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Sake Appreciation Thread 2012/2013


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Sake is just like water flavoured with the gift of life. Have it cold, but never on the rocks, the melt would corrupt the taste.

on an oishii program, they just say oishii all the time. Anybody could do that.

I'd like for one person to just screw their face up and bellow....."SHITE!!"

  • 5 weeks later...

Fukushogun, from Mito, Ibaraki:

 

med_gallery_10844_104_212333.jpgmed_gallery_10844_104_324370.jpg

 

As the label says:

 

Rice polishing level: 50%

Nihonshudo: +3

Acidity: 1.2

 

This is an interesting one. Not very acidic, mildly dry, but with a very full flavor. Kind of syrupy (rock-candy?), which is a word I usually use in a negative way, but in this case in a good way. Not cloying, just fragrant. The flavor reminds me of a couple of other local Ibaraki sakes, which I will have to review some time.

 

Not as extreme as ones I usually favor, but very full tasting. The hints that go up the nose are very relaxed and happy.

Lavender aftertones.

 

Let's give this one a:

 

7.

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Koshi no Hatsu Ume Nama Chozou:

 

gallery_10844_104_124056.jpggallery_10844_104_18573.jpg

 

From Takanoi brewery in Ojiya, Niigata.

 

I've reviewed a genshu from this brewery before:

http://www.snowjapan...post__p__489994

 

This is not a genshu, but is namachozou: No pasteurization at the first storage stage (though with pasteurization at the bottling stage). And I have to say, I am becoming a believer in "nama." More on that in future reviews, but for now, this sake is not as strong as the genshu version, but that is made up for in the extra subtle aftertastes that accompany it. Gentle, yet insistent, somewhat lavenderish flavors that linger in the nose. Liquid flowers.

 

7.5.

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Fukushogun, from Mito, Ibaraki:

 

med_gallery_10844_104_212333.jpgmed_gallery_10844_104_324370.jpg

 

As the label says:

 

Rice polishing level: 50%

Nihonshudo: +3

Acidity: 1.2

 

This is an interesting one. Not very acidic, mildly dry, but with a very full flavor. Kind of syrupy (rock-candy?), which is a word I usually use in a negative way, but in this case in a good way. Not cloying, just fragrant. The flavor reminds me of a couple of other local Ibaraki sakes, which I will have to review some time.

 

Not as extreme as ones I usually favor, but very full tasting. The hints that go up the nose are very relaxed and happy.

Lavender aftertones.

 

Let's give this one a:

 

7.

 

Fukushogun? Only the assistant to the Shogun? Can't be any good now can it? ;) I tried Kamotsuri? the other night at a nabe party and really enjoyed it, but don't remember if that's the name of it or not.

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Tsumugibijin Shiboritate 純米生酒:

 

gallery_10844_104_138462.jpg

 

From Joso-shi, Ibaraki.

 

I tried their genshu before, and really liked it. This is genshu strength, 19-20% alcohol, but is completel unpasteurized: 生酒.

And oohh, it combines the floral overtones of the Koshi no Hatsu Ume Namachozou with the sour pungency of the Tsumugi Bijin genshu for something that is just a bit more then either of them. Sweet and sour, in subtle balance.

 

This one gets an 8.

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  • 3 weeks later...

Fukushogun Hiyaoroshi:

 

med_gallery_10844_104_87056.jpggallery_10844_104_54262.jpg

 

From Mito, Ibaraki.

 

One of the hiyaoroshi type, brewed in the winter but bottled in the fall.

 

This one uses the Hitachi Kobo culture that Hitachi Hanagasumi uses, which I had described as "effervescent":

http://www.snowjapan...post__p__473634

Note that this is a different kobo than the previous Fukushogun that I tried:

http://www.snowjapan...post__p__500118

 

The first hit of flavor is spectacular, very floral, that lavenderish scent that stood out in Fukushogun and Koshi no Hatsu Ume Namachozou (http://www.snowjapanforums.com/index.php/topic/22315-sake-appreciation-thread-20122013/page__view__findpost__p__500550), but even stronger. Actually, tastes kind of creamy. Like eclair filling. It comes on very complex and flavorful.

 

And then... it just abruptly fades out. Not much follow-through when going down the esophagous. It just kind of disappears.

 

If it lasted longer, or had more strength to it, this could get top marks. As it is, it is better than regular Fukushogun, which got a 7, but perhaps not quite as good as Koshi no Hatsu Ume Namachozou, which got a 7.5. So let's say:

 

7.25

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Suehiro Yamada Nishiki:

gallery_10844_104_23630.jpggallery_10844_104_76995.jpg

 

From Aizu, Fukushima.

 

This is an interesting one. Normally, I am not a big fan of Aizu sakes, fiding them watery, but this one advertises itself as dense sake, and it is. Alcohol level 18%-19%. But more significant is the flavor.

 

It uses the M-310 culture (酵母) from Mito, Ibaraki. (310 = Mito, get it?) And this culture happens to be one that I have found I like in other sakes, like Fukushogun (http://www.snowjapan...post__p__500118). They describe it on the label as "fruity," though to me it tastes like lavender. Or maybe it is the rice that gives it that flavor? Yamada Nishiki is a very popular rice strain for sake use. And actually, Fukushogun Hiyaorosi (http://www.snowjapan...post__p__503850) has that same basic floral taste, while using a different culture, so... maybe it is the rice after all? (Clearly more research is in order!)

 

In any case, this one has the basic flavor of Fukushogun, at Fukushogun Hiyaoroshi strength, but without the sudden-fade-out problem that Fukushogun Hiyaoroshi has. And if I am not mistaken, there is just a slight hint of that musty Chinese-sake-like "Tochiginess" (http://www.snowjapan...post__p__494793) in there. Which may be fitting, as a straight line from Mito in Ibaraki (where the culture comes from) to Aizu in Fukushima (where the sake was brewed) passes through Nasu in the the northern tip of Tochigi. So kind of a 3-way collaboration?

 

Anyway, verdict is:

 

7.5

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  • 4 weeks later...

Don't think I have tried that one. Is it from the same brewery that makes Koshi no Hatsu Ume?

I have found that the same label can taste different at different times (thinking of some local labels).

I would guess it is a somewhat delicate process, so differences from batch to batch should be expected, no?

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  • 4 weeks later...

Suisen Junmaishu:

gallery_10844_227_51109.jpg

 

From Rikuzentakata (HQ) and Ofunato (brewery), Iwate. The original brewery was destroyed in the tsunami, and has been rebuilt from scratch.

 

Advertised as being dense-flavored and dry, my favorite combination, had to give it a shot.

Made from Iwate-grown rice.

 

Dry: it certainly is. Not a hint of syrupiness or cloyingness. Good marks on that score.

 

Dense: Hmm, not so sure. Has a hint of the floral background that Fukushogun has, but not the same depth. Just kind of stops short of delivering on the flavor that I was hoping for from the label.

 

Hmm, wish I could go higher, given what they have been through, but will have to go with:

 

6.5

 

But I will look forward to, and try, new releases from them. Gambare, guys!

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