Find your best sake based on:
Food pairing
Cheese
Wine and cheese are a well-known combination. However, wine’s acidity can sometimes overpower the flavour and aroma of cheese. Cheese is rich in amino acids and peptides thanks to the breakdown of milk-derived proteins by microorganisms during the production process. According to a comprehensive guide to Japanese sake (published by the Japanese Sake and Shochu Makers Association and National Research Institute of Brewing), the similarity of the aroma resulting from fermentation and aging means that cheese is enhanced by the flavours of sake, making it a perfect pairing. Furthermore, a great deal of salt is used in the production of most varieties of cheese. Sake goes well with salt because it intensifies the umami flavour produced by amino acids, which sake is super rich in.
Recommended sake:
Strong umami meal
Umami is the core fifth taste and the taste of glutamate and an amino acid. Glutamate occurs naturally in foods you eat daily such as raw ham, aged cheeses, soy sauce, cured meats, tomatoes, mushrooms, oysters, salmon, steak, anchovies, green tea, and so on. Sake also has umami and harmonises these foods, as it enhances the meal’s umami.
Recommended sake:
Appetiser
Appetiser such as caprese salad, white fish carpaccio and roast beef are good with aromatic sake, as it brings out the flavours of the meals. If the meals are oily like bitterballen and croquette, refreshing sake matches well.
Recommended sake:
Vegetables
Vegetables for main dishes go well with aromatic sake. Especially a meal with herbs enables you to find nicely enhanced flavour of the meal with aromatic sake.
Recommended sake:
Fish and seafood
Fish and seafood for main such as sautéed fish with butter go well with sharp and savoury sake. Shellfish contains strong umami so rich sake matches well, as it can mitigate the fishiness and enhance the umami well.
Recommended sake:
Meat
Meat for main dishes such as a beef steak, a lamb chop and grilled chicken go well with dry sake and refreshing sake, as they bring out the flavour of the meals and nicely refresh oil from your mouth.
Recommended sake:
Dessert
For dessert, fruits liqueur sake is best! You can enjoy either chilled or warmed. Also with a vanilla ice cream, put aromatic sake or dry sake on it. You’ll be amazed with sake affogato!
Recommended sake:
Cocktail recipe
Highball
You may have heard a highball as a mixture of soda water and whisky. Yes spirits are used for highballs in general but recently a sake highball is also popular in Japan. Interestingly a sake highball enhances sweetness of the sake while it keeps the sake's aroma and flavour, so you can find it quite easy to drink. It's refreshing so Japanese enjoy it especially in hot Summer! To our delight, a sake highball has low calorie and fits variety of meals. It was very popular at our tasting researches!
You may have heard a highball as a mixture of soda water and whisky. Yes spirits are used for highballs in general but recently a sake highball is also popular in Japan. Interestingly a sake highball enhances sweetness of the sake while it keeps the sake's aroma and flavour, so you can find it quite easy to drink. It's refreshing so Japanese enjoy it especially in hot Summer! To our delight, a sake highball has low calorie and fits variety of meals. It was very popular at our tasting researches!
How to make:
- Add as many ices as possible in a glass
- Pour sake in it and mix well
- Add soda water, the same amount as the sake
- (If you like) Add lemon juice or lime juice as you want
- Mix it gently
Recommended sake:
Sangría
Sake contains nutrients which are good for your health and beauty and sake Sangría maximises the effect! Mix sliced fruits and sake, and leave it overnight. Enjoy with ices only, or add orange juice or sparkling water as you want! Fruits soaked with sake are also great dessert :) Refreshing sake matches well for Sangria. Sweet fruits go well with dry sake, and citrus and berries go well with sweet sake.
Sake contains nutrients which are good for your health and beauty and sake Sangría maximises the effect! Mix sliced fruits and sake, and leave it overnight. Enjoy with ices only, or add orange juice or sparkling water as you want! Fruits soaked with sake are also great dessert :) Refreshing sake matches well for Sangria. Sweet fruits go well with dry sake, and citrus and berries go well with sweet sake.
How to make:
- Mix sliced fruits and the sake. A citrus and a berry go well with sweet sake, while fruits with sweet flesh like a peach and an apple go well with dry sake.
- Leave it overnight
- Enjoy with ices only, or add orange juice or sparkling water as you want! Fruits soaked with the sake are also great dessert :)
Recommended sake:
Lemon mix Sake
During the tasting people loved the mixture of the sake and lemon juice! Squeeze a sliced lemon in the sake and mix it. The acidity from the lemon makes the sake mild. You’ll be amazed with this game changer!
Recommended sake:
GlühSake
This sake is great to be warmed, so how about healthy GlühSake?
This sake is great to be warmed, so how about healthy GlühSake?
How to make:
- Warm the sake to around 40℃
- Put a sliced ginger in it
- Add honey and cinnamon as you want!
It’s great to prevent a cold or flu!
Recommended sake:
Sake Umami juice
Sake's strong umami enhances the umami of juice. Apple, orange and tomato juice are recommended!
Sake's strong umami enhances the umami of juice. Apple, orange and tomato juice are recommended!
How to make:
- Mix Sake and your favourite juice in the ratio of 1:1.
- Add ices if you want!
Recommended sake:
Greentea Sake
These two awesome Japanese liquids are a great match! The green tea's bitterness gets mild thanks to sake's sweetness and green tea increases sake's umami. Also the mix of the refreshing green tea smell and alcohol will impress you. Some green tea makers also recommend this mixture and you can enjoy either hot or chilled. Other kinds of Japanese tea like Hoji tea and Genmai tea also match sake well!
These two awesome Japanese liquids are a great match! The green tea's bitterness gets mild thanks to sake's sweetness and green tea increases sake's umami. Also the mix of the refreshing green tea smell and alcohol will impress you. Some green tea makers also recommend this mixture and you can enjoy either hot or chilled. Other kinds of Japanese tea like Hoji tea and Genmai tea also match sake well!
How to make:
- Mix sake and green tea in the ratio of 1:1
If you have green tea leaves:
- Put around 6g green tea leaves in a tea pot
- Pour chilled 120ml sake in it
- Leave it for around 5min and pour it in a glass
Recommended sake:
Salty dog Sake
The acidity of grapefruit makes sake's flavor mild!
The acidity of grapefruit makes sake's flavor mild!
How to make:
- Salt the rim of a glass
- Mix sake and grapefruit juice in the ratio of 4:5 over crushed ice
Recommended sake:
Sake Mojito
Its refreshing taste is best for Summer!
Its refreshing taste is best for Summer!
How to make:
- Add mint leaves and 1tsp gomme syrup in a glass and crush the leaves
- Add crushed ices in it
- Add sake and sparkling water in the ratio of 1:1 and mix it
Recommended sake:
Atsukan
It’s actually very easy to make hot sake with what you have at home!
It’s actually very easy to make hot sake with what you have at home!
How to make:
- Pour sake into a small, heat-proof container
- Place it in boiling water and leave it
- The temperature of the sake will reach 40-45℃ in 2 to 3 minutes
You can enjoy richer aroma and flavour with softer texture than the room temperature sake!
Recommended sake:
Classification
Same as wine, sake also has difference!
The Sake Service Institute (SSI) created four classifications based on aroma and flavor: Kunshu, Soshu, Junshu and Jukushu. Please find more here.
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