Online Sake Tasting by Sake Lovers
Online sake tasting and Sake Brewery tour
An online sake tasting is a virtual experience in which a group of people gets together online to discuss, savor and learn a particular sake.
Sake Lovers, founded by sommeliers Yuki Imanishi and Kyoko Nagano, is an exporter whose mission is to spread their love of Sake with the world and support small craft breweries.
Besides exporting Sake, Sake Lovers regularly runs Sake Brewery Tours in Japan; since the pandemic started, they have been hosting Online Sake Tastings. These tastings accomplish two of the main goals of Sake Lovers, spread their love for Sake around the world and support small craft breweries. Virtual tastings also promote tourism to the Sake destinations. Sake Lovers have been working together with the local tourism board to revitalize the sake tourism industry once the pandemic is over.
Last Sunday, Sake Lovers and Namazake Paul from Portland, Oregon, hosted an online sake tasting and online brewery tour of the Kamikokoro Sake Brewery, located in the Okayama prefecture in Japan.
After the virtual tasting, participants joined breakout rooms to discuss and savor the same sakes with their friends and family.
The virtual tasting included the following Sakes.
Kamikokoro Shuwa Shuwa sparkling sake
- Sake Alcohol Content: 5.5% SMV-50 Acid:3.6
- Rice: Akebono, polished to 70%
- Yeast: Okayama white peach yeast
- This sparkling sake is made the same way Champagne is.
- Secondary fermentation inside the bottle using white peach yeast, so it is natural gas!
This sparkling sake received a Gold award in 2019 (wine glass/sparkling sake category). It can be served as an aperitif, and it pairs well with pizza & cheese.
Kamikokoro Toukagen Tokubetsu Junmai Genshu Shiboritate Nama
- Sake Alcohol Content: 16.5% SMV: -8 Acidity: 1.5 Amino
- Rice: Akihikari (Okayama), polished to 58%
- Yeast: Okayama White Peach yeast.
Mr. Nobuhiko Fujii, the President of Kamikokoro Shuzo, recommends a sake pairing with Prosciutto ham potato salad. Prosciutto ham’s saltiness will be the accent and Oil sardine with lemon and black pepper or cheese (Mozzarella / Blue cheese / Comte).
For Japanese dishes, dashimaki tamago (rolled egg with dashi soup), Fried octopus (calamari), mackerel sashimi will pair well. For western cuisine, rolled cabbage, potato salad. For Chinese cuisine, shrimp dumpling, crab and eggs, pork and leek, Chinese style.
Kamikokoro Momo White Peach Infused
- 500ml Bottle
- Sake Alcohol Content: 8%
- 25% White Peach juice
- This sake is excellent for desserts. It can also be served as a dessert sake.
Kamikokoro Sake Brewery
Kamikokoro Sake Brewery, one of the small centennial companies in Japan, was established in 1913 in Yorishima Cho, Okayama Prefecture by Chojuro Fujii. Fifth-generation brewmaster Nobuhiko Fujii currently manages the brewery.
These and many more Sake Bottles can be purchased from Sake Lovers and in the US from Namazake Paul