Daisekkei Tokubetsu Junmai Nama

Fizzy at first (open carefully, well chilled!) this usunigori-- a light nigori, in this case, just a bare haze-- from Daisekkei undergoes a really fun curve over the course of a week. As I've grown to expect from Daisekkei, notes of soft vanilla frosting, lemon meringue, sweet Summer corn pudding and Mexican wedding cookies round out a soft yet flavorsome profile. The palate begins on day one with lots of CO2 trapped in the bottle, giving it a zingy lemony edge and sharp mineral brightness, with deep bass notes of vanilla and meringue. After a few days, once the CO2 has fizzled out, you land on a profile with considerable richness and a longer than average finish, just a tiny bit of powdery texture from the rice particulate. A fine finish to our 2024 Natsuzake crew, bringing up the rear with a nostalgic profile that will ease gently into Fall.

As Daisekkei usunigori made its shop debut, several guests agreed with the Duncan Hines Vanilla Frosting in-the-tub note, but the "official" import notes describe banana, muscat, lychee and lime. Perhaps when it was originally bottled in late May, it had this profile? But landing in Portland late August, we're getting something entirely different... and really lovely! If you ask me, it's showing my guilty pleasure, Miyamanishiki rice, through and through.

“I devote my life to making sake and always think about sake first. I personally control every aspect of the brewing to ensure the whole process runs happily.  Our brewing policy is to do nothing special, but be honest and sincere.”
-Toji Mamoru Nagase