Thanks for the Meal

Category: Beverages

  • Sake 101 — Learning About Sake!

    Sake 101 — Learning About Sake!

    My niece, Corina Seligman, knows her sake! I call her my secret Sake goddess! So I asked her to do a blog on Sake 101. I sure learned a lot! –Lucy

    wakatake sake

    Sake (酒,さけ, or Nihonshu), one of my favorite drinks in the world, is very misunderstood by most consumers. I worked in the industry for many years as a bartender and beverage manager in California and as the first and only sake specialist for the largest liquor distributor in New York City. In almost every encounter I had with sake novices and drinkers alike, I found myself demystifying the same myths over and over again. I take great pride in being able to clear up any misconceptions about this thousand-year-old Japanese beverage tradition. Here are a few of them:

    Many American drinkers have only tried hot sake. However, unlike any other alcoholic beverages, sake can be served at any temperature from chilled to warm depending on its style (If you are served piping hot sake, this is a good indication it is poor quality and the hot temperature is masking the flavor of a poor quality sake).

    Oh and *psst* – You do not have to be eating Japanese food to enjoy a sake food pairing!

    What is Sake?

    sake

    Sake is an alcoholic beverage made from rice. Oftentimes, there are never any other grains or additives added to the sake-making fermentation process other than mold (called koji), yeast, and water. Junmai “pure rice” is sake made of only these ingredients, while any sake that is not a Junmai has a tiny bit of distilled alcohol added to it to modify the flavor and texture. Sake is not made through a simple fermentation process like wine is, nor is it distilled like a spirit such as vodka. It is much closer to beer than anything else due to its multiple-step fermentation process, but sake is best understood when it is enjoyed for what it is, not how it compares to other beverages.

    Like most wine and spirits, there is high and low-quality sake depending on factors such as the quality of rice used, the milling, or the polishing process and whether it is created by hand or machine. I have drunk from a $3,000 bottle of reserve sake and I have also seen other types sold in the supermarket for $3.99. While I am not saying we need to spend thousands of dollars for a good glass of sake, there is a recognizable difference in quality and a little discernment can do some good.

     

    Some Factors That Affect the Quality of Sake

    Rice– Since this is the primary ingredient in sake, it is important that it is high-quality. There are many different types of sake rice (sakamai). Sake rice is different than the rice we eat – it has a much higher starch content that is concentrated into the middle of the grain in order to be converted into sugars and ultimately, alcohol. Some of the best quality and well-known sake kinds of rice are Yamada-Nishiki, Omachi, Gohyakuman-Goku and Miyama-Nishiki, although there are many more.

    Rice Polishing- The part of the rice that ferments is the starch located in the middle of the grain. The starch is the most important part of the rice. It is surrounded by less desirable fats and proteins. The more of the outer part of the rice that can be “polished” off, the higher quality of sake it creates. Of course, the more the rice is milled, the greater the labor costs and less yield it will produce, therefore, the more polished, the more expensive it will be. The polishing ratio, or percentage it has been milled, is referred to as the seimai-buai. The percentage ratio number always refers to what is left after polishing. For example, if the seimai-buai is listed as 60%, that means that 40% has been polished off the rice grain and 60% is left over for sake brewing.

    Regular table sake (Futsushu) is what is most commonly drunk throughout the world. The law only requires this type of sake to be polished somewhere between 70 and 93 percent and often has additives. A sake drinker with any discernment will usually stay away from this style.

    Premium Sake Grades

    As mentioned earlier, a Junmai sake is made from pure rice and must have a polishing ratio of at least 70% unless specified otherwise such as a Junmai Ginjo or Junmai Daiginjo, which refers more specifically to the seimai-buai of the rice used. Junmai sake is very versatile and can be served at any temperature.

    Like junmai, honjozo also uses rice that has been polished to at least 70 percent. However, unlike junmai, honjozo contains a small amount of distilled brewers alcohol. This is often done to modify, smooth out, or enhance the flavor of the sake. Honjozos are often lighter in body than their pure rice counterparts and can also be enjoyed at any temperature.

    wakatake junmai diaginjo onikoroshi sake

    The bottle of Wakatake Junami Daiginjo pictured here is a great example of a premium sake. Wakatake, from Shizuoka prefecture in Japan is one of the largest selling brands in the world. As we know, junmai implies that it is pure rice sake, meaning no additional alcohol has been added, and daiginjo means that it has a seimai-buai, or polishing ratio of at least 50 percent. This velvety sake should be served chilled alongside simply seasoned foods or on its own.

