The Northwest is a center for North American : we’re home to the only two non-Japanese operated, premium saké breweries on the continent: Masa Shiroki’s boutique Artisan Sake Maker on Granville Island in Vancouver, British Columbia, and the more commercial-sized SakéOne in Forest Grove, Oregon.
The popularity of saké in America has risen dramatically in the past few years, and not incidentally as a result of increased national marketing of quality saké produced by SakéOne. Founded in 1997, the company has pioneered the production in America of traditional premium-grade sakés (with advice and help from partners Momokawa Brewing in Japan), but also sakés that have an added Oregon twist to appeal to American palates.
SakéOne’s “brewer” is Greg Lorenz, a self-defined lab geek who is also the only American sakémaster in the world. Using Oregon Coast Range water and Northern California-grown special rice, Lorenz crafts traditional Japanese-style sakés under the newly re-designed Momokawa label, as well as innovative flavor-infused styles under the Moonstone brand.
Saké does not taste like vinifera wine—how could it, being made from a grain instead of a fruit?—though it has consistency on the palate, aromas in the nose, a complex sense of layered flavors, and a rich aromatic finish as does wine. It is tempting, therefore, to approach tasting saké much as one would wine. This is a reasonable idea, but risks trying to “compare” a saké to a wine—which I believe should not be done. After all, much as wine made from grapes tastes of the original fruit, so saké made from rice tastes of the original grain—which for Americans is not a widely shared cultural experience as it is in Japan. Even so, it is fascinating that the fermented product of a grain—rice—can deliver so many nuances of fruit smells and flavors as a good saké does.
The notes that follow read much as my wine tasting notes would, but they are not based on my wine tasting experience as much as my admittedly more restricted, but not insubstantial, saké tasting experience. For those wishing to explore saké, something I heartily encourage, these sakés will provide a well-made introduction to some of the many styles of saké available. —Cole Danehower
Junmai Ginjo Craft Saké
Dry Crisp Saké
Crystalline clear white center, with only the barest perceptible hint of green gold color on the edges. Scents of pear skin and green melon are quite clean-seeming, with perhaps a whiff of sencha tea combining with subtle shadows of Daphne blossoms on the pleasing nose. Lean, clean, and dry on he palate, tastes of cut pear, melon rind, and cantaloupe are forward and tasty, followed by background notes of white pepper and minerals. The finish has a light, almost apple-skin bite to it that gives a gentle jolt to end on.
Junmai Ginjo Craft Saké
Medium Dry Saké
Very light electrum color with flashes of green. Notes of sweet green tea, banana, and ripe green melon are fresh and fruity. A slightly viscous texture on the tongue delivers notes of apple, pear, and melon, with a distinct edge of peppery spice and melon rind. Around the edges of the tongue some sweet flower blossom nuances can be detected. A bigger and bolder style than the Momokawa Silver, this saké seems like the masculine counterpart to the feminine style of the Silver.
Junmai is a term that refers to the purity of the saké, indicating that it contains only rice, water, yeast, and koji (the critical mold that turns rice starch into fermentable sugars), with no added spirits or flavors. Ginjo is a term reserved only for saké made from rice that is milled (also called “polished”) to at least 60% of its original size (a better quality is therefore implied).
Junmai Ginjo Craft Saké
Lightly Sweet Saké
Very lightly-hued, steely white gold color. At first the aromas are subtle and soft, requiring teasing to arise, but soon sweet white flower blossom scents, pear blossoms, notes of talc and minerals, and a nuance of dry dust provide interest and complexity to the nose. Soft flavors of apple (without the acidic zing) and ripe cantaloupe are nicely focused, while a gentle twang of spice lingers on the finish.
Junmai Ginjo Craft Saké
Creamy Nigori Saké
Milky, almost opalescent, gray white color—as is normal for a Nigori (see below). Tropical aromas of banana and melon lack some force, but offer sweet and appealing aspects, including a subtle floral tone. On the palate, notes of banana are immediately forward, followed by a sense of guava, pineapple, and perhaps coconut, though I am particularly sensitive to coconut, and I don’t really detect that specific flavor, the combination of milky white color and clearly tropical overtones would seem to suggest coconut. There is a fruity sweetness on the palate, and a texture imparted by the rice lees in suspension, but there is also a sharpness to the flavors that delivers a taut edginess, keeping it from devolving into a rice milkshake.
Nigori is a particular style of unfiltered, or partially filtered, saké, leaving in suspension the rice lees (to use a wine term). This gives the saké a greater sense of sweetness and added floral tones. Personally, I find Nigori sakés to be among the most interesting to sip on their own, though they are also excellent complements to spicy foods.
Organic Junmai Ginjo Craft Saké
Creamy Nigori Saké
Milky, almost opalescent, gray white color. The aromas have a distinct pineapple emphasis, with underlying notes of banana and fresh-cut melon—more defined and clear than the previous saké. Light on the palate, with fresh notes of pear and green melon offering a crisp edge, even while a soft sweetness at the core delivers a complex sense of tropical fruitiness. The finish seems long, with flavors of pear, apple, and melon lingering nicely.
The last two sakés are both Junmai (pure) Ginjo (craft) Nigori (only partially filtered), yet the added sense of purity implied by the term “Organic” does actually seem to deliver a somewhat more delineated saké, with flavors that have a slightly more defined edge to them and an overall lighter, perhaps brighter, character.
Organic Junmai Ginjo Craft Saké
Medium Rich Saké
Almost totally clear-as-glass white color. Lean aromas of white peach and minerals are sparse and require considerable swirling and time to emerge. More potent on the palate, yet still with delicacy, flavors of pear blossoms, pear flesh, honeydew melon and—dare I suggest it—steamed sweet rice commingle on the palate to deliver much more flavor than the nose would suggest. There is an appealing high-tone to this saké, and I found myself frequently dipping back into the glass for additional sips to contemplate.
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