Sake: what I didn’t know – The long list – drinks review
In truth the title of this article should be ‘The long list – Sake: what I didn’t know and what I don’t know I don’t know’. You can see that it’s a bit of a mouthful but you will appreciate where I am going with this one. My article is not written by an expert but rather an enthusiast who hopes to become an expert. I ask the questions for all of us who want to know more. Hopefully, I can make sake more accessible to people who have nothing to do with the drinks industry, but just drink for pleasure.
I have had a long love of Japan and all things Japanese, although I only had my first trip to those islands a couple of years ago. However, I was given the opportunity to learn about sake by the Sake Sommelier Association a number of years before that. They opened the floodgates of knowledge and set me on a path that has been deliciously absorbing, periodically challenging …and one which I am now enjoying immensely.
More in common with beer-making
None of us are born experts, even Japanese! We taste, we savour, ask questions, ask more questions and we learn. It’s all a matter of exposure and we have not had that in the West until relatively recently. I had always heard sake referred to as ‘rice wine’. I could never quite understand how one could possibly make wine from grains of rice. How much juice could you get out of those things? In fact it is a brewed alcohol made by fermenting rice. The process has more in common with beer-making than the production of wine.
To refer to sake as a wine does it no favours, in my opinion. The prospective sipper will likely be drawn to expect a familiar fruity flavour, possibly awash with blackberries, a cheeky hint of red plum and a suspicion of mango. I note that it’s rare that a wine expert will ever describe a nice bottle of red as tasting of grapes! Sake has a very different taste palate but one that is just as complex and vibrant as is that for wine.
Sake, at least up until a few years ago, had a bad reputation. People who had never actually tasted it would avoid doing so as they were sure of a few indisputable truths: 1. It was the source of hangovers the magnitude of which would prompt the sufferer to either contemplate suicide or sign the pledge. 2. It is cheap and nasty and would likely strip enamel from one’s teeth, and was the reserve of dubious drinking parties. 3. It’s as strong as vodka and would see the unwary under the table before the night was through.
Less ‘day-after effect’
Let’s take number 1. Sake has been no more responsible for hangovers than any other beverage. In fact it is said to have less ‘day-after effect’ than many other alcoholic drinks as it’s quite pure.
Number 2. It is these days considered a high-end drink for the discerning. Its reputation is now for quality and is enjoyed by those who want to taste sake on its own (in sensible quantities) or with food, and that food doesn’t have to be Japanese. It is now taken seriously by the whole professional wine and spirits world.
Number 3. Sake will not see the unwary under the table, firstly because Japanese tables are low and secondly it is sold at a level of alcohol of only 14 to 18%. A bottle is usually slightly smaller than a bottle of wine, but the servings are smaller for the same amount of alcohol. I recommend sipping sake from traditional small cups, which will encourage the drinker to linger and enjoy the experience. Always drink in moderation, as the wise would advise.
I am enjoying learning about sake, and the more I learn the more I appreciate that there’s more to learn. It’s a fascinating drink with charm, complexity, nuance, history and culture. The homework might take a lifetime but it’s time spent in tasteful fashion.
Drinks review by Chrissie Walker © 2018