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    Ginjo and Junmai Ginjo

    All grades of premium sake falling under the names ginjo or daiginjo are legally defined by their seimai-buai and should always be served chilled.

    Ginjo is premium sake that uses rice that has been polished to at least 60 percent, again meaning that is what is left of the rice. Ginjo sake is known for being aromatic, light, and having notes of stone fruit. Daiginjo is the most premium sake. By law, the seimai-buai must be polished to at least 50 percent. This sake is the most delicate and elegant in flavor.

    One can easily go down the rabbit hole and become very confused by all the different terminology and styles of sake. Please keep in mind that sake is for pleasure, it is a delightful and versatile drink with a beautifully rich history. I hope this will serve as a simple guide for getting started, now it’s time to enjoy.

    Kampai!

    Do you love Sake?

    If you drink and or cook with Sake, snap a pic and hashtag it #thanksforthemeal — I would love to see a photo of your favorite Sake and or sake creations on Instagram and or Facebook, or leave a note in the comments section (see below) and let me know!

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    Arigatou Gozaimasu / ありがとうございますいます –Lucy

     

  • A Review of Kokoro Care Packages

    A Review of Kokoro Care Packages

    I was thrilled when I heard about Kokoro Care Packages, who offers monthly and or seasonal Japanese care packages. I love that more companies are introducing Japanese foods and other products here in the U.S., and to other countries outside of Japan. So, I reached out to them and introduced them to Thanks for the Meal’s blog.

    Kokoro August 2019 Care Package

    Kokoro Care Package Review

    Here is what Kokoro says about their products:

    “Every month and season, we curate unique care packages filled with premium-quality, all-natural Japanese food and deliver them straight from Japan to your home. Each item is carefully selected for its quality, purity, ease of use and of course, taste!”

    In exchange for this review, I received the August Nourishing Essentials Care Package mailed directly from Japan. It was filled with seasonal summer foods and I invited my friend Nancy to come over for a taste test a few weeks ago on a very hot and sultry day.

     Kokoro Care Package Recipes

    First, I used the Izumo Soba and made Hiyashi Chuka. I used baby shrimp, simmered and sliced shiitake mushrooms, sliced Japanese cucumber, and tomato slices as our toppings. Sprinkled toasted sesame seeds over the top. These noodles were a big hit. Generous 2 person portion was included and we both loved the sprightly lemon soy sauce.

    Izumo Soba Kokoro Care
    Izumo Soba
    Hiyashi Chuka using Izumo Soba
    Hiyashi Chuka made with the Izumo Soba
    Mixed Seaweed Salad
    Mixed Seaweed Salad
     

    Next was the Mixed Seaweed Salad. I love seaweed salads, so was looking forward to tasting this mix which has five different seaweeds from Hokkaido. After soaking in water and rinsing, I added thinly sliced Japanese cucumbers, and mixed in Ponzu sauce and toasted sesame seeds. Another hit!

     

    Japanese Summer Tonic

    Japanese Summer Tonic using Yamanashis 5-year Aged Red Wine Vinegar
    Japanese Summer Tonic using Yamanashi’s 5-year Aged Red Wine Vinegar

    I’m a big fan of Japanese inspired cocktails, but even non-alcoholic drinks are a hit around my house! Because of the heat on our taste testing day, I made a summer tonic using Yamanashi’s 5 year Aged Red Wine Vinegar, sparkling water, and a touch of honey. Be sure to melt the honey before mixing in, otherwise you end up with a clump of it at the bottom of the drink which doesn’t dissolve.

    We both loved this tangy, thirst-quenching and refreshing drink so much, that I made it again this week during the heat wave that the Bay area has been experiencing. It was wonderful!

    Cooking with Furikake

    I served freshly cooked Japanese white rice and we topped it with a sprinkling of Unagi Sansho Furikake. Of course Unagi (eel) is a summer favorite and I love it.

    Nancy had never had Furikake, and we both really enjoyed this slightly sweet mixture with different textures, which included various seasonings such as sansho pepper and ginger along with unagi bits.

    There were a few items that weren’t luminary, at least to us: The Blueberry Amazake, the Sweet Corn Rice Porridge, and the Ayu Furikake. We found them overall not as interesting or as tasty as the other products. But I have no doubt that Kokoro Cares, a company less than one year old will continue to improve and expand their offerings in terms of tastes and variety.

