Wine tasting: Saké

Thanks to Todd for the inspiration to try saké, as well as his help in curating and providing excellent Japanese snacks (spicy dried squid, excellent!). And thanks to Najiya Market, Molly Stone's Tower Market (great booze dept, provided nearly all the nigori saké), and True Saké ("America's First Saké store" in Hayes Valley) for providing the saké.

This was fun, and a nice introduction at many styles and price points. I discovered that $40 buys you a whole different saké experience (similar price point in wine, I might add), and that I still like those cloudy nigoris the best (yes, that makes me a rank saké amateur).

Unlike previous occasions, I've provided photos of everything we drank, in numerical order (#1-6 in top photo, #7-12 in bottom photo, left to right).

1. Black carton (~$12 for 2 liters): basic quality saké, clean, simple, quaffable, a bargain


2. Masumi Okuden Kantsukuri "Mirror of Truth" ($48 for 1.8 liters): illustrates what more money buys you in a basic, junmai honjozo saké; more body, more interesting flavors, very nice cold and room temp


3. Sho Chiku Bai in the wicker ball ($?): a reminder of what the bad saké of our youth actually tasted like, the stuff you heat to make it more palatable. Much rougher, "fire water" in the words of one. I needed to rinse my glass.


4. Green carton (~$12 for 1.8 liters): another solid, inexpensive choice, a bit more floral than #1, clean, simple


5. Wakatake Onigoroshi "Demon Slayer" ($40 for 720ml): my favorite of the evening, complex, balanced, with a clean, smooth finish, awesome.


6. Kamoshibito Kuheiji Black Brewer's Mark ($38 for 720ml): also really good, had a hint of spritz and spice on the finish, a bit more body and complexity than the Wakatake, more "interesting," but without the perfect balance.


7. Narutotai Nama Genshu Beau-shu ($28 for 720ml): in the "oil can," the only "nama" (unpasteurized, undiluted) saké of the night, and showed the vibrancy that namas are known for, a bit rough on the finish, but lots of spirit! 18% alcohol.


8. Rihaku "Dreamy Clouds" Nigori ($32 for 720ml): the first of the nigoris, least cloudy, and my second favorite, nothing like the sweet nigori you expect, dry, surprisingly complex, showing many layers and a clean finish. Excellent!


9. Momokawa "Pearl" Junmai Ginjo Nigori ($15 for 720ml): very nice, sweet without being unbalance, with dominant note of cantaloupe, 18.5% alcohol


10. Tozai "Snow Maiden" Tokubetso Junmai Nigori ($16 for 720ml): pink bottle! The "chunkiest" nigori, leaving plenty of rice film in your glass, a sweeter style, but with enough alcohol to be something other than simply dessert, a nice after dinner treat.


11. Kamotsuru Junmai Ginjo Nigori ($27 for 720ml): quite sweet, thick on the tongue, definitely dessert


12. Sho Chiku Bai Nigori ($12 for 1.5 liters): brewed in Berkeley, a cheap favorite of mine, dominant note of cantaloupe, very sweet, but lovely silky texture, has nothing to apologize for, still my favorite thing to drink while listening to jazz at Yoshis

Plus one that snuck in without a number: Hakkaisan Tokbetsu Junmai "Eight Peaks". My palate was already on to sweet nigori by the time this arrived, so I'm afraid I have no useful thoughts to contribute. But thanks to the fine soul who brought it!