More and more people have been asking us about dry or “karakuchi” sake for purchase. While there is absolutely nothing wrong with a nice big fruity daiginjo, there is also something to be said about sipping on a glass of clean, crisp, dry sake as well.
So after our successful Namazake tasting last month which featured a line up of “sweet” sake, we thought this month would be the perfect time to hold a “dry” sake tasting to give you a chance to sample the other end of the spectrum.
“Karakuchi” refers to dry sake in Japanese. On the other end of the scale is “Amakuchi” which refers to sweet sake. Most sake actually lie somewhere in between these two extremes.
One indicator of a sake’s dryness or sweetness is the SMV or Sake Meter Value. Many sake will have this number indicated on it’s label. This number usually falls somewhere between -10 to +10 with 0 being neutral.
It is interesting to note that as people’s tastes have changed over the years, “neutral” is now considered to be closer to +2 or +3. As a general rule “Higher is Drier”, which means the higher the SMV the drier the sake.
That being said, DO NOT rely solely on the SMV to determine whether a sake is dry or sweet as there are many other factors that also have great influence on whether a sake is dry or sweet.
So if you’re a “karakuchi” sake drinker, or if you’ve always wanted to taste and learn about dry sake, join us at the shop this Saturday as we sample some medium dry to extra dry sake.
Here’s what we will be tasting this Saturday.
~ Dewazakura Izumi Judan Ginjo
~ Kubota Senju Honjozo
~ Masumi Karakuchi Ki-Ippon Junmai Ginjo
~ Sawanoi Junmai Ginjo
~ Wakaebisu “Ninja” Tokubetsu Junmai
Kanpai,
Nadine and Malcolm
COMPLIMENTARY KARAKUCHI SAKE TASTING
Saturday, July 17, 2010
10:00 am to 7:30 pm
