Omachi Sake Tasting

We had our very first Sake Gumi Social at Umami Mart last week and it was a blast. Over 40 of our members showed up to taste June's Sake Gumi bottles with us – plus an extra special bottle.

This month's theme, sakes made with Omachi rice, provided us with a dynamic lineup. Omachi is Japan's oldest sake rice, going back to the 1800s. It is difficult to cultivate and harvest, which is why it is not as common as Yamada Nishiki rice today. However, there is a renaissance happening now for making sake with heirloom rice, of all sorts, and Omachi is making a bit of a comeback. It creates dynamic, layered sakes that are crisp, often with herbaceous, green grass notes.

The lineup was:

Bizen Maboroshi Junmai Ginjo by Muramachi Brewery
Bizen Omachi Junmai Daiginjo by Tamanohikari Brewery
Seiden Omachi 50 Junmai Daiginjo by Akita Seishu
Omachi Tokubetsu Junmai by Choryo Brewery

We also had a very special bottle, Yoshinosugi no Taruzake Yamahai Junmai by Choryo Brewery! Taruzake is sake aged in cedar barrels, which imparts a minty, earthy notes to the final brew. This particular sake was a yamahai junmai made with Omachi rice. The result was an out-of-this-world sake – tart and lactic from the yamahai, and woodsy from the cedar casks. The flavors were wild, and our members loved it. We were able to offer a few bottles to the members and they sold out!

We were also so lucky to have a special guest – Yuri Shimada from Choryo Brewery in Nara, Japan! She was able to talk to our members about the sakes from her brewery which was such a treat.

Yoko, Shimada, and me

Yoko and I pouring sakes for members.