Tag: sake

Posted on

Review – Sawtelle Sake

I have wanted to dip my toes into Sake for a while now but I wanted to have a medium grasp of gin and bourbon first.

I found a Los Angeles brand, Sawtelle Sake – Clear Skies which “is a Nama (unpasteurized) Junmai (pure/no-additive) Ginjo style of sake with a 60% polish ratio made from rice sourced locally in California. Clear Skies is deeply aromatic with notes of citrus and melon.”

I decided to try both chilled and warmed to see what, if any difference it would make and, it did.

Chilled, there was a subtle floral aroma with a little alcohol burn at the end.  Viscous at first but dry overall.  A bit of tea tannin with citrus and honey.

Warmed, the alcohol was more pronounced and it was sweeter but pleasantly it had a distinct, wonderful pear flavor.

Posted on

1st Visit – Nova Brewing

A taster tray is 6 strong here. I got all 4 of the Ginjo 7 beers made with Sake yeast plus a smoke beer and an IPA.  Thankfully the gate was open, so I didn’t have to call with password to get into the semi-industrial area.  Inside it is a spare, multipurpose taproom.  Seating truncated by empty kegs and boxes on one side plus a cooler and small microwave in between sparse shelving units. It was a bit warm inside.  I got tagged by a mosquito while drinking so session moved faster than I might normally do because two large itchy bites is my limit. 

Starting with the sake yeast beers which is quite strong in the White, masked a little more in the Red. But the Blue had a nice double hit of saison and sake mixed. The Black has a bit of wine barrel to it tending towards sour. Red and Blue clearly were better to me because the balance was better because damn that Sake yeast is strong.

The Horizon IPA was different but good, maybe the different made it stand out.  The smoke beer was my favorite, it had really nice wood note that you lose sometimes in smoked ales.  This was softer than a traditional rauchbier. No smoke in your eyes at a campfire and more BBQ.

Overall, not my favorite beers, maybe the Sake is stronger but I will leave that to Sake Search Party for that review.

Posted on

Kampai!

At first this documentary, this was slow without much Sake information.  But then the journeys of the protagonists was revealed and it was really affected me. The writer from Cleveland is my analog, but the UK brewer has nuggets of wisdom, as did the family Sake House with the upstart son and the Fukushima tragedy really struck me. There was one section in Cornwall, where Parker was talking about each year being new that actually rang far more true than any New Years Resolution. And it was really fun to see a North Carolina sake brewery putting their own spin on the beverage.

There is some “how-to brew” segments but that is not the thrust of this movie so you will probably need to augment with some outside reading to catch a fuller idea of what is being done. That is what I am going to do after seeing this.

Posted on

Book Day – Sake-pedia


Considering that there have been slight incursions into mixing Sake and craft beer, it is probably high time to learn more about the Japanese spirit, and Sake-Pedia from Jeff Cioletti looks to be a good place to start.

Cioletti is an International Kikisake-shi, think Cicerone or Sommelier but for Sake, and his goal with the book is to take Sake from misunderstood to enjoyed.

Posted on

Sake-nitas

img_7921
Looks like the quart size (32oz) bottles that Lagunitas usually reserves for Sucks is being called into action for this new Sake and Rice inspired beer.

I think the weird little punchy kid should be absent from the next label though.

Posted on

Sake the Beer

Considering the location of Angel City Brewing, it is apropos that they would come out with a sake inspired ale.  With Little Toyko literally across Alameda Street from them.

They are using the “traditional sake-style rice and koji fermentation” to meld together with the hops and malts from the beer side of the ledger. This will be an intersting experiment and maybe something to add to the cellar since it is a healthy 9.2% ABV.

Plus, if you are free tomorrow night you can “celebrate the tapping of the first keg, beer enthusiasts thirsting to try the creation will be able to sip the beer in a uniquely inspiring and apropos location – the Japanese-American Cultural & Community Center. On November 20, Angel City will be serving samples of For the Sake of Ale alongside viewings of Arts District artist, JW Pippen’s Jugatsuzakura. His piece is a riveting new samurai-themed sculpture using oak barrel staves from Angel City brewing barrels. This sculpture ties together Pippen’s continued interest in Japanese culture and love of the Los Angeles Arts District. During the event sushi and mochi will also be served. There are three tasting sessions throughout the evening – 6:00pm, 7:00pm and 8:00pm.”

You need to purchase a ticket for this, so find the information on how to do so HERE.Screen Shot 2014-11-14 at 10.47.24 AM

Posted on

Bruery (Faster, Bigger) + Dogfish (Better, Bolder)

Today, I will feature two posts on beers that may very well be excellent but, to me, make me long for a simple pale ale.

“Faster, Bigger, Better, Bolder (Gradually, Quietly, Steadily) is an homage to the contrasting lifestyle views of American excess set against the more humble and traditional ways of Japan. Brewed with kumquats and our own seven spice schichimi togarashi blend along with sake yeast, this is an excessive beer brewed with tradition in mind. $1 from each bottle sale will go towards rebuilding Japanese breweries and households that were destroyed during the recent earthquake.”

I can live with kumquats. Spice is fine. I love sage in beer so it is no problem. But then combine with sake yeast. That is where I start to wonder.

Posted on

Two beers cooling in my fridge

I went to a new wine and beer store today and found (2) beers that I have never seen before and piqued my beer interest. One is a Belgian called Sloeber. I have never heard of the brewery or their beer so this is uncharted territory. Second is another offering from Hitachino in Japan. XH matured in sake casks. Should be interesting.

sloeber-flesxh-bottle