Sake

What is Saké?

What is Sake?

In English, "sake" refers to the alcoholic fermented rice beverage. In Japan, "sake" refers to all alcoholic drinks in general - beer, wine, whiskey.

Sake begins with rice. Just how wine is made from grapes, sake is made from rice. Like beer, sake is brewed. To make sake, a mold called koji works on rice while yeast converts that rice’s sugars to alcohol. Koji, also used in miso making, is crucial to sake.

Sake can be as high as 20 percent alcohol, but on average is closer to 15 percent.

To drink Sake, you can use a traditional tiny cup. A wider vessel, like a tumbler, has a wine-glass-like benefit in that you can smell more aromas, meaning you can potentially taste more flavors (because much of taste is smell).

All sakes can be enjoyed hot or cold. They can all be sipped very chilled, slightly chilled, room temperature, or warmed.