JAPANESE CULTURE AND TRADITIONS
Sake Made Simple
Your Guide for Choosing Sake
Several of my adult children who live in the US have become experts at making sushi, but they sometimes wonder what kind of sake to buy to drink with it. I understand. Just looking at an array of sake bottles with their mystifying Japanese labels can be daunting. And there are so many different types to choose from!
A Japanese expression, 酒屋万流, sakaya-banryū, meaning “there are 10,000 different ways to make sake,” aptly describes this vast variety. Though sounding like hyperbole, this seems to be true. Wherever in Japan you travel, you will always find unique and wonderful local sake which is not to be passed up.
Although the choices are innumerable, sake can be divided into a few main categories. Once you understand those, learning what you prefer and how to choose it becomes much easier.
First, let’s look at how sake is made.
How sake is made
Rice
The main ingredient in sake is rice. Sake rice differs from table rice in two main ways.