    Would I try Kokoro’s Care Packages again? Absolutely.  I am especially interested in The Seasonal Delights Care Package, which includes 7+ healthy and delicious Japanese foods. It also comes with a special artisanal gift made locally in Japan and is shipped once every three months to coincide with the four seasons.

    Kokoro Care Package Discount

    If you’re interested in trying a Kokoro care package, take advantage of a special offer! Use discount code THANKSFORTHEMEAL_10 and you’ll get 10% off your first order through the end of September. Order your care package today and be sure to comment below about which product you’re most excited to check out!

    Kokoro Care Package
    Description from the August 2019 Kokoro Care Package

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  • Japanese Inspired Cocktails

    Japanese Inspired Cocktails

    cocktail with herbs japanese

    Corina Seligman, my niece, is back again as a guest blogger, offering up some amazing Japanese Inspired Cocktails! I call her my secret Sake goddess!

    Here are some of my favorite classic cocktail formulas reimagined using ingredients like Shiso, Japanese beer, Japanese pear, Japanese Whisky, Yuzu, Japanese black honey and Matcha tea.

    *If the names of the drinks sound funny it’s because my other signature touch is to name cocktails after songs. Kampai!

    Japanese Cocktail Recipes

    My recipes may include affiliate links, so without costing you anything extra, I’ll earn a small percentage of the sales if you purchase these items through these links. Thank you for your support!

    REMEMBER THE DJS

    Ingredients:

    2 ozs dark, aged rum (I suggest Zacapa or Flor de Cana)

    .75 oz unsweetened strawberry puree, strained

    .5 oz fresh lemon juice

    Shiso Leaf
    Shiso Leaf

    .5 oz Shiso*-infused Orgeat (almond-flavored syrup)

    Garnish: Shiso leaf

    Method:

    Put all ingredients together in a tumbler with ice. Shake hard. Double strain and serve on the rocks in a bucket glass (the same as a highball glass.)  Garnish with a shiso leaf along the side of the glass.

    *Shiso is a Japanese herb in the mint family. You can find this in most Asian supermarkets.

    To make Shiso-infused Orgeat– Use a high-quality Orgeat, add 8 fresh shiso leaves per cup and leave covered for 48 hours before removing the leaves.

    LIFE ON MARS

    Ingredients:

    1.75 ozs Japanese Whisky (I suggest Mars Iwai)

    1 oz fresh lemon juice

    .75 oz candied orange peel syrup

    2 dashes orange bitters

    Coedo Shiro* beer float

    Garnish: Orange peel

    Method:

    Put all ingredients together except beer in a tumbler with ice. Shake hard. Strain and pour over a large ice block into a bucket glass. Add beer float. Garnish with an orange peel.

    *Coedo Shiro – Coedo is my favorite Japanese beer brand. Shiro, meaning white, is the Japanese version of Hefeweizen.

    To make Candied Orange Peel Syrup – Bring 3 cups of sugar and 3 cups of water to a boil in a medium saucepan over medium heat, stirring to dissolve sugar. Add the peels of 2 large oranges and simmer until the peel is very soft, about 45 minutes. Remove orange peels and save the liquid.

     

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    Arigatou Gozaimasu / ありがとうございますいます –Lucy

    PLAYER’S BALL

    Ingredients:

    1.75 ozs Gin (I suggest Nolet’s)

    1.25 ozs Japanese pear (nashi) puree

    .25 oz lemon juice

    2 dashes lemon bitters

    Brut Cava (or Prosecco) float

    Garnish: Grapefruit peel and freshly grated Nutmeg

    Method:

    Put all ingredients together except Cava in a tumbler with ice. Shake hard. Double strain and pour into a chilled coupe (rounded stemmed cocktail glass) glass. Fill the rest of the glass with a Brut Cava float. Garnish with Grapefruit peel and freshly grated Nutmeg.

    To make Japanese Pear puree – Peel and quarter pear. Gently cook in saucepan with two parts water, one part sugar, covered until soft, stirring occasionally. Cool slightly, then blend until smooth.

     

    JAPANESE BREAKFAST

    Ingredients:

    2 ozs Japanese Whisky (I suggest Nikka Coffey Grain)

    .75 oz Yuzu juice*

    1 oz Kuromitsu**

    Garnish: Shiso leaf

    *Yuzu is a traditional aromatic Japanese citrus. While distinct from other citrus fruit, it’s somewhat akin to a cross between grapefruit and tangerine.

