Rice, Water, Earth: Notes on Sake is on hiatus for the next month.
All in Rice
Sawada Brewery: Weaving Rope Baskets, Sticking to Tradition
Although today you can find a small but growing number of breweries that are going back to traditional Edo or even pre-Edo period sake-making styles (Aramasa Brewery in Akita and Senkin Brewery in Tochigi are two), Sawada Brewery is rare in that it never really gave up these traditions.
Seven Ways to Smell the Roses: Exploring the World of Sake Flower Yeasts
The Tokyo University of Agriculture has historically had close ties with Japan’s Imperial family. In part this was because as quasi-gods, a large part of the family’s mandate was to protect the livelihood of the nation’s farmers.
The Secret Language of Sake Labels: Zaku “Ho no Tomo”
“It’s my wish that you make this sake as if it were your own child.”
How to Become a Master Sake Brewer, Part II
“We don’t tailor our schedule to human needs, but prioritize the microorganisms that work twenty-four-seven. We’re making traditional sake here, so we want to preserve the good parts of the traditional work of Fukumitsuya, while also accommodating modern work life.”
In Search of the Hangover-less Drinking Session
“The first thing we noticed on the table was a handsome gourd-shaped ironware dish, filled with five triangular pills, exactly the number of people in our party. They looked like some sort of medicine, or maybe an herbal supplement.”
How to Become a Master Sake Brewer: Toji Education Evolves, Along with the Times
“It’s true that the old ‘watch and learn’ style that used to be the norm has changed. A ‘tell and teach’ style has evolved. You can’t really say that one is better than the other. It’s not so much how you learn as what you learn. The important thing is to take ownership of the process.”
The International Legacy of Sake Missionary Yasutaka Daimon
“Daimon-san always goes around to every single student, sits seiza in front of them, pours his sake for them and listens - truly listens - to who they are and to their story.”
Noujou: Akita Prefecture's Farmer-Led Sake Project
What could be better than a pairing in which both the sake rice and the starring vegetable were cultivated on the same land, by the same farmer?
When Did Sake Imports Arrive in America?
As thrifty Issei (first-generation Japanese immigrants) always did, one of them repurposed this crate—which was shipped from Japan filled with a dozen 1.8 liter bottles of sake, and shipped it to family back home in Okayama.
So, How Did You Get Into Sake? Exploring Sake Brewery Origins
While you might think that since sake, miso and soy sauce are all fermented products they require similar know how, they are actually fairly different.
The Quirkiest Brewery in Japan?
The main draw of the Dorome Festival, besides gorging on goby, is a drinking contest in which men and women compete to see who can drink the most Takagi sake in the shortest amount of time.
Sake Rice: Can You Really Eat It?
In general, people don’t eat sake sakamai (酒米), or sake rice….Since it’s both less appealing to Japanese palates and more expensive, you typically don’t see restaurants or home cooks serving dishes that feature sake rice. At least not until recently.
In Confinement, We Can Still Drink Sake
Since Covid-19 sheltering-in-place began in cities around the globe, I’ve been worried about so many things: the number of elderly who are being snatched from us by the virus; the brave front-line workers who are risking their own lives to save as many others as possible, and those in the hospitality industry who are mostly out of jobs now. In Japan, I am especially worried about the sake industry, which has been hit hard by the crisis.