Chomonkyo Natsujun – Tasting

I picked this special summer junmai from Chomonkyo brewers Okazaki Shuzojo at a roadside plaza in Nagato, not far from the Hagi brewery itself.

Usually when I think of summer drinks, I think of light, refreshing things like lemonade or barley tea. So my assumption was that this would be a light, fruity sake as well.

Wrong!

This was a junmai among junmais, rich and almost meaty with very little sweetness or sourness. It had a mellow melony aroma, but on the palate it was all rice and umami.

It was a somewhat heavy drink, as well, not necessarily in that it coated the tongue so much as filled the mouth. It drank bigger than it looked, so to speak.

It left a mild bitterness on the tongue, but no other aftertaste to speak of.

This is definitely the kind of sake that I would recommend for someone wanting a meal drink, to go with meat or savory dishes. I’m not sure how it would deal with heavily spiced or really heavy oils, but I think it would be worth trying.