Matchless & unparalleled, daiginjo is what sake dreams are made of. These high-end premium sakes are brewed with rice that's polished to 50% or less of its original size. It’s not just ordinary honjozo but honjozo blended with aged ginjo sake. As a result, the sake has a lot of depth and complexity in aroma and taste. Koshu is the term given to Japanese sake that's been aged for more than one year up to about 5 years. Koshu is stronger tasting, earthier, and more umami than other sake varieties. Not all sake is worthy of a special buy. Futsushu refers to run-of-the-mill sake, also known as table sake. It's not a variety you'll likely want to go out of your way to find or to try. Ozeki is one of the largest sake producers in Japan located in the famous Nada region, famous for its hard water resulting in robust and tasty sake. The company brews sake not only in Japan but also in the US. You have probably seen Ozeki Dry Junmai sake in some supermarkets and shops in the UK and the US.

Honjozo sakes have two characteristics: a rice polishing rate of 70%, and a tiny amount of alcohol added after fermentation. Polishing rate is how much rice and outer rice bran is polished away during the milling process. The higher the polishing rate, the more intense the rice flavours in the sake. The added alcohol highlights and lift other flavours and aromas in the sake. This makes a lighter and more fragrant - though not more alcoholic - drink, perfect for drinking throughout the meal. If you like a clean, dry palate akin to something like a crisp lager, then Ozeki “Karatamba” is likely right for you. Sitting at around 15% ABV, this bottle is about average for sake in terms of alcohol content. It’s also worth noting that while it’s a honjozo (sake with minimum 70% RPR), the rice is polished down to 60%, showcasing the light, dry and earthy side of Yamadanishiki rice at a wide range of temperatures. Welcome to the Sous Chef Japanese sake shop. Sake is a unique Japanese drink that's made from fermented rice. In the West we often refer to sake as rice wine. So is Ozeki One Cup good, given that’s futsushu? Yes, it is actually a very enjoyable sake for the price. You won’t find the elegance of ginjo aroma or complexity of junmai sake here. Ozeki One Cup is a simple and fresh sake with a very mild aroma, where you might notice some ricey and earthy notes with a tiny wee of fruitiness. It’s slightly sweet with a bit of acidity and marmelady undertones, a bit of plum and umami. With all that in mind, you choose your tasty bento and head to a vending machine or a stand selling small sealed sake cups (kappu), usually 180ml but sometimes as big as 200ml. A fair share of them tend to be futsushu but you can find anything from junmai and honjozo to junmai daiginjo and from nigori to genshu nama if you look hard enough. And your lunch is sorted! A small cups invasion

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Like honjozo, ginjo is easy-to-drink and light-bodied. It tends to be more complex and more aromatic. Ginjo-shu features fruitier, sweet taste and more floral flavors and aromas. Another cool thing about Ozeki One Cup is that its design was developed by two university professors this label is still used today.

The best way to serve sake is from traditional Japanese sake jugs and sake cups. Browse our range of complete sake sets, or mix and match individual sake bottles and cups. If you get a traditional square cypress wood cup for your sake, drink from one corner to make sure you don't spill any! What does Sake taste like? To be considered a junmai ginjo, the master sake brewer ( toji) must not add any extra alcohol to the brew. The result is often a more fragrant premium sake. Daiginjo & Junmai Daiginjo Ozeki draws Miyamizu water from their own well to make their sake. Miyamizu is a prized water for sake making because of its rich mineral content, particularly phosphorus and potassium. | Courtesy of Ozeki.Like junmai, honjozo sake uses rice that's polished to at least 70%. Unlike junmai, however, honjozo adds a small amount of brewer's alcohol to the brew. Much like regular junmai style sake, honjozo is richer and more tolerant to warming. It's a good candidate to serve as hot sake. Ginjo & Junmai Ginjo The idea of this type of sake is that you don’t need anything extra to enjoy the drink. They are usually bottled in 180ml jars which look like cups. You open the lid and use it as a glass. Like some small wine cups sold in supermarkets. With a fridge at most Japanese homes at that time, the heat was not a big problem. The brewery also used undiluted sake with ABV of 19%, which made it even more stable. Kikusui launched Funaguchi Nama in 1972 and it became an instant hit. It also started a nama sake boom, which is still going on.

As a general guide, Futsushu & Honjozo grades should be gently warmed to 50°C, Junmai served at room temperature or gently warmed to between 30 and 40 degrees, and Ginjo, Daiginjo, Junmai Ginjo & Junami Daiginjo are best served chilled between 0 and 5°. In 1964, coinciding with the Tokyo Olympics, Ozeki released the iconic One Cup Ozeki. The sleek glass jar that acted as cup and container in an easy to drink 180-milliliter size, with a vibrantly blue and white label, was a smashing success among consumers. Throughout the years, Ozeki has tweaked and improved the quality of the glass, the lid and the materials used, but the sake inside and the shape have remained as steadfast and high quality as they were in the early days.In general, however, junmai offers a full-body smoothness with savory rice-infused flavors and minor acidity. Honjozo The lower-end of the premium market is covered by the ginjo classification. To qualify as a ginjo, a sake must be brewed with rice polished to 60% of its original size. It also uses a special yeast and fermentation process. Another great thing about Funaguchi Nama is that it ages pretty well. Leave it in a fridge for a year and its profile will change. The colour will change to amber and the taste will become more mellow and deeper with a nice velvety texture.

What makes Shirayuki Akafuji Red Fuji quite unique is that it is a junmai ginjo sake. Making single-serving super-premium sake is less common. Most “one cups” are either futsushu or junmai or honjozo. But here you’ve got an opportunity to try junmai ginjo without buying a whole bottle. It’s especially cool if you are still getting into sake. Red Fuji is so tasty with a burger Mount Fuji is the symbol of Konishi Brewing Company, which started making sake in 1550, more than 470 years ago. The brewery is famous for its Shirayuki brand, which means Snow White referring to the snow-capped Mount Fuji. With the large variety of sakes that fit under the junmai label, it's impossible to put your finger on its flavor profile or versatility completely.Rather unusually for alcoholic drinks, Japanese sake comes with a shelf life. However, this does not mean that Japanese sake goes bad. It simply means that after this date, the flavour will not be as pronounced or as complex as when the sake was fresh. The flavour and aroma compounds in sake are very delicate, so enjoy your Japanese sake as soon as possible for the best experience.