big-will 7 Posted May 6, 2013 Share Posted May 6, 2013 But actually some of them do go into more details and use lots of words other than those two. Really! Link to post Share on other sites
Tubby Beaver 209 Posted May 6, 2013 Share Posted May 6, 2013 I'd like for one person to just screw their face up and bellow....."SHITE!!" 1 Link to post Share on other sites
Thunderbird2 0 Posted May 6, 2013 Share Posted May 6, 2013 I always think that. Link to post Share on other sites
Alexander L 80 Posted May 7, 2013 Share Posted May 7, 2013 I'd like for one person to just screw their face up and bellow....."SHITE!!" and cough it out, spraying everyone. Link to post Share on other sites
big-will 7 Posted May 7, 2013 Share Posted May 7, 2013 Perhaps the only known instance of that is when a gaijin tries natto or something. Fully proving the gaijin-ness, of course. Link to post Share on other sites
Metabo Oyaji 71 Posted June 3, 2013 Share Posted June 3, 2013 Tsumugi Bijin Gokukara Genshu: From Joso-shi, Ibaraki. Vital stats: Alcohol strength: 20-21% Rice: Chiyonishiki Nihonshudo: +10.0 (!) Acidity: 1.6 This is a genshu, bottled straight from the fermentation process with no water added. This is not for people who don't like sake: it is very strong, and very acidic. Nothing sweet about this puppy. Hits your mouth like battery acid, which then gives way to a burnt, caramel-textured (but not caramel-flavored) aftertaste. Holy cripes. This stuff is not fooling around. Very satisfying. 7.5, my highest score yet. (I hope my teeth enamel is still ok.) Link to post Share on other sites
DumbStick 13 Posted June 3, 2013 Share Posted June 3, 2013 Love the labels on sake. Link to post Share on other sites
iiyamadude 6 Posted June 4, 2013 Share Posted June 4, 2013 Prefer the sake myself Thanks for the info MO. Link to post Share on other sites
Metabo Oyaji 71 Posted July 6, 2013 Share Posted July 6, 2013 Okunomatsu Zenmai Ginjo: From Nihonmatsu, Fukushima. From the label: "At the foot of Mt. Adatara, high quality water and air have produced a traditional taste since 1716." Also from the label: 全米吟醸。純米酒ではありません。 So this is not your ordinary junmaishu. It is zenmai ginjo. What is the difference? Apparently, despite the years of tradition behind this brewery, this particular label has some modern refinements applied, such as pasteurization (which is claimed to preserve the flavor better) and even some kind of distillation of rice alcohol involved according to the back label. May be worth some net research to find out what exactly is going on with this label. Tomorrow. Whatever it is, though, it has apparently won 3 gold medals in a row from the Monde Selection in Brussels, in 2010, 2011 and 2012. Alcohol: 15% Rice polishing level: 60% Nihonshudo: +5 Acidity: 1.3 Culture: Okunomatsu Kobo Anyway, fairly dry, and with a rich smell, almost perfume-y. Not as dense on the tongue as in the nose, but not weak. No clunky notes. Overall, quite good. Perhaps a 7-ish? Link to post Share on other sites
surfarthur 22 Posted July 6, 2013 Share Posted July 6, 2013 Sounds interesting MO, keep up the reviews, I really enjoy reading them. Link to post Share on other sites
Metabo Oyaji 71 Posted July 7, 2013 Share Posted July 7, 2013 After extensive minutes of online research, I have come to appreciate how little I knew about sake brewing. But as a follow-on to the last review, here are some notes cribbed from Wikipedia. The fermentation and brewing process is much more complicated than I had been thinking, and the importance of water mineral content comes from the flavors different minerals encourage the development of. So brewers talking about their water supply are not simply blowing smoke, it really does matter. Fair enough. After brewing, one ends up with this big, soggy mass of alcohol-soaked rice solids, moromi. The rice solids are filtered out to make the actual sake (less filtering in the case of nigorizake). Sometimes a small amount of distilled alcohol is also run through the rice solids to draw out extra flavors for the sake (this is also mentioned on the Okunomatsu label). However, this is NOT done for junmaishu (純米酒). In the case of the Okunomatsu zenmaishu (全米酒) above, distilled alchol IS used, BUT it is made by distilling junmaishu. (I suppose ordinarily, grain alcohol might be used?) Hence their distinction between "zenmaishu" and "junmaishu." Pasteurization seems to be nothing new, and is in fact standard, except in the case of namazake (生酒). Not sure why it is mentioned on the Okunomatsu label -- maybe the way they do it is different? (For Okunomatsu, it says it is done after bottling. Don't know at which stage it would ordinarily be done.) Whatever the process, the taste is of course what counts! Link to post Share on other sites
