The world of Saké and Shochu can be as daunting to a newcomer as trying to grasp the specified geographic and varietal designations of French or Italian wine. In an effort to make the wide range of styles more accessible to our customers, we have added a Saké/Shochu page to our website and shelf talkers to many of the items on the shelf. As we move forward, we will continue to update this page and the shelf talkers with any relevant information. In addition, The Wine Source will be hosting a Saké tasting on Friday April 17th from 5 – 7:30pm. After all, the best way to learn, is to taste.

Saké, often called the “Drink of the Gods” by the Japanese, is a beverage created from rice, water, yeast, and koji-kin (an enzyme), usually with an alcohol content of around 15%. Through a painstaking and laborious brewing process, the resulting saké is a complex, aromatic, thought-provoking and pleasure-inducing drink. It is distinguished from both wine and spirits as it is neither fermented nor distilled. In fact, saké is brewed like a beer. Premium saké is usually served slightly chilled, while lower grades of saké are often served warm. Saké is best enjoyed with lightly prepared fish, chicken, pork, vegetarian and Asian cuisine.

Kanbara - Bride of the Fox
Junmai Ginjo
Kaetsu brewery is owned by Dr. Shunichi and Mrs. Yoshiko Sato who have both been brewing sake for as long as they can remember. Both come from sake brewing families, so they have four different brewing families' blood flowing through their veins! Niigata prefecture is one of just a handful of prefectures to have a self-managed AOC-type system which requires the use of local rice, water, traditional techniques, and blind tasting. They system has only been around a couple of years and Kaetsu has several sake that have been certified.
Enjoy intense aromas of grilled nuts, pistachio, and a hint of white chocolate. Flavors of nuts and ripe honeydew explode at the front and finishes crisp with a hint of lingering sweetness.

Rihaku “Wandering Poet”
Junmai Ginjo
The “Wandering Poet” is brewed carefully and slowly at low temperatures using traditional brewing techniques by a family owned artisan producer from the Shimane Prefecture. Balanced and clean it's a great match to veggie dishes. Rihaku was named for a poet in China who lived from 701-762 and was famous for drinking a lot before writing. He was known to have said, “I drink a bottle, and can write 100 poems.”

Ama no To “Heaven’s Door”
Tokubetsu Junmai
“Heaven’s Door” exudes faint aromas of raisins and earthiness. With a dry fruit essence in the recesses “Heaven’s Door” Saké is supplanted by nice rice-like tones and a gentle sweetness beneath. It’s brewed at Asamai Shuzo, and award winning artisan saké producer in the prestigious Akita Prefecture. Here, the water flows up from the springs and has been famous since the Edo era.

Mukune “Root of Innocence”
Junmai Ginjo
Yet another of Japan’s finest premium Sakés, “Root of Innocence” has a mellow and dry profile in which the flavor and the finish meld together, with plenty of the rice’s richness evident. Yasutaka Daimon is the sixth-generation director of the family brewery, Daimon Shuzo established in 1826. His kura (Sake brewery) is blessed with a natural spring providing water rich in minerals and pure enough to be used in the production of excellent Saké.

Tozai - Living Jewel
Junmai
The aromas of white grape, anise, and a hint of sweet rice are quite complex. These same flavors come rushing through the medium-bodied palate which has a slightly creamy texture followed by a hint of white pepper and fresh herbal notes. The long, clean finish makes this a great sipping sake as well as a companion to a wide range of foods, from fish and shellfish to pork and light meats.

Kurakagami
Daiginjo
Fresh, lacy notes of honeydew melon and peach skin (classic daiginjo fruitiness), wet stone and anise seed; silky, almost oily, textured, buoyantly balanced feel of tropical fruit, finishing with an emphatic dryness.
Kurakagami is exclusively brewed for the famous Japanese sake competition. This brilliant Daiginzyou (rice polished down to 38%) has been awarded prestigious gold prizes. Please enjoy the rich and well rounded flavours of this golden sake.