    **Kuromitsu is a Japanese sugar syrup, literally “black honey.” It is similar to molasses, but thinner and milder.

    Method:

    Put all ingredients together in a tumbler with ice. Shake hard. Strain and serve on the rocks in a bucket glass. Garnish with a shiso leaf along the side of the glass.

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    MATCHA SOUR

    Matcha tea

    Ingredients:

    2 ozs Matcha*-infused Vodka (I suggest Hanger One)

    .75 oz freshly squeezed lemon juice

    .75 oz simple syrup

    1 egg white from a small to medium egg

    *Matcha is finely ground powder of specially grown and processed Japanese green tea leaves.

    Garnish: Candied Ginger

    Method:

    Put all ingredients except egg white together in a tumbler with ice. Shake hard. Strain out the ice, add egg white and one single ice cube to “dry shake” until frothy. Double strain and serve in a coup glass. Garnish with a piece of candied ginger.

    Make Matcha-infused Vodka:

    Mix 1 teaspoon of matcha powder with 8 ozs vodka in a mason jar, shake vigorously. Let sit overnight or longer for desired strength. Then strain through a cheesecloth or coffee filter to remove tea particles.

    Corina Seligman has been in the hospitality industry for 17 years working behind every kind of bar possible between the Bay Area and New York City. In 2014 she found her passion in sake when she worked at Ozumo Oakland, which housed the largest sake selection in the East Bay. Eventually she was promoted to bar and hospitality manager and continued to deepen her knowledge under the supervision of the company’s director of sake. This experience brought her to the attention of Empire Merchants liquor distributors in New York City where she was hired as the company’s first and only sake specialist where she worked exclusively with the Joto Sake portfolio for a year. Her passion is in sharing her love for sake and Japanese cocktail ingredients with American consumers, showing that they can be enjoyed with all types of cuisine and in a variety of settings. She has been bartending for almost two decades now and have probably created at least 100 original cocktail recipes. Given her background as a sake specialist and experience with Japanese cuisine, the most fun she has had behind the bar is when she uses Japanese ingredients.


    Leave a note in the comments section and let me know which of these Japanese inspired cocktails you plan to try first!

  • Kettl Tea of Brooklyn, New York

    Kettl Tea of Brooklyn, New York

    Readers are always sharing new “Japanese finds” with me either when I am traveling or at home in the Bay area. This blog post about Kettl Tea is as a result of my niece, Corina Seligman. (Have you read her guest post on sake btw?) She knows of my passionate love of all things Matcha and suggested I go. Since I was staying in Brooklyn for a few nights after dropping my daughter off to college for her freshman year, (Sob, sigh, pride…) the subway was a breeze since my friend and hostess, Susan, is the Subway Master! I can’t wait to go back.kettl tea Brooklyn NY

    During a recent trip to New York City to settle my daughter into her first year of college, I discovered Kettl Tea, an absolutely charming little Japanese tea and ceramic shop, situated in a small gallery space, based in Brooklyn. Although Zach Mangan, the owner, wasn’t there during my visit (I found out later that he was in Japan sourcing tea), my friend Susan and I were excellently taken care by Emma Porter, who was managing the store in his absence.

    It was a very hot and humid late summer day, so I asked Emma if she could make us an iced Matcha flight. She served us two matchas to enjoy.  Uchu, from Uji City, Japan was classically elegant, sophisticated with a mild tart finish. The other one was Hibiki from Hoshinomura, Japan, was creamy, smooth and had a lingering grassy aroma that I adore. Susan had never had Matcha, but fell in love with the taste. Being Matcha-obsessed, I was in heaven. This little oasis of serenity was so enticing, that we lingered over our Matchas, talking to Emma about Kettl’s teas and exquisite teaware ceramics, and her passion for kaiseki ryori (traditional Japanese multi-course haute cuisine) for a long time.

    Kettlkettl tea Brooklyn NY sells a wide variety of Japanese teas, from Matcha, Sencha, Gyokuro to Soba Cha, Oolong, to Houjicha and so on.

    They call themselves a NYC/Fukuoka based tea company. Like Breakaway Matcha on the West Coast, Kettl, sources their teas directly from 14 different growers/suppliers that they have a personal and ongoing relationship with from 8 different prefectures in Japan. They consider them all to be their partners. Their teas are shipped weekly from Fukuoka, Japan. Once again, I love finding small companies in the States who are obsessed with introducing hand-crafted Japanese beverages and or foods. I will be writing about another find of mine called The Japanese Pantry here in the Bay Area in an upcoming posting.

