Afuri Ohana Junmai Nama Sake
The Afuri series from Kikkawa Jozo is brewed with water from a rain-fed spring at the foot of Mount Afuri in Kanagawa. It is naturally harder than typical sake brewing water at 150ppm in equal parts Calcium and Magnesium. These nutrients allow for extremely low temperature fermentation to develop extra complexity. Founded in 1912, Kikkawa once made rich and dry sake. The 7th generation chief brewer Masanori Mizuno took over in 2012 changing focus to a complex, robust and aromatic style balanced by ancient acid production techniques. This is a pure rice sake with a beautiful rose-pink color made using the rare Tsurubara (rambling rose) flower yeast and pesticide-free cultivated ancient rice which is also rich in polyphenols and minerals. It has a gentle and smooth taste, making it suitable even for sake beginners. While it has a sweet and floral aroma, it also offers a clear aftertaste.. Serve chilled, serve with rich dishes or as you begin your afternoon.
Afuri Ringo San no.77 Junmai Ginjo
Starting with super high quality Hyogo grown Yamada Nishiki, this sake features yeast no.77 which is very high in malic acid production (green apple note). Aromas of honeysuckle, white grape and lemon balm leap from the glass. The palate is round but transitions very quickly into sweet tart candy. There’s lots of acidity, even some astringency before the long finish suggests apple jolly rancher. A great introduction to the Afuri line.
Oka Kuru Bermutto Sake Sweet Vermouth
Product Information: Building upon a rebalancing of the four base botanicals of the drier, flagship Bermutto, Oka Kuru's taken on dry vermouth. OKA Sweet Bermutto incorporates a powerful fifth ingredient: a bitter Japanese plum called ume. Ume’s tart astringency is right at home in this bitter botanical blend and is perfectly complemented and balanced by raw cane sugar from Okinawa. The wine base is Junmai Sake (fermented rice alcohol, not wine). There are five botanicals: Yomogi, yuzu, Kabosu, ume and cane sugar. Yomogi is Japanese wormwood. Yuzu is an acidic aromatic citrus as acidic as a lemon with a flavour that's reminiscent to lemon, grapefruit, and mandarin orange. Kabosu is a very high-acid citrus profile and flavour similar to yuzu and lime. Ume is a tart Japanese green plum. Lastly it's all sweetened with kokuto (Okinawan cane sugar). Oka Kura Bermutto is a uniquely Japanese take on the category of vermouth made from aromatized, shochu-fortified sake. While not technically a vermouth because it is not wine-based, it functions in cocktails as a vermouth should—a botanically-infused, low ABV modifier—and generally bridges a gap between sake, shochu, and vermouth. Maker: Founded by Yuno Hayashi and named for her grandfather, OKA BRAND offers a growing range of distinctly Japanese spirits and liqueurs made from local rice spirits, Junmai sake, and hyper-regional botanicals. Each expression provides not only endless drinking possibilities, but a gateway to Japanese flavours and traditions. Distillery: OKA BRAND spirits and liqueurs are produced by the legendary Tsutsumi Distillery in the Kumamoto Prefecture in Kyushu, Japan. Tsutsumi has been producing shochu for nearly 150 years in the Hitoyoshi Basin just 5 km from the Kuma River, the longest river in Kyushu. It is one of only 28 distilleries certified by the World Trade Organization as a Kuma Shochu producer, a designation similar to the protected designations of origin of Scotch, tequila, and Cognac. The Kuma River is renowned for its reputation as the clearest stream in Japan, lending itself to crafting fine sake and shochu, all from rice grown within the Kuma River system. Influenced by the fortified, aromatized wine producers of Europe while drawing on Japanese tradition, OKA BRAND took the cocktail world by storm with the introduction of their flagship expression, Bermutto. A yuzu liqueur and sweet, ume-based formulation of Bermutto followed, and now with the introduction of rice-based vodkas and gin, OKA offers an even wider range of exceptional products for use in cocktails by the world’s most discerning bartenders and mixologists. Nose - Yeast, Tropical Fruits, Lavendar Unmistakably plummy, evocative of of umeshu and sloe gin with sour cherry, orange peel, and brown sugar. Palate - Rice, Faint Plum, Piquant Peppers On the palate, oolong tea, tart cherry, grapefruit zest, plum. Finish - Yuzu, Grapefruit, Pleasant Bitters Caramel, plum, marzipan, faint sake, lemon, orange
Oka Kuru Bermutto Sake Dry Vermouth
Product Information: Oka Kura Bermutto is a uniquely Japanese take on the category of vermouth made from aromatised, shochu-fortified sake. Technically it's not a vermouth because it is not wine-based, but it works in cocktails as a vermouth should—as a botanically-infusing, low ABV modifier— that bridges a gap between sake, shochu, and vermouth. Oka Kura Bermutto is essentially a dry vermouth. There are four botanicals used in the production of Oka Kura: Yuzu, Kabosu, Sansho peppercorn, and Yomogi. Yuzu is an acidic aromatic citrus as acidic as a lemon with a flavour that's reminiscent to lemon, grapefruit, and Mandarin orange. Kabosu is a very high-acid citrus profile and flavour similar to yuzu and lime. Sansho peppercorn is a peppery and slightly citrusy peppercorn that's relative Sichuan peppercorn only it produces are milder, numbing sensation on the palate. Lastly there's Yomogi – A Japanese wormwood, also known as Japanese mugwort. FYI: Bermutto is a Japanese phonetic spelling of vermouth. The Japanese language has no “v” sound, so the v's in foreign words are written and pronounced with “b” instead. Maker: Founded by Yuno Hayashi and named for her grandfather, OKA BRAND offers a growing range of distinctly Japanese spirits and liqueurs made from local rice spirits, Junmai sake, and hyper-regional botanicals. Each expression provides not only endless drinking possibilities, but a gateway to Japanese flavors and traditions. Distillery: OKA BRAND spirits and liqueurs are produced by the legendary Tsutsumi Distillery in the Kumamoto Prefecture in Kyushu, Japan. Tsutsumi has been producing shochu for nearly 150 years in the Hitoyoshi Basin just 5 km from the Kuma River, the longest river in Kyushu. It is one of only 28 distilleries certified by the World Trade Organization as a Kuma Shochu producer, a designation similar to the protected designations of origin of Scotch, tequila, and Cognac. The Kuma River is renowned for its reputation as the clearest stream in Japan, lending itself to crafting fine sake and shochu, all from rice grown within the Kuma River system. Influenced by the fortified, aromatized wine producers of Europe while drawing on Japanese tradition, OKA BRAND took the cocktail world by storm with the introduction of their flagship expression, Bermutto. A yuzu liqueur and sweet, ume-based formulation of Bermutto followed, and now with the introduction of rice-based vodkas and gin, OKA offers an even wider range of exceptional products for use in cocktails by the world’s most discerning bartenders and mixologists. Nose - Yeast, Tropical Fruits, Lavendar The nose is fruity and yeasty with notes of grapefruit, peach, guava, lavender, and plum. Palate - Rice, Faint Plum, Piquant Peppers On the palate, the sake base is immediately evident with base notes of rice, yeast, and faint plum. Yuzu and sansho peppercorn brighten things up. Finish - Yuzu, Grapefruit, Pleasant Bitters An undercurrent of yomogi provides earthy grapefruit from beginning to end.