Type
Chikumanishiki Shuzo · Nagano
Chikuma Nishiki Junmai Ginjo "Kizan Sanban"
$34.00
No sales tax — Oregon
Rice
Miyama Nishiki (Nagano)
Prefecture
Nagano
Flavor profileEach scale is our tasting-room read on where this bottle sits between two extremes — dry to sweet, light to full-bodied, soft to acidic, and subtle to aromatic. These are subjective, however, and will shift with food, serveware & temp.
DrySweetBalanced: a bit of fleshy sweetness. Fruit notes taste more round and juicy, chocolate notes have more heft. Typical sweetness for modern styles. Some people will read "3" as dry.
LightFullFull: rich and mouth-coating, lots of presence and intensity, usually higher in sweetness, alcohol, age, and/or umami. A powerful sake you can't help but notice.
SoftAcidicAbove-average acidity, an important part of this sake's character, but nowhere near sour/tart. Lift, refreshing. When paired with higher sweetness, it creates a juicy, ripe impression.
SubtleAromaticModerate aroma: noticeable from the glass. Most often, moderate intensity aromas are either ginjo-ka (fruit, florals) or koshu-ka (nuts, mushroom, brown sugar).
Pairs with
(From our Summer 2024 seasonal club write-up)
The round sweetness of Kizan contrasted with the high acidity makes it an excellent foil for sweet seafood: it brought a fresh crab, watercress, and kumquat salad to life, and sang alongside scallop crudo with yuzu kosho, apple, and fennel. Aussie somm Jane Lopes mixes it with dry riesling for an abalone-seaweed course pairing. Honey drizzled cheese, creamy coconut based curries, and olive oil cake round things out!
Each brewing season Chikuma Nishiki make two tanks of ‘Kizan’. One tank becomes a pasteurised version (known as Hiire) and the other is unpasteurised or Nama. This is the Nama version and is called ‘Kizan Sanban’. This is also Genshu (undiluted) and normally a Genshu Sake would have an alcohol level of 17-20%, but the Kizan Sanban is only 15%. This is achieved by stopping the fermentation a few days before it would normally finish to naturally retain a slightly higher sugar content, which therefore also reduces the alcohol.
The water in Nagano is well known for its purity and Sake produced in the region tend to be higher in acidity. The residual sugar in the Kizan Sanban combined with this refreshing acidity creates a smooth rounded palate with flavors of pear, apple and fennel. Many Ginjo Sake in the market tend to offer predominately aroma with very little flavour profile, however Kizan Sanban is virtually the opposite of this with its rich, round palate and balanced acidity, yet with a very ‘Ginjo’ aromatic intensity. Super delicious!!
Ground shipping is $25 to $40, free at 12 bottles.
Free pickup at our Portland shop. An adult (21+) with photo ID must be present for delivery.
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Specifications
Shipping
Ships to most states, not Alaska, Hawaii or Utah. No sales tax (Oregon). Free Ground shipping at 12 bottles. Pickup at our Portland shop is free.
Pick up in person
Shop open Tu–Sun. Order online and pick up at the shop — 107 SE Washington St. #121, Portland, Oregon.
