Originally from Oakland, twin sisters Sam (above left) and Ali Blatteis were living across the country from one another when they developed a passion for whisky. After many distillery tours, countless tastings, and their own personal studies, they launched Home Base Spirits together in the Bay Area in...
Kayoko and I met Kevin Diedrich back in 2011 when we threw the Gift of Food benefit at the Burritt Room for the victims of the 2011 Tohoku Earthquake and Tsunami disaster. Since being at the helm of the Burritt Room bar, we've visited...
Pocky to eat with whisky, why you're probably not eating real wasabi, the weird history of Ronald McDonald, and more on The Umami Reader.
A step-by-step recipe on making a root beer float with Kannoko Mugi Shochu, a barrel aged barley shochu that's akin to whisky.
Our newest glasses from Toyo-Sasaki up the bling times two – diamond cut glass and gold edging along the lip – but are still tasteful and elegant.
The makers of beloved Japanese Hitachino craft beer (Kiuchi Brewery) will distill whisky next!
As you know by now, Tori-chan is a dear friend of ours who opened Jicca, a restaurant and wine bar in the Hatagaya neighborhood in Tokyo nearly two years ago. She is a native of Minami-soma in Fukushima prefecture; a town that was...
I have allowed an unsuitable amount of time to pass before writing about our Fragrance of Whisky evening at Wingtip nearly three months ago. So I’ve dumped all of the evening’s artifacts around me. It’s a mound, quite literally. One Women & Whiskies...
For all of ya'll who have been suggested we hold more, ehem, "alcohol education courses," this ones for you. And MEN are also welcome to this one! We're proud to host a whiskey tasting and talk with our friend Daniel Yaffe, author...
This women-only event is a collaboration with the Women & Whiskies program and is sponsored by Campari. A portion of the proceeds of ticket sales will go towards Dress for Success, a non-profit organization providing women with professional attire to develop...
Went to Hard Water the other night, Charles Phan's newest eatery located along the scenic Embarcadero in San Francisco. It's such a rarity to go out and join the HOT SF scene. But it must be done, once in a blue moon!...
In honor of Umami Mart’s sixth anniversary/ lease-signing and the Japan Week celebration in NYC, this month we spotlight the Japanese Cocktail for Happy Hour. We will review the cocktail’s origins, its ingredients, and offer an improved adaptation that...
Minty, refreshing, and undeniably potent, the Stinger cocktail is part reviver, part ultimate nightcap. The cocktail originates around the fin de siecle, but was not memorialized until Tom Bullock’s Ideal Bartender (1917). The Stinger was a favorite of the high society set...
Photos by Erin Gleeson Please excuse my great delay in writing this post -- I have not had a chance to write much but I have been thinking about you all and have lots to talk about. Back in June, Umami Mart helped host...
The PDT Project rolls on with the Apple Malt Toddy, a delicious drink that you'll want to bookmark for the colder months, unless you're one of our readers from the Southern Hemisphere. Or maybe you really enjoy hot drinks...
We're proud to present an event with Cask (a delightful beverage shop in SF) and Suntory (proprietor of Yamazaki, Hibiki and Hakushu whiskies), for an intimate seminar on Japanese whisky and tasting for Father's Day. WHEN: Sunday June 17 at 1pm or 5pm...
Masako Ikegami bartends at BARShake in Tokyo. Like Mr. Tomokazu Kai, she also won the Suntory Cocktail Award, which brought her to the Bay Area as the...
Let’s face it, mid-winter is almost upon us and there is not a ground hog is sight. It is getting downright tundra cold out there and Mother Nature is sure to unleash a deep freeze. Some say one should think of a warm...
By Neyah White Photos by Travis LoDolce Well, there is no drink more quintessentially ‘Japanese’ right now than the highball. From crowded, stand-up after-work bars in Tokyo to elegant and sedate members-bars in Kyoto, the simple (but exact!) mix of whisky and...
Last week I wrote about the Hot Buttered Rum, and how it's a winter drink for when you're feeling festive (and when you've planned far enough ahead of time and made the essential spiced rum batter). Now that...
