Wednesday Lessons #19: Namazake (2)

WEDNESDAY LESSONS #19: NAMAZAKE (2)

9/13/23

SAKE 1 & 2

FUKUCHO "Moon on the Water" Hi-ire (720ml): $35 ($40) Nama (720ml): $42 ($47) Hiroshima, Japan Yamadanishiki, Hattannishiki (local) Polishing: 55% Yeast: #1801 ABV: 15%, Soft water

Located in Akitsu, the historic home of ginjo brewing, Fukucho is a small (3-4 person team) operation known for its innovation and internationally recognized owner-toji, Miho Imada. specifically: resurrecting an heirloom rice for its flagship sake, experimenting with different polishing methods, using white koji, and developing the "hybrid kimoto" method.

SAKE 1 [?: SAKE 3]

OZE NO YUKIDOKE Namazume Natsu Bottle (720ml): $31 ($36) Gunma, Japan Yamadanishiki Polishing: 50% Yeast: #1001 ABV 15%, Soft water

Located in a river town in the foothills of the Japan Alps, Ryujin Shuzo is famous for being a junmai-daiginjo focused sake producer. Their water is exceptionally soft: the brand, Oze no Yukidoke, translates to snowmelt of Oze. The brewery staff are also very experienced, having two toji for a small team.

This Summer natsuzake is namazume: pasteurized once, to retain some freshness but also ensure stability and soft texture.

SAKE 4

AZUMA NO FUMOTO Shiboritate Arabashiri Bottle (720ml): $32 ($37) Yamagata, Japan Miyamanishiki (local) Polishing: 60% Yeast: proprietary ABV 18%, Soft water, MNG Azuma no Fumoto is located in the Eastern foothills of the Azuma mountain range, hence the brand, which translates Eastern foothills of Azuma. While this sake is now 10 months from bottling, it still retains a sharpness and intensity that is characteristic of arabashiri. It is also made to the standard of GI Yamagata, with only local Miyamanishiki rice and Yamagata yeast.

SAKE 5

KAZE NO MORI Black "Tsuyuhakaze 807" Bottle (720ml): $31 ($36) Nara, Japan Tsuyuhakaze (local) Polishing: 70% Yeast: #701 Hard water, 16%, MNG

Kaze no Mori is focused on namazake specifically, and includes over 13 different bottlings/releases, most of which never come to the US. Tsuyuhakaze 807 corresponds to Tsuyuhakaze rice, 80% polish, #701 yeast. It is brewed at very cold temperatures to emphasize aromatic profile and moderate palate intensity. It is also bottled carefully to retain CO2. Chobei-san says it has toromii: richness, length, but not weight.

SAKE 6

KIDOIZUMI Yamadanishiki "Gold Label" (720ml): $45 ($50) Chiba, Japan Org. Yamadanishiki (Saitama) Polishing: 60% Yeast: ambient ABV: 18%, Hard water, aged, MNG

Kidoizumi's tart, concentrated style is typical of all their sake, but each bottling varies according to type of rice and length of maturation. This unpasteurized sake was aged for-1 year prior to bottling, and has been continuing to mature since then. Examples of aged Kidoizumi from as far back as the 1970s can be tasted at the brewery. It is an example of a nama that improves with age.

生 生: nama 生酒: namazake 荒走り: arabashiri 搾り立て / しぼりたて: shiboritate

Sunflower Sake 101 & 201 A full-day introductory course for enthusiasts & professionals JAKE [?: SAKE] Norske sake SAKE SAKE SCHOLAR Upcoming dates: Saturday, Sept 23 Monday, Sept 25 Learn how to taste & pair sake, how to order for the occasion & evaluate quality, how to differentiate styles, and make sense of labels. Ingredients, regionality, history & service round out this biannual course. Last cohort until Spring 2024

NAMA TERMINOLOGY SHIBORITATE: first, fresh press of the season ARABASHIRI: Rough run. first fraction of the pressing NAMA, NAMA-NAMA: no pasteurization, totally raw NAMA-CHOZO: once pasteurized after storage AKIAGARI / HIYAOROSHI: Fall-release namachozo NAMA-ZUME: once pasteurized before storage HI-IRE: pasteurization BIN HI-IRE: gentle bottle pasteurization HI-OCHI KIN: lactic acid bacteria NAMA-HINE: out of condition namazake NAMA-HINE-KA: the particular odors of nama-hine GENSHU: undiluted BY: brewing year, 7/1 to 6/31. Currently in BY 5 (also imperial year). MUROKA: not charcoal fined MNG/3U: Muroka nama genshu SHINSHU: New sake MUKU NO SAKE: Optimal condition, Spring-release nama SHIZUKU; FUKURO-TSURI, FUKURO-SHIBORI: drip filtration

SUNFLOWER SARE [?: SAKE] 107 SE Washington St. #121, Portland, OR 97214 web: www.sunflowersake.com IG: @sunflowersake email: nina@sunflowersake.com

Sunflower Sake is a retail shop, tasting room, and educational center in Portland, Oregon, focusing on craft sake from around the world. Sunflower ships year-round and offers affordable, biweekly Wednesday sake classes. Thank you so much for joining us tonight!

Printed on the sheet as #19; sequenced here by date.