Sake

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Image:Sake barrels.jpg

Sake (酒; pronounced Template:IPA2 Template:Audio) is a Japanese alcoholic beverage, brewed from rice. It is often referred to as rice wine, though it is technically considered a beer.

The rice wine known in the west as "sake" is a specific type called nihonshu (日本酒) "Japanese alcohol" in Japanese. In Japan, the word sake simply means alcoholic beverage, and regionally, it can take on more specific meanings. In Southern Kyushu, sake usually refers to a distilled beverage, potato shochu (imo-jochu 芋焼酎). Shōchu refers to a distilled spirit made with koji (麹 or 糀). In Okinawa, sake refers to shōchu made from sugar cane. On the other hand, sake can also mean Okinawa's other distilled beverages, awamori (泡盛), literally "bubble top", or kūsū, literally "old drink". These latter forms of sake are distilled from long-grain rice and kurokōji (黒麹) which means black koji.


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History

The history of sake is not well documented and there are multiple theories on how it was discovered. One theory suggests that the brewing of rice first started in China, along the Yangtze River around 4800 BC and was subsequently exported to Japan. Another theory traces sake brewing back to 3rd century Japan with the advent of wet rice cultivation. The combination of water and rice lying around together would have resulted in molds and fermentation. Regardless the first sake was called kuchikami no sake, (口噛みの酒) or "chewing-in-the-mouth sake," and was made by an entire village chewing rice, chestnuts, millet, acorn and spitting the mixture into a tub. The enzymes from the saliva allowed the starches to saccharify (convert to sugar). Then this sweet mixture was combined with freshly cooked grain and allowed to naturally ferment. Supposedly the best sake made in this way came from the mouths of young virgin girls. This early form of sake was likely low in alcohol and consumed like porridge. This method was used also by American Natives; see cauim, and pulque. Chinese millet wine, xǐao mǐ jǐu (小米酒), made the same way, is mentioned in inscriptions from the 14th century BC as being offered to the gods in religious rituals. Later, from approximately the 8th century BC, rice wine, mǐ jǐu (米酒) with a formula almost exactly like that of the later Japanese sake, became popular in China.

Centuries later, chewing was rendered unnecessary by the discovery of koji-kin (麹菌 Aspergillus oryzae), a mold whose enzymes convert the starch in the rice to sugar, which is also used to make amazake, miso, natto, and soy sauce. Rice inoculated with koji-kin is called "kome-koji" (米麹), or malt rice. A yeast mash, or shubo (酒母), is then added to convert the sugars to ethanol. This development can greatly increase sake's alcohol content (18%-25% by vol.); as starch is converted to sugar by koji, sugars are converted to alcohol by yeast in one instantaneous process. Koji-kin was discovered most likely by accident. Koji spores and yeast floating in the air would land in a soupy rice-water mixture left outside. The resulting fermentation would create a sake porridge not unlike the kuchikami no sake but without the hassle of needing a whole village to chew the rice. This porridge was probably not the best tasting but the intoxication was enough to keep people interested in making it. Some of this mash would be kept as a starter for the next batch.

Experimentation and techniques from China sometime in the 7th century AD gave rise to higher quality sake. Sake eventually became popular enough for a brewing organization to be established at the Imperial Palace in Kyoto the then capital of Japan. This resulted in full time sake brewers, and these craftsmen paved the way for many more developments in technique. It was during the Heian Era (794-1185), that the development of the three step addition in the brewing process was developed (a technique to increase alcohol content and reduce chance of souring).

For the next 500 years the quality and techniques used in brewing sake steadily improved. The use of a starter mash or "moto" where the goal is to cultivate the maximum amount of yeast cells possible before brewing came into use. Brewers were also able to isolate Koji for the first time, and thus were able to control with some consistency the saccharification (converting starch to sugar) of the rice.

