Country: | Japan |
Region: | Yamagata |
Winery: | Dewazakura Brewing Company |
Grape Type: | Miyamanishiki (kojimai) (Sake) |
Vintage: | NV |
Bottle Size: | 720 ml |
Savory nuances of toasted quinoa, banana bread, and nutmeg are present in the nose. On the palate, this sake is layered, lifted and complex, with flavors of plantain, dried cranberry, nougat, white Mushroom and almond.
POLISHING RATIO: 60%
ALCOHOL: 15-16%
SMV +/-: +3.0
RICE KAKE: 50% WAKAMIZU 50% LOCALLY FARMED JAPANESE RICE
YEAST STRAIN: PROPRIETARY
Sake By Kysela has been a project in the making for three years now. In the end, we selected a Sake made from the famous Yamada Nishiki rice produced in the Southern Prefecture of Shimane. Flavorful, rich, and clean; this sake is best as an aperitif or with seafood like fluke, dover sole or halibut. Kanpai!!!
Rice milling: 60%
Rice varietal: Iwai (Only available in Kyoto)
Alcohol: 15%
Sake meter value: +3.0
Acidity: 1.3
Tasting Notes: --------
Eikun sake uses water from a source called "Fusui", rated as one of the top 100 sources of water in Japan. This water source is located just south of the ancient Japanese, and still cultural capital of Japan, Kyoto.
Review:
"Clear with a platinum blue cast. Aromas of coconut milk, melon, pear and rice pudding with a with a supple, dry-yet-fruity medium body and a vanilla, apple, and pepper accented finish. A robust and lively sake that will sing with spicy Asian cuisine."
- Beverage Testing Institute (July 2nd 2014), 91 pts
Sake Eikun Junmai Ginjo Water Lords is made with Iwai rice.
Eikun sake uses water from a source called "Fusui", rated as one of the top 100 sources of water in Japan. This water source is located just south of the ancient Japanese, and still cultural capital of Japan, Kyoto.
Aromas of macadamia oatmeal cookie, spicy zucchini bread, and vanilla cream with a satiny fruity-yet-dry medium-to-full body and a layered, banana custard, jicama, salted whole nut, apple, and radish nuanced finish. A Wonderfully vibrant and flavorful sake.-Beverage Tasting Institute 94 points (Exceptional)
RATING: 94 points (Exceptional)
CATEGORY: Junmai Ginjo Sake, Sake
ALCOHOL BY VOLUME: 15.3%
TASTING LOCATION: In Our Chicago Tasting Room
TASTING DATE: Dec-05-2012
WINE ID: 200768
Woodsy honeycomb, nutshell, and mushroom patch aromas with a satiny fruity-yet-dry medium-to-full body and a delicate savory mushroom stock, chestnut, and golden beet driven finish. A fine choice for tempura. 91 Points -Beverage Tasting Institute
RATING: 91 points (Exceptional)
CATEGORY: Junmai Ginjo Sake, Sake
ALCOHOL BY VOLUME: 15.4%
TASTING LOCATION: In Our Chicago Tasting Room
TASTING DATE: Dec-05-2012
WINE ID: 200767
TASTING NOTES:
This is a classic, delicious Honjozo with crimini mushroom, almonds and lilac aromas. The first sip of this sake is full of stone fruit and minerals complimented by notes of caramel, cocoa and almond and finishes with plenty of umami.
POLISHING RATIO: 60%
ALCOHOL: 16-17%
SMV +/-: +3.0
ACIDITY: 1.6
RICE KOJI: JAPANESE RICE 100%
RICE KAKE: JAPANESE RICE 100%
YEAST STRAIN: KYOKAI
FOOD PAIRINGS: Chinese Food, One Pot dishes like Beef Stew.
