Akashi Tai Tokubetsu Honjozo Sake, 72 cl

Product Information

Akashi aren’t traditional or artisan for its own sake, - as in sake, not sake - oh for goodness sake! I mean - never mind... Akashi-Tai Tokubestu Junmai is quite pleasant chilled. It has an elegant but subtle aroma with notes of apple, elderflower and rice. The sake is quite acidic and dry with a simple taste, creamy texture and short but pleasant finish. You can drink Tedorigawa Yamahai Junmai chilled but it doesn’t give it justice. Made by using a yamahai method, the sake acidity at 1.6 and SMV +2.0. It’s not that aromatic which is normal for junmai sake with gentle green tomatoes, rice, lemon and timber notes.

So, let's settle an age-old debate – should you drink sake warm or chilled? Well, it depends. "All sake used to be consumed warm or at room temperature," says Sebastian Lemoine, a Tokyo-based sake expert and teacher at Le Cordon Bleu culinary school. "However, in the post-war period, consumers started to associate warm sake with the drinking experience of cheap, soon industrial, sake, which was required to feed a booming market." As relevant now as it was then, Akashi-tai continues to be a market-leader and relentless tailblazer of authentic, Japanese sake. If you fancy a taste of something new, or enjoy the odd sake and want a prime example, you’re in the right place. Kanpai! The drinking of warm sake spread from the aristocracy to the common people during the middle part of the Tokugawa Period (1600-1867), when the drinking of sake itself became popular with the masses. The balance of refined elegance and complexity found in Akashi-Tai range of sakes make them great for drinking on their own, but they also work beautifully when paired with all types of food. As well as being the heartland of sake, Hyogo is also known throughout Japan and beyond for its food culture, making it a global hotspot for gastronomy. This epicurean trait has of course had an influence on the sake the region is known for, and Akashi-Tai is a prime example, having grown up alongside the vivid flavours of one of the world’s most evolved cuisines. Mr Yonezawa says that he is driven by “that moment when food and sake become one, and both are amplified, when the food reveals hidden depths in the sake, and the sake lingers and prolongs the pleasure of the meal”. As a rule, the more polished the rice, the more delicate the sake, with floral and fruit notes dominating. This tends to be the more refined, high-end stuff, whereas less polishing results in a deeper – some say rougher – style of sake, with bold umami flavours and a certain oiliness on the palette.The Tedorigawa brewery makes a wide range of excellent sake from classy Ika na Onna to sweet and clean Kinka and mellow Yamahai Junmai Daiginjo. You can enjoy all of them at various temperatures. But Tedorigawa Yamahai Junmai was probably specifically made to drink warm. Even the hushed sounds of natural fermentation at work can be heard in the cool, quiet rooms of our brewery." Records the default button state of the corresponding category & the status of CCPA. It works only in coordination with the primary cookie.

Each was blind tasted neat to avoid brand bias, then diluted with water to mellow the alcohol and appreciate the more nuanced aromatics at play.The real pleasure of drinking warm sake is in savouring the complexity of the rice-derived flavour brought out by the heating.