SakéOne has been brewing quality saké in Forest Grove, Oregon just west of Portland for nearly twenty years. They produce 80,000 cases of Saké per year. In addition they import quality saké from Japan into the US. Their brewing experience makes them uniquely qualified to choose the best Japanese saké for import.
Saké consumption in Japan reached its peak in the 1970s. Japanese saké production is currently only one-third the volume of that time. But even as saké production and consumption has decreased sharply in Japan, there are any number of smaller brewers making very high-quality saké there.
The market for saké in the US is growing and currently stands at about 3 million cases. Of that, 2 million cases are produced in California (that’s a surprise!), and 500,000 cases are imported from Japan. The Japanese imports are largely high quality saké. Another 250,000 cases are imported from Korea and China. The balance is produced in the US.
We recently tasted a selection of saké imported from Japan by SakéOne. We received four samples which gave us an opportunity to learn about saké styles, regional differences and food pairings. We were guided in our tasting by SakéOne President and CEO Steve Vuylsteke and Marcus Pakiser Regional Director of Saké for Young’s Market Company, based in Portland via Brandlive® video conference.
Before we move to the tasting, here are a couple of guidelines Steve and Marcus gave us. Saké should be served slightly chilled or at room temperature. Think of it as similar to white wine. Choose your Saké glass as you would a white wine glass. If you’re a stemless glass kind of person, go for it. I prefer a stemmed wine glass, just because I don’t like seeing all those fingerprints on the glass. The most important thing is to choose a glass that will allow you to swirl the Saké a bit and allows you to put your nose into the glass to smell those aromas. It’s pretty straight forward.
If you are new to the flavors of Saké you may find it easier to taste Saké with food. Hard cheeses make a good accompaniment to many Sakés according to Marcus. I found these sakés easy to taste without the benefit of food, but do what suits your taste. Most likely you will taste saké with a meal at home or in a restaurant anyway.
Murai Family Tanrei Junmai — colorless in the glass with only very restrained, vaguely melon aromas. The flavors are delicate as well, but fresh, clean and melon-like. This Saké is a bit viscous, it feels round in the mouth but finishes clean. ABV 14.5%. SRP $20
This Saké is produced in northern Japan where winters are very cold. A cool temperature fermentation is used to produce the crisp, clean flavors in this saké. This style is common in the region and this sake represents a classic Japanese style. Crisp, clean and a quick finish (that is, not long lasting). Steve joked that the finish is short so that you will want to take another sip sooner!
Traditionally, saké is brewed to match the food of the region. As this saké is produced in a kura (brewery) located along the coast, it is a natural partner for seafood.
The rice is milled to 65% for this Junmai saké. Only water, rice, yeast and koji may used to produce Junmai saké.
Kasumi Tsuru Kimoto Extra Dry — colorless in the glass. Very obvious aromas of mushroom and forest floor combine with savory, earthy flavors. This saké has a bit of weight in the mouth and has very complex flavors. The finish lingers. ABV 16%. SRP $27
The aromas of this saké transport me to the mushroom stall at the Farmer’s Market. So earthy! I can imagine drinking it with a salad and baked chicken or mushroom soup.
Kimoto is an ancient style of brewing saké. Most modern brewers add lactic acid to the water and rice prior to adding the yeast to get the process going. Kimoto is produced without the addition of lactic acid, by manually breaking up the rice to produce lactic acid naturally. Only a handful of breweries still use this ancient method which produces the distinctive aromas in the saké. Kasumi Tsuru brewery has been family owned since 1725.
Kasumi Tsura is produced in Kasumi, within the Hyogo prefecture much further south along the Sea of Japan. This area is very remote area is well known for crab, which according to Steve and Marcus, is a perfect pairing.
Hakutsuru Superior Junmai Ginjo — colorless in the glass with obvious floral and melon, almost tropical aromas. Flavors are crisp and clean and a bit floral. The finish is tongue-tingling! Just delicious. ABV 14.5%
Hakutsuru has been family owned since 1734 and is the largest saké producer in Japan. Their saké is produced using what they call “heavenly water”, spring water common to the area which produces a very fast, vigorous fermentation.
The taut flavors of this saké had me craving a thin crust roasted chicken pizza with creamy garlic sauce. A of bit salt and a bit of fat will compliment this delicious crisp saké perfectly.
Yoshinogawa Junmai Ginjo “Winter Warrior” — colorless in the glass with delicate melon aromas and flavors. A bit of earthiness and mushroom flavors join the finish which is light and clean. This saké is a bit round in the mouth with perhaps a touch of perceivable sweetness. ABV 14%. $27
I can imaging this would be delicious with spicy Asian food, spicy Italian food or maybe even ribs in a spicy tomato sauce.
This saké was produced as a collaboration between SakéOne and Yoshinogawa with American food and palates in mind, so that it would pair with bigger flavors. It is completely different than the dry, tight style of saké Yoshinogawa usually produce in Niigata prefecture.
You will find saké bottled in a variety of colored bottles. The black and brown bottles protect the sake from the effects of ultraviolet light. Over time saké will change from colorless to straw yellow without this protection. To a degree the frosted blue bottles provide the same protection.
Consume saké within 18 months of purchase. The flavors of saké will change a bit over time, but Marcus told us there is no point to holding saké. Once you have opened a bottle it will remain good for several months (though I can’t imagine it would last that long once you taste how delicious it is). Marcus stated that some in the beverage trade will disagree with this point, but he has tested it in blind tastings with tasters unable to tell the difference between freshly opened bottles and bottles that have been open for months.
Steve described Marcus as a saké evangelist, and he is right. Marcus told us the limits of food pairings with saké is limited only by our imagination. Don’t think just sushi. Essentially all kinds of food pairs with saké according to Marcus, so get out there and experiment. Marcus even said he thinks saké pairs better with cheeses than wine! Can you imagine?
One last tip from Marcus. Please say saké correctly. Say “sah-kay” not “sah-key.” As he put it, you wouldn’t say “mer-lot” instead of “mer-low” would you?
Thanks to Steve and Marcus for a fun and interesting discussion. Hats off to Charles Communications Associates who once again organized a great tasting and to SakéOne for providing the tasting samples. Now it’s up to us to get out there and try some more saké.
Cheers!