CHEESE PAIRINGS: Foggy Morning, Prima Donna, Domaine de Village
Sake Dewazakura Izumi Judan Tenth Degree is a martini-lover's sake: clear, high-octane and bone dry, with a hint of juniper reminiscent of Tanquerary. No other ginjo combines dryness (+12 on the sake scale) and edginess (36 proof) to such exhilarating effect. A peerless sake with toro and hamachi or serve with salmon roe, caviar and cocktail canapes. Drink well-chilled after forty minutes in the freezer.
Rice Variety: Miyamanishiki
Polishing Ratio: 50%
Alcohol Percentage: 17.5%
Sake Meter Value: +12.0
Acidity: 1.4
Yeast Type: Yamagata YK-0107
Dewazakura Brewing Company
Many sake enthusiasts are surprised to learn that twenty-five years ago ginjo labels were hard to find in Japan. In those days, people were still drinking the cloyingly sweet sakes the breweries had been churning out since the ’50s; no one thought that customers would actually pay more for the quality ginjo and daiginjo sakes brewed in limited amounts for competitions.
In 1981, Dewazakura Brewing Company changed that with the release of "Oka," an affordably priced ginjo label with a polishing ratio of 50 percent and a lovely floral aroma. It was light, crisp and delightful. It was made to be drunk cold. Soon other breweries introduced their own ginjo labels. And so began one of the most creative periods in the history of sake, earning for Dewazakura the admiration and respect of even its most ardent competitors.
What made the brewery stand out was a drive for innovation. Dewazakura was not a wealthy brewery, or a long-established one, but they were open to change. When the opportunity arose in the years after the war to invite research technicians in from the National Research Institute of Brewing, they jumped at the chance. Drawing on the knowledge and skill of Hideo Abe, a former Institute research advisor, they put new ideas into practice without hesitation.
By 1991, Dewazakura had perfected its cold storage technique, aging freshly pressed sake at 28 degrees Fahrenheit to keep it as aromatic and flavorful as possible until bottling. In 1996 it introduced "Dewasansan," brewed from a new Yamagata rice strain of the same name, another hit which opened the way for other prefectures to introduce highly specific regional labels. This year, for the first time in history, Yamagata breweries received more gold medals than any other prefecture at the 2004 Japan National Sake Appraisal, an achievement due in no small measure to the pioneering efforts of the Dewazakura Brewing Company.
Woodsy honeycomb, nutshell, and mushroom patch aromas with a satiny fruity-yet-dry medium-to-full body and a delicate savory mushroom stock, chestnut, and golden beet driven finish. A fine choice for tempura. 91 Points -Beverage Tasting Institute
RATING: 91 points (Exceptional)
CATEGORY: Junmai Ginjo Sake, Sake
ALCOHOL BY VOLUME: 15.4%
TASTING LOCATION: In Our Chicago Tasting Room
TASTING DATE: Dec-05-2012
WINE ID: 200767
All older vintage wines have been purchased from a single collectors cellar. Pictures can be requested before shipment.
A deep powerful Gran Reserva from one of Rioja Alavesa’s most enduring family run wineries. The hillside terraced vineyards are sheltered by the Sierra Cantabria Mountains to the north from harsh weather extremes. Small plot production is utilized in this region of infertile chalky clay soil to produce clusters of excellent quality. Almost 900 plots are needed to complete the approximately 400 hectares of estate-owned or cellar-controlled vineyards, some with vines more than 100 years in age.
Tasting notes
Ruby red color with earthy tones. The wine shows finesse, elegance and complexity with good concentration of black fruit, thyme and rosemary with secondary aromas of leather and tobacco leaves. In the palate it is polished and rounded, making it pleasant and easy to drink. Fleshy with both elegance and power. It has touches of black fruit jam and liquorice. A long, delicious and persistent finish.
Suitable for pairing with a long, copious meal where it can accommodate braised vegetables, cold cuts, peppers stuffed with hake and shrimp, mushroom omelettes, cod Rioja style, both red and white meat... and so on.