Vancouver: Sake

I have always been afraid to try sake. I’m really not sure why. I think it’s because of the assumptions I had made, what I thought it would be: alcohol-y tasting & smelling & knock-me-off-my-feet strong. But, one Friday in June, I was feeling adventurous didn’t want to look wussy in front of my new travel blogging friends, so, when they suggested we stop by the Artisan Sake Maker on Granville Island for a quick tasting, I was gamereluctantly went along.A quick background lesson for those unfamiliar with this Japanese drink: sake is a rice-based alcoholic beverage. It’s made through a brewing process kind of like beer. However, alcohol content is much stronger than wine or beer (hence my fear of ever trying it). Wine generally contains 9–16% alcohol, most beer is 3–9%, whereas undiluted sake is 18–20% alcohol (!!!), although this is often lowered to around 15% by diluting it with water prior to bottling.

Now that you understand the facts, you can understand my nervousness as we stepped into the little shop. The woman behind the counter, a first generation Japanese-American, told us about the sake making process & invited us for a sampling. Since my friends actually live in Taiwan, they were extremely familiar (& in love) with sake & were all about sampling, while I still had qualms about the whole thing – it was only 11:30am!

The first one we tried was the Osake – Junami Nama– 15% alcohol. I nervously brought the glass to my lips, took a sip & tasted… nothing. It was completely smooth, with zero alcohol taste – it was practically like sipping water! This first sake is “lively & bright with pear, melon, citrus notes; an ideal companion to seafood” – not that I could really taste any of that (I think, like wine, it’s a process to learn the different notes while tasting).My nerves a bit calmed, I tried the next, & strongest, one: Osake – Junmai Nama Genshu – 18% alcohol. I motioned for only a little amount to taste, still afraid it was going to knock me right over. Instead it was refreshing, “fragrant with tropical fruit aromas, rich and creamy with a dry, lingering finish; it is well matched with a variety of foods” (or so they say).