Blog

When we were approached to host a launch event for the new line of The SG Shochus, we were floored. Why, yes, we would honored to host Shingo Gokan and his crew! World-renowned cocktail champion, bartender extraordinaire, and founder of the SG Group and SG Shochu brand, Shingo Gokan was voted by...

Hamakawa Shoten was the last brewery we went to in Kochi. By that time, we had been in Kochi for four days and we were eating, living, and breathing Kochi. Thankfully, we were over our intense hangover that we were slogging through the day before at...

My first brewery visit in Kochi this past month was at Mutemuka Shuzo. The next morning I went to Kameizumi Shuzo. I first learned about Mutemuka in 2018 through Floating World. I fell in love with the their Mutemuka Muroka Nama Genshu. It was lactic, mushroomy,...

After visiting Kameizumi Shuzo in the morning, we were off to Suigei Brewing Co.'s Tosa facility that was about 20 minutes away. It was a relief to have such a short commute between destinations for a change. When I set up all of these brewery...

Kameizumi Shuzo was my second brewery visit during my Kochi Prefecture tour this past month. The day before, I had visited Mutemuko Shuzo in Shimanto City. After Mutemuka Shuzo, we made our way to Kochi City (about 90 minutes away) and had a very authentic Kochi night...

The Shiman Torocco one-man-car that brought us into Kochi Prefecture from Ehime Prefecture Sake Gumi is our monthly sake subscription service with 200 members throughout the country. Join today! I hightailed it out of Oakland the...

Thermometer at the fermentation room at Kita Shuzo during our 2019 visit Sake Gumi is our monthly sake subscription service with 200 members throughout the country. Join today!

This was a collab of a lifetime: Umami Mart x Mike Cerwonka x Black Stamp Studios! Mike Cerwonka, Umami Mart part-timer and renaissance man, designed our 10 year anniversary logo, and we asked his friend Eric Kneeland of Black Stamp Studios in Half Moon Bay to...

Furoshiki are square pieces of fabric, usually made out of cotton or silk. The literal translation is "bath spread." Traditionally, furoshiki were emblazoned with the family crest of the owner, and they would wrap their belongings in the cloth that they would bring to and from the bathhouse. ...

Furoshiki are square pieces of fabric, usually made out of cotton or silk. The literal translation is "bath spread." Traditionally, furoshiki were emblazoned with the family crest of the owner, and they would wrap their belongings in the cloth that they would bring to and from the bathhouse.  To...

Shochu Gumi is our quarterly subscription service with 80 members throughout the country. Join today! As I write this under a full autumn moon, I contemplate all of the wacky natural wonders in our world. Yeast is one of them....

Making koji at Nishi Shuzo Sake Gumi is our monthly sake subscription service with 200 members throughout the country. Join today! Koji is a mold used to make sake, shochu, soy sauce, mirin, and miso. There are three main types of koji used in Japan –...

Sake Gumi is our monthly sake subscription service with 250 members throughout the country. Join today! Fall is here! As much as I love having crisp, fruity natsuzake (unpasteurized summer sakes), one of my favorite times of year to have sake is during...

This is an adaptation of our friend Russell Moore's King Trumpet Mushroom Parcel recipe in his book This is Camino. I remember the thrill of having these parcels served at the restaurant. They arrive at your table in a little parchment pouch, which you untie...

On my trip to Kyushu last month, Tekkan-san of Yamatozakura was gracious enough to drive around me and my partner around to all of the shochu distilleries we could squeeze in on a Sunday, as many were closed. We were lucky enough to have the first of these be...

Shochu fans and our customers alike (the intersection is a big one) will have no difficulty recognizing the products of Miyazaki's Kuroki Honten. For us at the shop and bar, Naka Naka is an almost perfect introduction to the style - its richness and buttery body paired with...

Last month, I visited Japan for the first time in three years. I did not realize how much I missed it until I touched down. I am not one to be very emotional, but I felt overjoyed, relieved, and at peace when I was finally riding...

Me and Mr. Inaba outside of Inaba Shuzo that he runs with Toji Nobuko Inaba (his wife). After visiting Toshimaya Shuzo, the second brewery I went to during my trip to Japan was Inaba Shuzo. It is accessible by the...

Aging alcohol in wood is an ancient technique, and in Japan, sugi or Japanese cedar was used to ferment and age sake during the Edo period (1603-1867), as well as to transport it to Tokyo. These vessels made of sugi are called taru. In fact, until the creation of stainless...

You all know Yoko Kumano, co-founder and Sake Director of Umami Mart. She's a creative jack-of-all-trades and as our Visual Director, she is in charge of all our merchandising, photography, and making our shop look the way it does – shiny, fresh, and invigorating.  Yoko is also the chief designer...