity) to roughly filtered, cloudy nigoris. Sit at the bar and try a few five ounce tastes before delving into the menu.

Chiyomusubi Kitaro Jungin one cup sake from Lazy Ox.

We progressed next door to the Lazy Ox Canteen (also a Michael Cardenas enterprise) and continued on the sake highway. Although their selection is not as diverse as Toronoko's, happy to try Chiyomusubi Kitaro Jungin one cup sake, a super-dry sake that features Kitaro, a famed anime character on the label.

Toranoko
243 S. San Pedro St.
Los Angeles, CA 90012
213-621-9500

Pasadena: Monopole Wine's Japanese sake selection and tasting.

Monopole Wine, Pasadena, CA sells premium sake and Japanese craft beers.

In a lovely restored 1927-built storefront, Pasadena's Monopole Wine (a shop and wine bar) keeps a number of well-priced premium sakes in stock in addition to boutique California wines and Old World wines. Everything is carefully selected by owners Hiro Tamaki and Peter Nelson, who also welcome customers at a cozy wine bar in the back of the store. The high ceilings and extra-thick cement walls keep the store and sake at a cool temperature. Classes and events are ongoing; stop in for a glass of wine or to taste a flight.

Upcoming: on Wednesday February 2 from 7 to 9 p.m. Monopole's sake and sushi event ($30/person) that features sushi from Alhambra's Z Sushi and select Japanese sake.

Monopole Wine
21 S. El Monino Ave.
Pasadena, CA
626/577-9463

Some of the premium sakes in stock.

Hitachino!

 

 

Niigata Sake: It's the water, baby!

Sake made in the prefecture of Niigata, Japan

Fall means visits from Japanese premium sake makers: several family-owned breweries from Niigata showcased their fine sake at Gonapachi Beverly Hills recently including Aoki, Kinshihai, Kirinzan, Matsunoi, Musashino and Obata. There are 96 sake producers in Niigata; I find I prefer Niigata-made sake--and now I know why. It's the pristine water source, predominantly from snow melt that feeds local rivers and wells.

Matsunoi Shuzojo brewery was found in 1895

A tokubetsu junmai (rice milled to 55%) from Matsunoi (labeled "Wishing Well") was outstanding: fine, delicate and hint of toasted rice but with a mouth feel of fresh spring water.  Their toji has been making sake for more than 50 years using a local rice (Takane Nishiki).  Another standout was the Yukikage "Snow Shadow," another tokubetsu junmai, made from an on-site spring at the Kinshihai Shuzo brewery.

Gonpachi restaurant's Japanese sake list is one of LA's best.

The LA tasting was sponsored by the Sushi & Sake newsletter; the group moved on to San Francisco after stops in Dallas, TX and New York City.

Zengo Santa Monica's Japanese sake list impresses

Toyo Bijin Ohkarakuchi
Junmai Ginjo

Served at sunset.





Dassai 50
Junmai Ginjo

Also served in a fragile but elegant Schott crystal glass.

Zengo Santa Monica
Santa Monica Place, Third floor dining deck
310/899-1000

Tips on how to order sake

You're in a restaurant and you've been presented with the sake list. Guess what? It's probably like no other list you've ever seen and that's because there's no uniformity in lists. Unlike wine, where most lists have the vintage year, varietal and brand name, sake lists rarely have a vintage year (though you can often find it on the label) and you may find the brand name or brewery and also a proper name and sometimes the region where the sake originates. At Kabuki in Hollywood (above), I tasted a sake sampler--the little card below comes with tasting notes--a good intro to a sake list.

You'll find some very useful tips here from San Francisco writer Tom Gray on how to order sake in a restaurant.  He suggests ordering Japanese sake over domestic, cold over hot (in a wine glass please!), no nigori (cloudy, roughly filtered sake) and Junmai ginjo which he thinks are the most wine like. All good tips.

Six things to know before ordering sake: Comes from Rory Moulton who also discusses nigori, he reminds not to pour your own sake, cold sake is best and avoid sake bombs!

Sake at LAMill Coffee Silver Lake

Kikusui Junmai Gingo: clean, crisp with a touch of citrus and a most elegant presentation at LAMill Coffee in Silver Lake (Los Angeles). Pair with LAMill's jidori chicken. Sake glasses are perched on small pedestals; sake is served from a carafe with a small ice pocket.

LAMill Coffee
1636 Silver Lake Blvd.
Los Angeles, CA 90026
(323) 663-4441

Japanese Sake from Trader Joe's: Junmai Ginjo Sake by Oimatsu Shuzo

Thanks to Trader Joe's you can try a very approachable, middle-ground premium sake for approximately $10. Some nice tasting notes from rateabeer. Their consensus: the sake is slightly floral, fruity and very drinkable. Sake is from the Oimatsu Shuzo Co. in Hita, Japan (on Japan's Southernmost island). The SMV (sake meter value) is +3 so medium dry and 45% of rice polished away.







