Saké 101
- Chapter 1: What is Saké?
- Chapter 2: How is Saké Made?
- Chapter 3: Saké Vocabulary
- Chapter 4: Types of Saké
- Chapter 5: How to Serve Saké
- Chapter 6: Tasting Saké
- Chapter 7: Uncommon Pairs
Chapter 4: Types of Saké
There are two broad categories of saké, Junmai and Honjozo.
Junmai means that no distilled alcohol has been added. Only four ingredients are uses; rice, water, koji and yeast.
Honjozo means that distilled alcohol has been added.
Honjozo in Japan is defined as no more than 5% distilled alcohol added by volume. There are sakés that have more alcohol added than Honjozo, but they are almost never imported into the United States.
In Japan, over 80% of all sakés made have distilled alcohol added. This distilled alcohol can be processed grain alcohol. For the finer sakés, it may be distilled alcohol collected from the esters during fermentation and distilled down in a mini-distillery to be added back during the blending of the saké to enhance the aroma. Either method of adding distilled alcohol to saké is illegal in the United States. However, this Honjozo style of saké can be imported into the United States. Done well, honjozo style can very good.
Within these two broad categories of saké, there are several types related to quality. The quality is determined by how much of the outer kernel of the rice is milled away. Milling removes the protein and fatty acids in rice kernels and leaves the dense starch packet at the center of the kernel. The more of the outer coating that is milled away, the higher the quality the saké will be.
Futsu, or Economy, Saké
In Futsu saké, there are both Junmai Futsu saké (no added alcohol) or Honjozo Futsu saké (alcohol added).
Economy saké is defined primarily by the milling percentage of the rice used. Economy saké will use rice milled down to just 90%, or as much as 70% of the original kernel size. Economy saké is usually aged for less than 3 months, often for just a few weeks.
Economy saké is rather ordinary. It is one dimensional, lacking the complexity, fruit and spice flavors found in Ginjo grade sake. This is the type of saké that is typically served warm.
Ginjo, or Premium, Saké
Premium saké uses saké rice that has been milled to less than 60% of its original kernel size. Premium saké also uses different rice, koji and yeast and the saké-making process is more refined at each stage when compared with economy saké. Premium saké is normally aged in temperature controlled stainless steel tanks for at least six months. Usually Ginjo saké will contain a higher percentage of koji. All of our Momokawa and Moonstone sakés are Ginjo.
Premium saké's defining characteristic compared with economy saké is its smoothness, depth of flavors, and complexity. Compared with grape wine, premium saké is a bit of bargain. Our Momokawa and Moonstone sakés sell for about $10 a bottle.
There is a wide selection of Japanese imported premium sakés available in the United States, including both Junmai (pure premium saké) and Honjozo (distilled alcohol added).
Imported Premium sakés typically retail for $20+ per 720 ml bottle.
Daiginjo, or Ultra-premium, Saké
Ultra-premium saké uses saké rice that has been milled to less than 50% of the original kernel size. Like premium saké, ultra-premium saké also uses different rice koji and yeast and the saké-making process is even more refined at each stage. Ultra-premium saké is normally aged for at least 9 months in temperature controlled stainless steel tanks.
The defining characteristic of an ultra-premium saké when compared to a premium saké is the added complexity of the aroma and taste. Many of the flavor differentiators are very subtle.
Ultra-premium sakés retail for $50 and up per 720 ml bottle.
Variations
There are several variations on the Economy, Ginjo and Daiginjo sakés.
The first is Nigori, or roughly, filtered saké. Momokawa Pearl is a Ginjo, nigori, genshu (bottled at cask strength) saké. Not all nigori is bottled at genshu strength, but we believe genshu is the most true to the historical antique style, and frankly, just plain tastes better.
Nigori saké is what all saké was like before saké filtration technology improved. While most saké is filtered through a multi-filter press to remove all of the solids, Nigori is filtered through a rough weave filtration system, which results in about 25% of the bottle of saké being the moromi rice solids.
You need to shake the Nigori saké before enjoying it. It should be very well blended and have the appearance of saké milk or a pina colada.
Nigori saké is quite popular in the United States since it is naturally sweet and goes well with spicy foods and desserts, both which are somewhat rare in Japanese cuisine. In most other Asian countries where there is an abundance of spicy cuisine there is also an abundance of Nigori saké.
Genshu saké means undiluted or cask strength and therefore no water is added to the finished saké. Non genshu saké has water added to reduce the alcohol from its natural 18 to 20% range when brewing is finished, to less than 15%, the range for most table wines. Genshu sake is rare. It is prized because of its intensity. "G" by Momokawa is a genshu sake and has been hailed as the finest saké made in America.
A final variation of saké, unique to the United States, is infused sakés. Infused sakés have flavors added during the blending process. We were the first sakery to infuse premium Ginjo saké with natural fruit. While some saké purists were offended, the result was delicious and new category was born! Our Asian Pear, Raspberry and Peach have the saké and fruit in balance. For example, with our Asian Pear you can smell and taste the crisp Asian pear apple, and taste the premium saké as well.
Infused sakés are often served as cocktails, or mixed to make Sakétinis. You will find our infused as the base for the signature drinks at many restaurants. They also match well with food. Fruit is often a garnish with chicken or fish. I like simple fruit salsa, just chopping whatever fruit is in season, maybe adding some mint or spices, and plating the salsa on top of grilled chicken of fish. Looks good and tastes better. Infused sakés work the same way. The fruit flavors add spiciness to simply grilled fish, chicken and pork.
