“Irasshaimase!"
This traditional Japanese greeting welcomes you to the hip, trendy Pan Asian restaurant of the moment. You are dressed to the nines to fit in with the glam crowd, and at your side is the date or client you’re eager to impress.
All is well until your guest suggests ordering sake instead of the wines you know so well. Glancing at the list of unfamiliar names, you begin to panic. Which one? How are they different? And when you do take that first sip, what are some of the characteristics you should be looking for?
Just as fine wine is all about the grapes, sake is all about the rice. Premium sake is created from superior sake rice grown in specific regions that give the sake a distinctive fragrance and taste.
What differentiates one sake from another and explains often dramatic price differences is its grade, which reflects how much of the rice has been milled from the grain. The more the rice has been milled, the cleaner, lighter, and more delicate the flavor.
The three primary grades of special designation sake are brewed using special sake rice, water, and koji mold, used in sake brewing to break down the starch molecules into sugar molecules that feed the yeast cells. Depending on the type of sake to be brewed, either no distilled alcohol is used, or very little to enhance the fragrance and flavor.
The three major grades include:
Honjozo-shu - At least 30% of rice is milled away.
Ginjo-shu - At least 40% of rice is milled away.
Daiginjo-shu - At least 50% of rice is milled away, making it also the most expensive and labor intensive sake category.
Some sake has a prominent fragrance, consisting of fruit, flowers, or rice in varying intensity. Other premium sake has no perceptible scent at all. Neither style is ‘better’ or more expensive than the other, it is simply the express result of what the toji (head brewer) wanted to achieve.
When pairing sake with food, good matches hinge on similarities or contrasts in aspects like acidity, texture, weight, flavor, and aroma. Many restaurant menus describe premium sakes in great detail, rendering the challenge of sake pairing much easier. Yet the easiest way to understand and build up a taste repertory for the various types of sake is to order a sake flight while dining at a restaurant so you can analyze the styles and write your own tasting notes.
Alternatively, you can also attend a sake seminar and tasting in your city. Recently, Morrell’s Wine Store in Manhattan offered a seminar titled “The Ultimate Sake Experience” featuring Brewmaster Philip Harper of Tozai & Mukune (Author, The Insider’s Guide to Sake) and over thirteen different styles of premium sake for participants to taste and compare. Such seminars are valuable because each sake is selected to reflect a specific region, and in addition to the opportunity to taste and instruction on what to look for, a slide demonstration reveals the intricate process of sake brewing. Yet because most sake seminars occur in conjunction with a trade or promotional event, you might consider arranging your own private tasting with a group of like-minded friends in a friendly wine shop, restaurant, or home.
Pan Asian cuisine is now the darling of the culinary world. It stands to reason that just as Pinot Noir languished in obscurity before the film Sideways gave it wildly new popularity, it will soon be sake’s moment to shine.
Be ready!
