Bottle 1 - Jokigen Tokubetsu Junmai (Nama)
As a labor of love, and in an attempt to document my feeble effort to get re-aquainted with my favorite alcoholic beverage, Nihon-shu (日本酒), I will photograph the few bottles I consume, and post them for those who want to see some great brews, that more than likely, you can only get in Japan. Along the way I may provide some links and info about Nihon-shu (what westerners call sake) for a little in the way of education. This is not meant to be a seminar in any way, and I am by no means a professional, hence my use of taste terms will often cause debate, or be flat out incorrect. For taste references I rely on two books: The Insider's Guide to Sake and The Book of Sake, both by Philip Harper, a man who is highly regarded as perhaps the best non-Japanese technical expert on sake in the world. The best overall resource to learn about sake is Sake World (the link is in Travel Resources on this blog) and perhaps the best sake instructor in the world is John Gauntner, my sensei, and the guy who has brought the passion of sake to thousands in the Western World. Any book on sake by him, and I have them all, is a great resource.
As for the sake pictured above, it is Jokigen Tokubetsu Junmai (Nama). It is an unpasteurized, all rice, sake, with a semai buai (rice polishing ratio) of 55%. From Yamagata prefecture, this 720ml bottle cost me Y1500 at my favorite local sake store, Mitsugiya in Fussa-shi. I will do a write up of them soon enough.
I would describe this Nihon-shu as on the dry side, but lively as a nama should be with nice rice, junmai feel. It is clean across the palette and finishes with no lingering after taste. I drank this chilled out of the fridge and along the way to room temperature. I would opine that its optimal temperature is around the 60-65 degree side (slightly below room temp). However, because of the influence of Philip Harper, I think a lot more about how things might taste heated, and I think this would be very nice at the hito-hada (body temperature) to (nuru-kan) range. I never go above nuru-kan so that is where I would stop, especially with an un-pasturized sake. Unfortunately, the bottle did not last long enough to find out. The remarks on the Mitsugiya web site describe this as the best Junmai-shu in Japan for the price. Perhaps. There is no doubt that in the Y1500/720ml range it is well worth it. I had this with grilled chicken, bacon-wrapped asparagus with a tare sauce, soft tofu and ponzu, and a Caesar salad with anchovies (thanks to my wife) and it went well with all.
This is certainly an offering that I would not turn down, and if I see its easily recognizable kanji on a menu, I will not hesitate to order one up. Three Stars *** (out of 5).
Bottle 2 - Dassai Junmai Daiginjo 48 (Nama)
This Dassai Junmai Daiginjo Shibori Tate (Nama) is an instant favorite. It has everything I love in a bottle of Nihon-shu, all of the lively, fruity taste that first sucked me into sake drinking. This is even more of everything than one would expect because of its young legs as a shibori tate, and that it is unpasteurized (nama) - a lively combination indeed. It is a cliche to rally around the dai ginjo for its own sake, but I save myself from the trap by trying everything at least once, and targeting a price range of around Y1500 for 720ml. That is what I paid for this at Mitsugiya, and since this is still my first year back in Japan, can easily claim it to be worth twice that much. At least I have paid twice as much for other Nihon-shu that was not as satisfying as this. Dassai 48, has a semai buai of 50 and is from Yamaguchi Prefecture.
I drank this in my normal unpasteurized dai ginjo range of right from the fridge, to room temperature and was not surprised to find this brew more comfortable on the chilled side (right from the fridge). It still holds it own up to room temperature, but as with all Nihon-shu of this grade, would not desire to put it in a pewter warming pot. Let this one be cold.
Once in the guinomi, this fragrant brew revealed the taste of melons and berries. A wonderful fruitiness, great junmai rice taste and a nice clean finish, which lingers longer on the tongue closer to room temperature. I was lucky enough to have this with sushi. We actually headed out to our favorite local sushi place and our nipper fell asleep in the back seat. Rather than wake him we decided to order out; my reward, the marriage of Dassai Junmai Daiginjo 48 with all of my sushi favorites. The Dassai 48 complemented everything on the plate and overpowered nothing. Its fruitiness and nama junmai body held together well throughout. Instant favorite. Four Stars ****
- Reviewer's addendum: Finished off this bottle on 24 Jan with a long one. Let it breathe and go to room temperature. It was solid and fantastic throughout. Drank it with a dinner of grilled beef and chicken on warmed pita bread with melted cheeses, sauteed spinach, roasted peppers and shallots. Held its own with some robust flavors from the food. After having covered the range of tastes from fresh sushi to grilled meats and cheeses, I conclude that this brew will go well with any meal.
Check out the Dassai website in Travel Resources.
