A blast from the past!

I'm setting my Delorean time machine to six months ago, an age in which the people of earth celebrated Holidays such as Christmas and new years.

On a more serious note: every year, in December, Mansaku no Hana releases a very stylish Sake set including a 180ml bottle of Daiginjo sake and one cute little blue cup. The whole set sells for about ¥1,000 and makes a really good stocking stuffer. At the time, I bought a bottle with the intentions of drinking it as soon as possible. One thing led to another, and we arrived at about a night or two ago when, after 6 months of sitting unopened in my refrigerator, I finally got around to opening it. Now it is not generally recommended to age your own sake, (although I think it is a blast, and highly recommend experimenting with it) as not all sake ages well and you run the risk of turning a perfectly good bottle of sake into something you may or may not want to drink.

I had a six month aged bottle of Mansaku no Hana, so I drank it, and the drinking was good.

Mansaku no Hana / まんさくの花

Daiginjo / 大吟醸

Alcohol: 15~16% / Polish: 50%

SMV: No data

Hi no Maru Jouzo / Akita Prefecture

Tasting notes:

On the nose: Very very light, little bit of a honey smell coming from the half year aging in my fridge. Very little nose for a Daiginjo, most likely diminished by the aging.

On the palate: Little bit on the sweet side, but very well rounded out by the sturdy acid structure. Really round mouth feel with a slight hint of vanilla. Finish was crisp and pleasant.

Other notes:

• The SMV data on this was thrown out several months ago, but my guess would be somewhere around a +3~4.
• I unfortunately didn't get a chance to taste a fresh bottle of this sake, as it would be a lot of fun to compare the two.
• Mansaku no Hana has a full line up of a lot of good sake, so look forward to more posts!

Cheers,

Meishu no Yutaka staff

Carlin

A Junmai to be proud of!

I would like to introduce to you all one of my favorite Junmai Sake. This one is not for sake wimps; this is a Junmai on steroids!

I present to you:

Daishinshuu / 大信州

Karakuchi Tokubetsu Junmai Nama / 辛口特別純米生

Alcohol: 16% / Polish: 70%

SMV: +5

Daishinshuu Shuzo / Nagano Prefecture

Tasting notes:

On the nose: Very fresh with lots of good yeast / Koji smells. Loads of rice and strong fruity hints. Huge nose for a Junmai!

On the palate: Very full bodied and smooth. Clean crisp and fresh; Dry but with a lot of full flavored sweetness from the rice, and a refreshing fruitiness. Ends with a finish that will knock your socks off.

Other notes:

• Meishu no Yutaka has the largest selection of Daishinshuu Sake in Japan, with over 30 different kinds under two labels, there is a Daishinshuu sake for everyone. Look forward to more goodies from Daishinshuu in future posts.
• This sake is a Nama sake, or unpasteurized sake, so it must be kept in the fridge.
• Karakuchi Tokubetsu Junmai Nama comes in one size 1.8L, but don't worry because even a bottle this size will disappear before you know it, when it's this tasty.
• This is a seasonal sake so it probably won't be around for ever. It just came in about a month ago so there is still stock, but if you want to try this one you should grab a bottle sooner than later.
• What is Tokubetsu (special) about this Junmai, with a polish rate of 70% you might be thinking "why is this a Tokubetsu Junmai and not a regular Junmai?", is the polish rate of the Rice used for growing the Koji mold. This sake is actually made with Daiginjo class Koji rice, milled to 50%. This is also mostly responsible for this sake's great nose. This for me is like going to heaven before you die, It truly is the best of both worlds!

That's it for this time,

Cheers,

Meishu no Yutaka staff

Carlin