Living the Sake Life in Yamaguchi, Japan
Rather than do a regular old tasting note, review, or event update, I thought I'd take a look back at what this year was like for me in my sake journey. 2019 was a fairly big sake year for me. I led my first tasting class back in January, and did my first work translating... Continue Reading →
The event I talked about last time sold a couple of limited edition sakes. This is one of them! It's a junmai tobingakoi, meaning it was filtered by being hung in cotton bags and funneled directly into a glass tank before it is pumped into the bottles. Harada Toji is filling bottles directly from a... Continue Reading →
Shunan city sake brewery Hatsumomiji Shuzo, makers of popular brand Harada, held a small festival on November 16th and 17th to celebrate their 200th anniversary. Since I'm a fan of not only their sake, but the brewery staff as well (I've toured it twice and have met many of them several times at events), I... Continue Reading →
Shunan City's Jizake Yokocho 2019 October 12, 2019 saw the third annual Jizake Yokocho, when Shunan City hosts sake brewers from all over Japan in the area near Tokuyama station in an open-air event. This year saw sakes from 50+ breweries lining the covered arcade street of Minami-ginza. Sake from all over! The system is... Continue Reading →
It makes me sad how difficult it will be to explain the pun behind this sake's name in English. But we'll get to that. No need to cry. Nakasu sake is is from Hatsumomiji, the makers behind Harada sake. It's a local favorite, and a kura I've visited a few times. I like their sake,... Continue Reading →
This is a blast from the past for me, as it's one of the first sakes I tried when I was just getting into the drink 10 or so years ago. It was the premier label of Yamagata Honten back then, before Moriko and Bochozuru, and when I visited the kura I had some straight... Continue Reading →
This particular sake has eluded me for a while. It's from Shunan City's Nakamura Sakaba, the last local kura on my list, BUT! It is yet another example of a brew labeled and sold by one kura, but made by another. So... Who actually made it? I don't really know. Seiriki Ginjo (aruten), Seimaibuai 60%... Continue Reading →
In a recent wander around the shopping streets surrounding Tokuyama Station, I found what you might actually call my holy land: a new bar dedicated (almost) solely to sake. Kokushu (͡國酒) opened in March of this year and offers pretty much one thing: All you can drink nihonshu (they do have a little machine dispensing... Continue Reading →
I'm beginning to feel I have some kind of karmic connection to Nakashimaya. Every sake event I go to I run into the same young staff member, and he always talks me into trying something new. When people ask me for recommendations, I always find that their specific event needs seem to call for one... Continue Reading →
Saturday, October 27th was Shunan city's 2nd annual Jizake Yokocho local sake Fair. 16 sakagura from all over Yamagata were there offering their wares, including some rarities I've never seen anywhere locally. A group of friends and I went to give our lovers a workout, and it was pure fun. None of the kura were... Continue Reading →