If you look on the lower left hand corner of the label, you will find a date that indicates when the sake was bottled.  (09.09 above) The one I served on Valentine's Day was bottled September 2009; you should try to drink sake within six months and definitely within the year.  If it's over a year old, serve it slightly warmed.  I paired it with a miso-marinated cod, grilled shrimp and teriyaki chicken.

Sake Education from Wine Library TV

Gary Vaynerchuk at Wine Library TV has boundless energy and and real enthusiasm and passion for wine. In these two episode from June 2009, he puts the spotlight on sake as he interviews Sake Social/True Sake's Beau Timken (above) on the basics of sake drinking and production. There is a wealth of information in these segments: Sake education part 1 and Sake education part 2.

Vaynerchuk mentions he's a fan of sake and one of his favorite places to imbibe is Blue Ribbon in Manhattan where he often tries three or four sakes during a meal. (Lucky guy: I've wanted to check that place out on Columbus Circle). Among the fun facts: sake is "built like beer but drinks like wine," from Timken--a very succinct description. Together they taste some sake including a Joto Chikurin Fukamari Junmai; Timken advises the vernacular of wine is appropriate when discussing sake's flavors and aromas.

Wine glasses vs. ceramic cups: definitely drink premium sake with glass or crystal--only use the ceramic cups when sake is warm as smaller ceramic cups (ochoko) don't reveal its aromas or capture its essence. One very useful tip: drink sake within 15 to 18 months of its brew date (found on the label--but that's another post). If it's past 18 months or so, heat it and drink it warm. Thanks guys. Good stuff.

Meet the brewer: Miho Imada of Fukucho Sake Brewery

I was able to further my sake education while tasting many brands at Mutual Trading Company's annual Japanese food and restaurant show held in its downtown parking lot. While not the most glamourous tasting room, the main benefit was meeting many visiting brewers (toji) and brewery owners from Japan. Above is Miho Imada of Fukucho Sake Brewery located in the Hiroshima prefecture. One of only 20 woman brewers in Japan, she began her career in the brewery more than 15 years ago and became a master brewer five years ago. She's holding Fukocho's Junmai Ginjo Biho, made from yamadanishiki rice. The sake is very delicate with a very nice flowery finish---Fukocho's sakes are pasteurized in the bottle helping maintain aroma and flavor. She begins brewing Oct. 17.

Happy National Sake Day! Oct. 1st

A new holiday to celebrate: National Sake Day! Japan celebrates today as the annual sake brewing process is well underway. Above is Otokoyama's "Yukishibare" sake from Hokkaido. I got this sake @ True Sake in San Francisco (thanks Beau!). He recommended it as I prefer very dry sake; this junmai sake is very smooth with a slight effervescence. The brewery was established in 1661, almost 350 years ago.

Sake Tastings: Drink:Eat:Play's Sake social at Gonpachi 9/26

$30 for unlimited samplings of 75 sakes--that's Drink:Eat:Play's program for Saturday night at Gonpachi. A little overkill perhaps--but certainly the way to learn what sake to try later. I'm a fan of Gonpachi--the restaurant was built at great expense, with many of the building materials imported from Japan as were the craftsmen who built it. A lovely chisen kaiyu shiki (loosely translated "water scrolling")--a Japanese garden complete with koi pond and maple trees--is at the entrance. There are many other authentic details from the Japanese cedar beams to the Shoji screens to the dramatic sumiyaki bar. House made soba noodles and the extensive sake list--including a house sake--are worth a look. Go soon as the restaurant is reportedly on the market.

Sake Tastings: Whole Foods' showcases Japanese sake

Because Whole Foods Beverly Hills does not have a liquor license, the popular store schedules their wine tastings down the street on the pleasant patio of the Crescent Hotel. This week the store sponsored a sunset hour sake tasting. Five sakes were poured and Melissa of the Japanese food and beverage distributor Mutual Trading Co., led a lively session on the basics of sake. I was most impressed with the Kikusui organic junmai ginjo (18.99 @ Whole Foods; Locali on Franklin Ave. also has it). Kikusui means chrysanthemum mist, which doesn't tell you much about its flavor, but is certainly poetic. From Niigata, known as the rice capital of Japan, I found it very light with a slight aroma of bananas. Melissa suggested drinking it early in a meal as it pairs well with appetizers. USDA certified, it is the first organic sake available for import (although many sakes do not have preservatives, this sake is made from pesticide free rice). The Shirakabegura (white wall) Tokubetsu junami can be drunk hot or cold and is well-balanced and can pair with heavier dishes. This sake comes from Takara, which also has a brewery in Berkeley. Our final sake was a nigori or coarsely filtered SCB creme de sake domestically brewed from Takara. Definitely on the sweet side, my fellow tasters thought it should be a desert sake and its ricey-ness conjured up a funny "rice-a-roni" comment. Hey, it was sake number five--people get a bit giddy.

There's a grand sake tasting after the Sushi Masters professional sushi competition this Sunday in Little Tokyo at the Aratani/Japan America Theatre. Sponsors include the California Rice Commission. California short grain rice is main ingredient in all U.S.-brewed sake!