Sake isn't made from the same rice you'd find in a typical Japanese meal. Instead, it's crafted using special brewer's rice called sakamai. This rice is key to the rich umami flavour of sake. With larger grains and low levels of protein and fats, sakamai ensures a pure and refined taste, free from any off flavours. There are over a hundred varieties of this unique rice, with Yamada Nishiki and Gohyaku Mangoku being some of the most famous.

Japan's lush nature provides abundant springs of gentle and soft water—one of the secrets behind its exceptional Sake. Since Sake is 80% water, its quality is crucial from start to finish, from fermentation to adjusting alcohol content, and even in washing and soaking the raw ingredients. It's no wonder they say, “A place with fine water produces fine Sake.” This highlights just how essential pure, tasty water is in crafting top-quality Sake.

When you see numbers like 50% or 60% on a Sake label, they refer to the "polishing ratio," not the alcohol content. This ratio indicates how much of the rice grain is remaining after it has been polished before brewing. For example, a 60% ratio means 40% of the rice has been removed. Polishing removes the outer husk, reducing bitterness and allowing the bacteria to access the inner grain, releasing more umami and improving the koji (rice malt). A reduction of a mere 10% more than doubles the required polishing time, but more polishing means a lighter and cleaner favour.

Turning sugar into alcohol is straightforward when your ingredient - like grapes for wine - naturally contains sugars. But rice, the heart of sake, has no sugar, making its fermentation a unique challenge. Enter "multiple parallel fermentation," a method exclusive to sake brewing. First, yeast transforms rice starch into sugar in a process called "saccharification," producing koji (malt). Simultaneously, more yeast ferments this newly formed sugar into alcohol. This intricate dance results in sake's signature rich umami flavour.

Sake brewing kicks off in October, with Shinshu (or “new Sake”) starting to ship by late November. Since it's still young, Shinshu has an incredibly fresh taste that's perfect for the early winter chill.

There's no better way to warm up as winter settles in!

Umami is the key to sake's rich flavour. Unlike beer or wine, sake is packed with amino acids that create this umami taste. Interestingly, these acids aren't present in the rice itself but are developed during sake's unique fermentation process. The amount of amino acids directly affects the intensity of sake's flavour, which in turn enhances the taste of the food it's paired with, making meals even more enjoyable.

Sake can be categorized into four main types: Aromatic, Smooth & Refreshing, Rich, and Aged.

Don't forget the Sparkling sake, a refreshing carbonated option that's gaining popularity. This naturally sparkling sake, created through secondary fermentation in the bottle, allows you to experience its umami in a vibrant, effervescent way.

When sake is first brewed, it has an alcohol content of about 20%. However, water is then added to fine-tune the flavour, bringing the alcohol content down to around 15-16%. This is just slightly higher than wine, which typically has 12-14% alcohol. This moderate strength makes sake a versatile companion to a wide variety of dishes, from seafood and meats to cheeses.

Few alcoholic drinks can be enjoyed at such a wide range of temperatures as sake. Whether it's ice-cold, room temperature, warm, or even hot, sake offers a unique experience at each level.

In fact, just a single degree of difference can reveal a new flavour in the same sake.

Many sake varieties are best enjoyed chilled, as cooling enhances their umami, making them drier and more refreshing. In Japan, there are even special names for sake based on how chilled it is. At 5°C, the temperature of a refrigerator, it's called yuki-hie (“snow-chilled”). At 10°C, it's known as hana-hie (“cherry-blossom chilled”), and at 15°C, like a crisp spring morning, it's referred to as suzu-hie (“pleasantly chilled”).