Through observation and trial and error, a form of pasteurization was also developed. Batches of sake that began to turn sour due to bacteria during the summer months were poured out of their barrels into tanks and heated. However, the resulting pasteurized sake would then be returned to the bacteria infected barrels. Hence the sake would become more sour and by the time fall came around the sake would be vile stuff. The reasons why pasteurization worked and how to better store sake would not be understood until Louis Pasteur discovered it some 500 years later.

During the Meiji Restoration laws were written that allowed anybody with the money and know-how to construct and operate their own sake breweries. Around 30,000 breweries sprang up all around the country within a year. However, as the years went by the government levied more and more taxes on the sake industry and slowly the number of breweries dwindled to 8,000.

Most of the breweries that grew and survived this period of time were set up by wealthy land owners. Land owners who grew rice crops would have rice left over at the end of the season and rather than letting this stash of rice go to waste, they would ship it to their breweries. The most successful of these family breweries still operate today.

During the 1900's sake brewing technology grew in leaps and bounds. The government opened the sake brewing research institute in 1904, and in 1907 the very first government run sake tasting/competition was held. Yeast strains specifically selected for their brewing properties were isolated and enamel coated steel tanks arrived. The government started hailing the use of enamel tanks as easy to clean, last forever, and be devoid of bacterial problems (the government considered wooden barrels to be "unhygienic" because of the potential bacteria living inside the wood). While true, the government also wanted more tax money from breweries as the wood in wooden barrels suck up a significant amount of sake ( somewhere around 3% ) that could have otherwise been taxed. This was the end of the wooden barrel age of sake and the use of wooden barrels in brewing was completely eliminated.

During the Russo-Japanese War in 1904-1905, the government banned the home brewing of sake. The reason being that, at the time, sake made up an astonishing 30% of Japan's tax revenue. Since home brewed sake is tax-free sake, the logic was that by banning the home brewing of sake, sales would go up, hence more tax money would be collected. This was the end of "doburoku" (homebrewed) sake, and this law still remains in effect today despite the fact that sake sales currently make up only 2% of the government income.

When World War II erupted the sake brewing industry was dealt a hefty blow as the government clamped down on the use of rice for brewing. Most of the rice grown during this time was used for the war effort and this, in conjunction with many other problems, was the doom for thousands of breweries all over Japan. Previously it had been discovered that small amounts of alcohol could be added to sake to improve aroma and texture. But by government decree, pure alcohol and glucose were added to small quantities of rice mash, increasing the yield by as much as four times. 95% of today's sake is made using this technique, left over from the war years. There were even a few breweries that were able to produce "sake" that contained no rice at all. Naturally, the quality of sake during this time suffered greatly.

After the war breweries slowly began to recover, and the quality of sake gradually went up. However new players on the scene, beer, wine, and spirits became very popular in Japan, and in the 1960's beer consumption surpassed sake for the first time. Sake consumption continued to go down, but in contrast, the quality of sake steadily improved.

Today the quality of sake is at the highest it has ever been, and sake has become a world beverage with a few breweries springing up in South East Asia, South America, China, America and Australia. More breweries are also turning back to older methods of production.

While the rest of the world may be drinking more sake and the quality of sake has been increasing, it is not clear sailing for the sake industry. In Japan the sale of sake is still declining and it is uncertain if the exportation of sake to other countries can save Japanese breweries. There are currently around 1500 breweries in Japan right now whereas there were about 2500 in 1988.

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Varieties

There are two basic types of sake futsuu-shu (普通酒) "normal sake" and tokutei meishoshu(特定名称酒) "special designation sake".

futsuu-shu does not qualify for any levels of special designation sake. It is the equivalent of table wine and is over 90% of all sake produced. On the other hand the tokutei meishoshu or "special designation sake" is distinguished by the degree of polishing (milling) the rice or purity (restriction on adding distilled alcohol). Polishing is important because the inside part of rice kernels contains the starch (which is what ferments) and the outside parts contain oils and proteins, which tend to leave strange or unpleasant flavors in the final product. Polishing the rice removes the outer parts and leaves only the starchy core.