    Next time, I plan to make a day of it and visit Okonomi Restaurant, which serves Japanese breakfast in the mornings and Ramen at night! I love it! Like Kettl, they also offer cooking classes. According to Kettl’s website, Japanese tea is their passion. No doubt about that!

    Kettl Tea
    150 Ainslie St., 2nd Floor, Brooklyn NY, 11211
    Open Weekdays 11am – 4pm / Weekends 11am – 6pm
    Closed Tuesday and Wednesday

    All photos © copyright Jonathan Hokklo.

    kettl tea Brooklyn NY kettl tea Brooklyn NY

     

     

     

     

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  • Interview with Eric Gower of Breakaway Matcha

    A number of months ago I was reading an article online at mindbodygreen.com and it mentioned Eric Gower of Breakaway Matcha, located in Marin County and I couldn’t believe I hadn’t heard of it considering my total obsession with Matcha (high quality finely ground powdered green tea from Japan, primarily from the area surrounding Kyoto); especially since it is literally in my backyard so to speak! So I tracked Eric down, and we sat down a few weeks later over icy frothy cups of matcha for a far reaching and jam-packed conversation on matcha, Japan, love, food, our daughters, and lots more. And then, a few days later, I broke my other ankle…ie, my  2nd ankle of 2017 and that was that for a very long time! But, I’m getting back on my feet!, back in the kitchen, and very happily back to writing my blog. So, here is my long awaited interview with Eric Gower of Breakaway Matcha. Thankfully, I bought a matcha flight  as I was leaving that helped ease me through weeks of being stuck at home in a cast! I especially liked Blend #97 that I found had that perfect blend of green vibrancy and sprightliness that only properly shaken coldbrew matcha elicits! There is a whift of grassiness when you first drink first rate matcha that makes me go weak in the knees…..

    This post may include affiliate links, so without costing you anything extra, I’ll earn a small percentage of the sales if you purchase these items through these links. Thank you for your support!

    Breakaway Matcha

    Why, matcha?

    Eric Gower: “It’s love really, I mean it’s all about love. I drank a lot of matcha in Japan. I wasn’t too much into their ceremony, you know, you’ve probably been to as many as I have. I’ve drunk dozens and dozens of these things and I really liked the matchas that some of them served me, but a lot of them weren’t very good, and not very interesting.  I liked it, when it was hot, it was really special. It was life changing, so different from so many other beverages and I just kept the dive going and I just kept learning more and more about it.”

    And why call it breakaway matcha?!

    EG: “It’s based on my two cookbooks (The Breakaway Japanese Kitchen and The Breakaway Cook) that take Japanese ingredients and do some unusual things with them. You know living in Japan for 16 years and surrounded by so much good food and all these classic Japanese restaurants. I didn’t feel the need to replicate all the classics but I did fall in love with Japanese ingredients and I tried to isolate the Japanese ingredients I liked and kind of make them star in kind of a non-Japanese way, a lot of which was driven by whatever I could find in farmers markets.  You could make really simple and quite lovely food that broke away from all the Japanese cuisine.  We just decided to call it the breakaway Japanese kitchen then I remember being called the breakaway cook and then so when I was trying to give a name to this matcha thing, then why not stick with breakaway too?”

    the breakaway cook by eric gower
    the breakaway japanese kitchen by eric gower
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    Need books?

    I’m buying mine from Abe Books now in an effort to support smaller businesses. They have new and used options and harder to find books, including all of my favorite Japanese cookbooks! You can support Thanks for the Meal by clicking on this banner to buy your books.

    Arigatou Gozaimasu / ありがとうございますいます –Lucy

    What are some of  the benefits of matcha?

    EG: “Oh geez! A lot of them. Really I find it with men more than women, for me it keeps me hydrated all day long because I don’t drink water (I don’t know why) but I do drink coldbrew matcha all day. It also has high levels of antioxidants.  Some other benefits include reducing stress, as it includes L-theanine, an amino acid known for its calming effect, supporting healthy teeth and gums by killing off bacteria that causes bad breath, and the list goes on and on!”

    It doesn’t keep you up all night?

    EG: “No. I sleep like a baby every night!”

