Sake – So hot right now
December 11th, 2008 | by Hayley | Published in Sessions
The transport system was in meltdown. Everyone was making a mad dash on foot or in black cabs. Tuesday the 02 December was clearly another root day.
Ryota, the bar manager at Life, had been marinating fruit in Shochu for over 24 hours. As we sampled the three specially crafted cocktails for Facing East we knew this was going to be a rather large night. A few small alterations were made for the western palate and then we were ready to fly – the Salty Dog, Kamikaze and Eastern Right Hook all packed a punch.
There was a quick exercise in Japanese pronunciation and then our expert Wakana started us off with the Honjozo – a perfect everyday sake quaffer. Some liked it cold, some liked it hot (we know who you are…).
Stepping up to the Diaginjo it was clear that until now, Sake had never been this good for many. A variety of accompanying condiments from sweet to savoury to salty, left us all with a real appreciation for food matching options. Who would have thought that fish and chips would work so well with Sake!
Next weighing in at 19%, a Honjozo Genshu with heaps of character and a smoothness belying its cask strength, had Joe McCanta concocting on the spot cocktails.
After a short lesson in polishing rice we were ready to embrace Akashi-Tai’s most controversial sake made from brown rice. Genmai Aged Sake – minimal polishing, exclusive Kyoto rice and an aging process using ceramics. Some tasted cocoa or caramel, others lime and some even a cheeky hint of sesame. The flavour pairing with dark chocolate sealed the deal for many.
Finishing with a specially sourced Shochu-based plum wine, Kaga Umeshu, we faced east towards the projected Tokyo cityscape. Our guest DJ Anchorsong (Masaaki Yoshida) began to mix funky beats for the crowd as the boys from Life fired up the cocktail shakers once more.
