Sake Quotes

“I believe that sake and wine are the only drinks in the world that have achieved the level of being forms of art.
Wine is made from grapes. Grapes have a lot of sugar in them to start with.
Although it's a gross simplification, if you crushed the grapes and put them in a barrel they'd naturally ferment and turn into wine.
But that's not the case with sake. In order for fermentation to occur, the starch in the rice has to be converted into sugar.
And that involves a far more complex and difficult process than what's involved in making wine.
In the entire world, no other country has developed such a refined drink out of cereal grains.
What you usually get out of cereal grains is something like beer, which has a low proof...
... or a distilled liquor like whiskey, which has a high one.
I want you to understand what a wonderful and unique thing sake is...
... and to appreciate the amazing skill it takes to create a drink that is practically an art form out of plain rice.”
― Tetsu Kariya, Sake

“In France, caviar, truffles and foie gras are considered to be the three major delicacies.
And when the French eat caviar, they don't drink wine with it.
The French aren't stupid. They're more than aware that no wine goes well with caviar.
That's why they drink vodka with it. But they don't know about sake."
"You're right. Vodka's usually served with caviar."
"But vodka really isn't a drink to have during a meal."
"It's not just caviar--- I don't think wine goes well with any kind of seafood.
It doesn't matter whether the fish is grilled, simmered, raw or in a bouillabaisse. And it's completely out of the question for things like raw oysters, karasumi and sea urchin.
Wine contains far more sodium than sake.
And some of those sodium compounds do not mix well with the fats in the fish, so that distinctive seafood flavor ends up being emphasized even more.
On the other hand, sake has hardly any sodium, so it doesn't bring out the fishiness.
And the sugars from the rice starch enhance the flavor of the food."
"Hmm."
"Come to think of it, shiokara tastes a lot better when you eat it with rice than when you eat it on its own. I guess this is the same thing.
It's the power of rice.”
― Tetsu Kariya, Sake

“Sake is the best when it comes to pairing with seafood. It's often said that Chablis and raw oysters go well together, but I've got my doubts about that. I find a strong off taste lingers after I eat raw oysters and drink Chablis."
"Why is that?"
"Wine has a lot more sodium in it compared to sake. The sodium compounds are part of what gives wine its fine flavor.
But at the same time, I think one of those compounds brings out the fishiness of the seafood.”
― Tetsu Kariya, Sake

“Main ingredients: rice, distilled alcohol, brewing saccharides...' what's that all mean?"
"During the second World War, something called sanbaizōshu was created as a way to make sake from a small very small amount of rice."
"'Sanbaizōshu'?"
"Essentially, you take sake made the proper way but then dilute it until it's three times its original volume.
Besides water, the main additive is distilled grain alcohol, followed by malt syrup, glucose, and MSG to fix the flavor."
"What? You add a completely different alcohol that wasn't created during the brewing?!"
"Monosodium glutamate? I can't believe they'd add such a thing to a drink!"
"You're right. This isn't real sake. Although we now have an abundant supply of rice, the big beverage companies still make sanbaizōshu since it's an easy way for them to make a profit."
"But I trusted them because they're popular brands..."
"It's the other way around. Most of the large companies with huge advertising campaigns on TV and whatnot use this method."
"Then what about this bottle with "Junmaishu" on it?"
"It's from a small brewery in the countryside, a sake made from nothing but rice, kōji, and water.
This is the kind of sake that should have an ingredient label so that people can see that it's truly pure. It's a tragedy that we have it the other way around here in Japan.
Is there any other country in the world that's degraded their traditional drink like this?It's an important part of our culture and it's almost been destroyed.”
― Tetsu Kariya, Sake

“Okizuke is made by marinating squid in a mixture of soy sauce, mirin and sake. Oki means "offshore" and zuke "preserved" or "pickled." The dish is said to have been invented by fishermen; they would catch the squid and put it in the preserving mixture while at sea, and it would be ready to eat by the time they got back to shore.”
― Tetsu Kariya, Sake

“Karasumi is salt-cured, sun-dried mullet roe. A specialty of Nagasaki, it is similar to the Italian bottarga, Greek avgotaraho or Turkish tarama.

Kuchiko is pressed sea cucumber ovaries and comes in small, triangular sheets that can be eaten either raw or grilled. It's called kuchiko when raw and konoko when dried.”
― Tetsu Kariya, Sake

“This is beef short ribs marinated in miso.
First you mix hatchō miso and Sendai's red miso with sake.
Then you place the short ribs in the mixture; they should be left to marinate for a day or so.
Then you take the ribs out and grill them over a charcoal fire."
"Miso and beef are a great match, aren't they?
It's a pity that people in other countries don't know about miso.”
― Tetsu Kariya, Sake

“Choosing a wine to pair with escargot is difficult. The escargot have been grilled with garlic butter and have a strong, meaty taste.
But they're neither seafood nor red meat. So none of these wines would be right."
"But I thought escargot was a common dish in France. So wouldn't they know what the right wine pairing would be?"
"Like Koizumi-san said, Chablis, Meursalt or Pouilly Fuissé wouldn't go well with the escargot. Even with red wine, you'd have to choose a very full-bodied one.
Try tasting the escargot with Koshino-Karoku."
"The strong aftertaste of the garlic butter is washed away. It's a lot more refreshing!"
"And it helps bring out the rustic flavor of the escargot!”
― Tetsu Kariya, Sake