    Does it have caffeine?

    EG: (According to their website): “Yes, but not so much: 25mg or so per cup (in contrast, a brewed cup of coffee has about 100mg. So it has about a quarter of the caffeine of coffee.”

    What are you looking for in a great matcha?

    The five pillars of a great matcha (according to their website) is:

    • electric color
    • maximum umami
    • lack of bitterness and plethora of natural sweetness
    • good/balanced acid structure, and
    • extra-long, beautiful finish

    You are doing so many different things, are you still a private chef?

    EG: “Not really, the last private chef gig that I did was 2 years ago. In the last 5 years I haven’t really done more than a handful of private chef events, ever since matcha came along. I would much rather focus my energy doing this. It’s easier, it’s better, it has way more potential, and it’s enjoyable. I mean being a private chef is hard, it’s just brutal really, I mean you can’t really trust that the person or where you’re going is going to have what you need. Dismantling your entire kitchen, loading it in the car and doing it again and shopping takes up to 2 days. You couldn’t charge enough; you can’t charge enough to make a living.”

    “And it’s exhausting (it’s completely exhausting) and you have a family which is why I stopped teaching because…”

    Eric to Lucy: “Are you a cooking teacher?”

    LS: “Yes, I was for years but it didn’t work out long-term after I became a single Mom, it was impossible to do, when my daughter was younger.”

    What is your relationship with restaurants and what are you doing with them?

    EG: “We create many programs for restaurants and there’s a new one called Single Thread Farm in Healdsburg, I don’t know if you have heard of this one. It’s remarkable. You can order room service there with a couple of different grades of matcha. They create quite a few pastries with matcha as well. That’s a pretty developed matcha program, and we also work with Nomad Hotel, both in NYC and the recently opened downtown Los Angeles location, where they really wanted a matcha program, which is wonderful.”

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    Do you have a favorite local Japanese restaurant in Marin County?

    EG: “Yes, there is a wonderful restaurant and it’s really really good and I don’t say that lightly! I don’t like most Japanese food that I’ve had but this is very good. It’s called Village in Fairfax, California.”

    So what do you see happening next for you in Breakaway Matcha?

    EG: “I don’t know. We continue to grow. Matcha as a category is growing like wildfire which is really nice, the timing is very good. We kind of positioned ourselves at the extreme upper end of the market. It’s a good place to be rather than battling it out at the bottom. It’ll be really cool, and great to reintroduce this style of matcha in Japan. There’s long history of things that go abroad and then kind of move that way back in Japan in some different form.  It will be wonderful. I really think it will be widely accepted, I’m quite sure, it’s just that we’re still building the business here and not quite ready. I think a similar thing can happen in Europe. My wife is German. I grew up in Germany but was born here. We’d love to live in either Holland or Germany for a while, I may try to start a European branch as well as a Japanese branch. It’ll be great.”

    Breakaway Matcha sells 12 Hyperpremium matcha blends (think rare fine wines, each unique in their own way), a variety of coldbrew versions (my personal fav at the moment), and culinary for well, for culinary purposes (such as baking or cooking or using it as an ingredient)!

    Breakaway Matcha is offering readers 10% off + free shipping! Just use the code THANKSFORTHEMEAL. www.breakawaymatcha.com

    matcha cold brew

    *Photos courtesy of Breakaway Matcha.

    Leave a note in the comments section (see below) of your favorite Matcha drink and or food!

    Breakaway Matcha interview
  • Guest Blog Post: Sake Paired with Whaaaat??

    Guest Blog Post: Sake Paired with Whaaaat??

    My niece, Corina Seligman, knows her sake! So I asked her to do a guest blog on some of its finer points. –Lucy

    sake in the fridge
    Corina’s fridge… filled with Sake!

    I sell sake for a living. After 15 years of bartending and a few years in management I have recently transitioned to the other side of the industry: sales.

    I work for Empire Merchants, the oldest and largest liquor distributor in New York. There are over 1,400 employees and 13 divisions. I work in the vintage wines division, the smallest in the company. My position was created just this year and I am their first and only sake specialist.

    While I am still very new and most of my peers and many of my buyers don’t know much about sake, the world is wide open for me. One of my biggest goals is to demystify sake for Western drinkers. Sake is not meant to only be drunk with sushi. I can never say that enough!