There are four types of tokutei meishoshu (actually six, due to mixing and matching the junmai and ginjo varieties).

  • honjozo-shu (本醸造), with a slight amount of distilled alcohol added. The distilled alcohol helps pull some extra flavors out of the mash. This term was created in the late 1960s to describe the difference between it (a premium, flavorful sake) from cheaply made liquors to which large amounts of alcohol were added simply to increase volume and/or give it a high alcohol content.
  • junmai-shu (純米酒, literally "pure rice wine"), made from rice only. Prior to 2004, the Japanese government mandated that at least 30% of the rice be polished away, no alcohol added, if the sake was to be considered junmai. Today, it can represent any sake milled to any degree, that contains no additives or distilled alcohol.
  • ginjo-shu (吟醸酒), from rice polished 30-50%.
  • daiginjo-shu (大吟醸酒), rice polished 50-70%.

The term junmai can be added in front of either ginjo or daiginjo if no alcohol is added to result in either junmai ginjo or junmai daiginjo. Please note that often distilled alcohol is added in small amounts to ginjo and daiginjo to highten the aroma, not to increase volume, so a junmai daiginjo is not automatically better than a daiginjo. In fact most sake that win the gold medals at the Hiroshima Kanpyokai (read the most premium of all sakes), are not allowed to be called junmai due to the small amounts of alcohol added

In addition, there are some other terms commonly used to describe sake:

  • kuroshu (黒酒), sake using unpolished rice (brown rice), more like the Chinese production method.
  • koshu (古酒), aged sake. Most sake does not age well but this specially made type can age for decades, turning the sake yellow and giving it a honeyed flavor.
  • taruzake (樽酒), sake aged in cedar barrels. The barrel aging gives this type it's characteristic spicyness. Also refers to sake casks broken open for the opening of buildings, businesses, holidays, etc. As the cedar barrels imparts a flavor, premium sake is rarely used for this type.
  • seishu (清酒), the official name for Japanese sake, but excluding nigorizake and doburoku.
  • shizuku (雫), sake which is separated from lees without external pressure by hanging moromi bags an allowing it to drip slowly.
  • tobin-gakoi (斗瓶囲い), sake which was pressed into separate bottles usually using the shizuku method, each containing 18 liters. The resulting bottles permits the brewer to select the best sake of the batch for shipping.
  • shiboritate (搾立), sake which has been shipped without the traditional 6 month aging/maturation period. The result is usually a more acidic, "greener" sake.

In addition, there are some other terms commonly used to in connection with sake:

  • kasu (粕), the sake lees left after filtering, used for making tsukemono, cuisine (sakekasujiru, etc.), live stock feed, and for making shochu.
  • nihon shudo (日本酒度), indicates from sweetest -30 to most dry +15
  • seimai-buai (精米歩合), the rice polishing ratio, meaning the left over weight after polishing. The lower the number, the better is the potential of the sake.
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Types of brewing process

By varying the brewing process, many different types of sake can be created. Categorized by brewing method, there are three types of Sake:

