An unofficial guide to Yamaguchi Prefecture and its nihonshu
I typically review books elsewhere, but lately I've been reading lots of books about my favorite drink and I thought perhaps others would be interested in hearing about them. Thus, from now on I will be posting my thoughts on the various sake books I read. Sake: The Essence of 2000 Years of Japanese Wisdom... Continue Reading →
Funagumi Junmai Hito-natsu Jukusei, Mori no Kura, Seimaibuai 65% (matured) Funagumi Junmai Satoshi, Mori no Kura, Seimaibuai 65% (fresh) This is a very interesting chance! Fukuoka's Mori no Kura offers a Funagumi junmai, which means that it's pressed in a traditional top-pressure tank, called a "fune" (boat) and bottled by hand directly from the press.... Continue Reading →
The first Monday of 2020 has already passed me by, but I thought I'd make this first post of the year something more meta than another tasting. Because this year promises to be something different from last in many ways, including this sake habit of mine. Good Old Shintani Shuzo To begin with, I'm reaching... Continue Reading →
Rather than do a regular old tasting note, review, or event update, I thought I'd take a look back at what this year was like for me in my sake journey. 2019 was a fairly big sake year for me. I led my first tasting class back in January, and did my first work translating... Continue Reading →
One interesting thing I'm noticing lately about the general Yamaguchi sake boom (this is the only prefecture in Japan where sake sales have gone up every year for the last 11 years) is that local people are taking more notice of these great Yamaguchi brews, too. It's not just Dassai, either. I'm seeing shops advertising... Continue Reading →
I have been at this little project of mine for ages, it feels like. I have been hunting Yamaguchi sakes near and far since spring of last year, but I only started my concerted effort in July. So... about a year? And how far have I come? well, let's see. The undrunk Yamaguchi sake list,... Continue Reading →
This isn't a huge update, of course, but here it is: as of October 18, 2018 I have drunk sake from 22 of the 43 current Yamaguchi sake kura. That still leaves a significant number of kura I have yet to visit, but I'm at least over half! Yay! Here's the remaining list, for what... Continue Reading →
As you might have heard, recent flooding in western Japan has left thousands of people in emergency shelters, killed more than 200, and caused unimaginable damage across several prefectures. Yamaguchi is in the area of flooding, but luckily was much less harder hit than Hiroshima or Okayama. However, one exception is the Asahi Shuzo brewery,... Continue Reading →
Before I begin, I'd like to mention the recent flooding disaster in Western Japan. I live in the midst of one of the worst floods to hit Japan in decades. My family and I are safe and, mostly, unaffected, but the communities around us have been devastated. Dozens of lives have been lost, thousands of... Continue Reading →
One of the tricky things about taking all these classes and doing all this "official" sake study is that people expect me to know how to recommend and pair sake to food. That's kind of hard at this point, mainly because I have no idea what works without trying it. There are certain points on... Continue Reading →
Yamaguchi Sake 