    For those who find the idea of drinking sake with anything other than a spicy tuna roll or a hot bowl of ramen, here’s what I have to say to them:

    Think of sake the way you would think of wine or beer- the food pairings have little to do with the country of origin and everything to do with flavor profile and balance. Does your mouth salivate at the thought of pizza (Italian) and beer (very likely German, American, Belgian, etc.)? How about pairing Thai or Indian food with an off-dry Riesling (probably German, American or French)? How delicious does a dry French rose paired with some sweet and savory all American BBQ sound? You get the point.

    So why do people think sake is any different when it comes to food pairing? Sake is arguably one of the most versatile beverages on the planet. Many can be served at various temperatures, some are undiluted, sparkling, unfiltered, infused and even aged! Sake is perfect for food pairing. If there’s a dish, there’s a sake for it.

    Without diving too far down the rabbit hole, I’d like to suggest a few not-so-obvious food and sake pairings. Feel free to use any sake of a similar style and experiment on your own! You can thank me later 😉

    Recommended sake pairing #1: Fuku Chitose Yamahai Junmai “Happy Owl” with Oaxacan-style mole

    This sake is from the Tajima Brewery and is traditional in every sense of the word. The small brewery only makes Yamahai sakes where they allow the rice to sit in the open air so it can absorb all the air-born micro-organisms as it ferments. This particular Yamahai has a more mellow attack than most, but you can still taste the umami flavors in its fragrant and rich mouthful. I’ve heard rumors that they sell dark chocolate at the brewery which is what gave me the idea to pair it with a dense, complex, chocolatey mole sauce layered over chicken, beef or chunky vegetables. A delicious pairing and perfect for the coming winter months!

    Recommended sake pairing #2: Taiheikai Tokubetsu Junmai “Pacific Ocean” with a Charcuterie and Cheese plate 

    I’m currently obsessed with this sake. It is very well balanced with just the right amount of nutty earthiness with a bright juicy effervescence on the tongue. Pretty much everything I love in a sake all poured into one beautiful bottle. The complexity in this sake lends itself to being paired with many flavors and textures. My ideal afternoon spread would be for the sake to play off of the delicate creaminess of cheese, tart and sweetness of fruit, and the salty richness of meat. Let’s break it down a little more by finding flavors in this platter to compliment the three pronounced aspects in this sake-nuttiness, juiciness and slight umami.

    Here are some more specific suggestions:

    Mild creamy cheeses with a hint of nuttiness:

    Fontina, Gouda, Camembert, Brie, or Jarlsberg

    Sweet and zesty Fruit. Key word is fresh fresh fresh!

    Crisp apples and pears, white peaches, nectarines, honeydew melon and lighter fleshed melons (I wouldn’t do cantaloupe or watermelon as their flavors may be more pronounced for this but feel free to experiment!)

    High quality sliced meats to enhance texture, salinity and umami:

    Prosciutto and dry cured salami. Plump green olives can also be a nice vegetarian option in this category!

    Recommended sake pairing #3: Hanahato Kijoshu Sake “Gorgeous Bird” with Chocolate Fondue and other Desserts 

    I first discovered this sake when I was working as the bar manager at a high end Japanese restaurant in California. Hanahato was pretty polarizing for the staff when we first tried it due to its pronounced nose being very heavy on the umami notes. Some even said it smelled like fish sauce or soy sauce! But if you can get past the unexpected smell, this sake, served at room temperature, has a similar taste profile to a sherry or port with a dense honey/nutty aroma.

    Kijoshu is a rich and luxurious sake that is created by replacing some of the water used during the fermentation period with finished sake. In other words it’s a sake fortified with sake! Hanahato has been aged for eight years and has notes of dried fruit and earthy mushrooms. Anything that can be classically paired with either a ruby or tawny port would be a delightful pairing with this sake.

    My restaurant had a decadent dark chocolate fondue dessert and I loved blowing people’s minds by pouring them a small taste of the Hanahato to accompany it. Other great pairing options would be a dark chocolate mousse, a nutty pecan pie, gooey bread pudding or even a classic hot fudge sundae. Yummmmm!

    These are just a few ideas I have for thinking outside the (bento!) box and having some fun with sake and cuisines from all over the world. I’m looking forward to sharing more of my sake food pairing adventures in the months to come. For now I’m going to pour myself a nightcap of Daiginjo in a big elegant Bordeaux glass because sometimes sake is also pretty damn great on its own.

    Leave a note in the comments section (see below) with your favorite sake and food pairing!

    Expert sake pairings

     

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