  • Kimoto (生酛) is the traditionally orthodox method for brewing sake which has been in use for at least 300 years, though very rare today. The mash is hand beaten and made into a paste which then ferments.
  • Yamahai (山廃) is a traditional method of brewing sake introduced in the early 1900s, where the starter or "moto" is left for a month to allow it to sour. The method was originally developed to speed production time, however, now it is used to impart a higher acidity and complex flavors.
  • Sokujo (速醸) is the modern sake which is made by adding a small amount of lactic acid to the mash to speed the production time. Sokujo sake tends to have a cleaner flavor than Kimoto or Yamahai.
  • Namazake (生酒) is sake that has not been pasteurized and is best served chilled, and may be made with any of the above ingredients, or brewing processes.
  • Genshu (原酒), supposed to be undiluted junmai sake, around 18-20% alc. by volume. Most genshu is honjozo-shu to make it more economical, however, the method of sake brewing is growing in popularity among premium brands as well.
  • Muroka (無濾過), means unfiltered. This type of sake is made as traditional seishu (i.e. not nigorizake), but does not go through the charcoal filtering, so there is a small amount of cloudyness. In recent years, muroka nama genshu sake is growing in popularity as it has a large enough flavor profile so that it can stand up to full flavored western foods.
  • Nigorizake (濁り酒), is cloudy sake. The sake is passed through a very loose weave to seperate it from the mash. It is of course not filtered thereafter and there is much rice sediment in the bottle. Before serving the bottle is shaken to mix the sediment and turn the sake white or cloudy.
  • Doburoku (濁酒) is the classic home-brew style of sake and is traditionally a cloudy milky color, as the most delicious flavors are found in the white residue. Doburoku is created by adding steamed rice at the end of fermentation, starting a second fermentation and raising the alcohol level. It is also unpasteurized. Please note that although the kanji for doburoku and nigorizake are same and they are both opaque, they are in fact different styles sake, with doburoku being the "chunkier" of the two.

By creating a starter-culture of micro-organisms, a higher-quality brew is possible. The starter-culture, called "moto" (元) is stored at 5-10°C, allowing the lactic acid micro-organisms to become dominant in the culture. Lactic acid is important to flavor and preventing un-wanted infections. Subsequently, the addition of moromi (諸味 or 醪) is added at three separate stages. The moromi is just the kōji, rice, and water. Initiating a brew with a starter-culture, and the subsequent batches of moromi also increases the alcohol levels slightly.

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Serving sake

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In Japan sake is served cold, warm or hot, depending on the preference of the drinker, the quality of the sake and the season. Typically, hot sake is consumed in winter and cold sake is consumed in summer. It is said that the alcohol in warm or hot sake is absorbed by the body more quickly, and drinking sake warm was popular during and after World War II to mask the roughness of the flavor due to difficulty of obtaining ingredients. Sake is one of the few alcoholic beverages that is regularly consumed hot.

The most common way to serve sake in the United States is to heat it to body temperature (98.6°F/37°C), but professional sake tasters prefer room temperature (68°F/20°C), and chilled sake (50°F/10°C) is growing in popularity.

Sake is served in shallow cups, called choko. Usually sake is poured into the choko from ceramic flasks called tokkuri. Other, more ceremonial cups, used most commonly at weddings and other special occasions, are called sakazaki. The influx of premium sakes has inspired Riedel, the Austrian wine glass company, to create a footed glass specifically for premium sakes such as Ginjo and Daiginjo. Drinking from someone else's sake cup is considered a sign of friendship, or to honour someone of lower status.

In some of the more traditional Japanese restaurants, as a show of generosity, the server may put a glass inside the masu (or put the masu inside a saucer) and pour until a large amount of sake overflows and fills this secondary container.

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Ritual uses

Sake is often drunk as part of Shinto purification rituals (compare with the use of red wine in the Catholic Eucharist). During World War II, Kamikaze pilots drank sake prior to carrying out their missions. Today barrels of sake are broken open during Shinto festivals and ceremonies or following sports victories: this sake (called iwai-zake, literally "celebration sake") is served freely to all to spread good fortune. Sake is also served during the light meal eaten during some tea ceremonies.

In the New Year Japanese people drink a special sake called toso (屠蘇). Toso is a sort of iwai-zake. Toso is made by soaking tososan (屠蘇散), a Chinese powder medicine, overnight in sake. Even children sip a portion. In some regions the first sipping of toso is taken in order of age from younger to older.

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See also

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Further reading

  • Fred Eckhardt, Sake USA (1992). Guide to American sake.
  • John Gauntner, Sake Handbook (2002). General information.
  • Rocky Aoki, Sake : Water from Heaven (2003). General information.
  • Philip Harper, The Insider's Guide to Sake (1998). General information.
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External links

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