Tozai - Snow Maiden
Nigori
This is fairly thick and chewy nigori (cloudy sake), but it is still surprisingly dry. The aromas are bright and fresh and they show a lovely ricey and fruity combination. In the mouth, this sake has solid weight and gives the same flavors of fresh fruit and creamy fresh rice that your nose told you about. The finish has a pleasant astringency and is nicely mellow, beckoning you for another mouthful. You will rarely taste a classier nigori at this price, and this may be the ultimate food-friendly nigori.

Rihaku - Dreamy Clouds
Nigori
Rihaku is proud to boast the highest average rice milling rate of all Japanese breweries. This sake is a good example why—while it is already unusual to produce high-quality nigori at the Tokubetsu Junmai grade, Rihaku's goes one better by making a Dreamy Clouds that goes beyond the minimum, and could technically qualify as a Junmai Ginjo grade nigori. They also continue to use the same traditional methods to brew their sake as they did in the late 1800's. The only difference is now they employ the help of selective technology when, and only when, it's determined that the extra help would result in a better sake. For example, their koji-making machine allows tighter control of temperature and moisture during the koji-making process while metal “fingers” mix the koji every few hours, resulting in not only cleaner but also more uniform and consistent koji.
The nose is led by steamed rice, fresh red plums, and suggestions of roasted peanuts. Bright and lean in the mouth, unlike many Nigori, and the impact is chewy with sweet rice flavors intermingling with the nutty and slightly fruity characteristics of the sake.

Tozai - Voices in the Mist
Nigori
Tozai represents a unique collaboration between a sixth-generation Japanese sake brewery—Daimon Shuzo, a prominent Kyoto-based American artist—Daniel Kelly, and America's leading importer of chilled, premium, artisanal Japanese sake—Vine Connections. Tozai means “East-West” in Japanese and evokes the spirit of the alliance that created this special sake.
Citrus and banana aromas practically jump out of the glass reminiscent of a tropical paradise. On the palate, it has solid weight and flavors of banana, fresh white rice, a pastis-like licorice flavor, and a clean finish not often found in nigori sake. Makes you want to come back for another sip.

Hou Hou Shu
Sparkling Saké
Light and sweet, with notes of almonds and vanilla. Sparkling saké is softer and sweeter than Champagne, though not cloying, and clean overall. It is light and smooth, with a fine fizz that tickles, as you taste.

Zipang
Sparkling Saké
This is not your ordinary sake, in fact Zipang was probably made for those that don't like sake at all. Zipang is deliciously light, slightly sweet with a bit of fruity effervescence and more fun than eating blowfish liver. My local sushi restaurant serves Zipang chilled in a champagne flute. Perfect for spicy tuna rolls, salmon sashimi or just relaxing after a long day at the office.

Shochu is Japan 's other indigenous alcoholic beverage, but unlike sake, shochu is distilled. It is made from one of several raw materials (rice, barley, sweet potato to name a few) and each of these gives a very distinctive flavor and aroma profile to the shochu. These profiles run the gamut from smooth and light (rice) to nutty, earthy and lingering (barley). Indeed, the primary ingredient lends a unique flavor in much the same way that the peat and barley of each region in Scotland determine the character of the final scotch whiskey.

Okunomatsu 04:imo Soju
Made with Kogane-Sengan potatoes, this soju is the finest of all. A smooth, yet lively flavor, with a settled earthiness and gentle roasted nature overall. Enjoy with smoked salmon, tempura, and baked fish.

Alakey Soju
There is no harshness or roughness to this soju, as you may find in other distilled sprits. Enjoy its subtle fragrance and clean taste. This soju can be enjoyed in a variety of ways, such as warm, cold or on the rocks. It can also be enjoyed with a variety and combination of dishes, from light to rich foods.

Chiyonosono - 8,000 Generations Shochu
Crisp and clear rice notes—a sake lovers shochu! Hints of honeydew on a medium body finishing as clean and neat as it begins.