Metabo Oyaji 71 Posted July 14, 2013 Share Posted July 14, 2013 Koshi no Hatsu Ume Karakuchi Genshu: From Ojiya, Niigata. Alcohol: 19-20% Nihonshudo: +8 Rice polishing level: 65% This is a genshu, similar to the Tsumugi Bijin Gokukara Genshu I rated previously. Fairly dry (+8), not quite as strong tasting as the Tsumugi Bijin (but still pretty strong), but more fragrant. Strong, yet subtle. Interestingly, this is made by Takanoi (高の井) brewery, which I have tried in the past and not really cared for. Their ordinary sake (the one wrapped in newspaper, not genshu) is just too watery for my tastes. Come to think of it, I have had that same complaint with Tsumugi Bijin regular sake, but loved their genshu. However, in karakuchi genshu style, it seems to hit all the buttons I like. So, I think I am figuring out that I like genshu, and should go hunting for more of the same. Anyway, verdict: 7.5, tied with Tsumugi Bijin Gokukara Genshu for my highest score. Link to post Share on other sites
klingon 10 Posted July 22, 2013 Share Posted July 22, 2013 I had that one when I was last in Yuzawa. Link to post Share on other sites
Metabo Oyaji 71 Posted July 23, 2013 Share Posted July 23, 2013 What did you think of it? Link to post Share on other sites
klingon 10 Posted July 23, 2013 Share Posted July 23, 2013 Fuzzy memories actually, I'm afraid. Can't say I'm a person who can distinguish much between sakes, but that day I was not helped by the volume of other liquids I had consumed! Link to post Share on other sites
Metabo Oyaji 71 Posted July 28, 2013 Share Posted July 28, 2013 Tanigawadake Junmai Ginjo Second Challenge: From Kawaba-mura, Gunma. 1800 yen Bought it for the intriguing label. What's the story? According to the label, this is the second "practice batch" by trainee Tsunoda Takayuki, at the Nagai Brewery in Kawaba. So don't expect to see this again. Nihonshudo: +2 Rice polishing level: 60% Alcohol: 15% Rice: From Kawaba-mura Label paper: Made of recycled wooden walkways from Oze National Park. Verdict: not bad! Not bad at all. Not too dry, not too sweet, but with a definite character. The label describes it as "fruitiness," which could make sense, if the fruit in question is something like lychee or biwa. Not a syrupy flavor, more aromatic. Not as developed as, say, Okunomatsu, but this trainee shows great promise. Gambare, Tsunoda-san! Score: 6.5 Link to post Share on other sites
HighlyTrainedNovaTeacher 2 Posted July 29, 2013 Share Posted July 29, 2013 He's been reading the gambaro thread. English on a sake label just somehow doesn't seem right. Link to post Share on other sites
r45 4 Posted July 30, 2013 Share Posted July 30, 2013 Where do you find all these Metabo Oyaji? Link to post Share on other sites
Metabo Oyaji 71 Posted July 30, 2013 Share Posted July 30, 2013 Where do you find all these Metabo Oyaji? I have several places I go regularly, and am always on the look-out for new labels. But mostly sake shops and supermarkets. I also have a couple of small-scale brands I have been told about by connoisseurs, and am on the look-out for. Hopefully will be able to report on some of them at some point. Link to post Share on other sites
OBLONG 0 Posted July 31, 2013 Share Posted July 31, 2013 You drink sake most of the time Metabo, like instead of beer? Just occasionally for me Link to post Share on other sites
Metabo Oyaji 71 Posted August 1, 2013 Share Posted August 1, 2013 Not really into beer these days, actually. Generally prefer sake or whisky. Sometimes wine. Link to post Share on other sites
fukdane 2 Posted August 3, 2013 Share Posted August 3, 2013 Are there huge variations in cost of sake? Link to post Share on other sites
Metabo Oyaji 71 Posted August 13, 2013 Share Posted August 13, 2013 Are there huge variations in cost of sake? Yes, some of them can get quite expensive. Though not the ones I generally buy. Link to post Share on other sites
Metabo Oyaji 71 Posted August 13, 2013 Share Posted August 13, 2013 Hakushika Honjouzou Genshu: From Ishioka, Ibaraki. Was stocking up on Smart Cheese at the supermarket, and spied this bottle that I had never seen before. 1290 yen for 720 ml. This is the genshu version of the brand by which I have set my rating system, with the standard Hakushika being defined as a 5 (minimum acceptable level). Since I have discovered I like genshu, it seemed incumbent to give this one a try. Alcohol level: 19% Rice polishing level: 65% Labels says it is a cold-process (寒仕込み) karakuchi, to be served on the rocks (!) or cold. I opted for the latter. First splash in the mouth has a bit of a perfumy, aromatic flavor, slightly reminiscent of Okunomatsu Zenmai Ginjo. Followed by a slightly syrupy mouthfeel, reminiscent of Shiragiku. But it is neither as good as the former, nor as bad as the latter. Not terribly dry, but with some sourness. Better than regular Hakushika, but not as good as other genshus I have tried recently. So let's say: 6 Link to post Share on other sites
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