Super Sake Boy and I were introduced to Kodama Jozo, in Akita prefecture through our dear friend and mentor, Simone. Simone, the Sake Mistress, hosted weekly online sessions during Covid with various sake breweries throughout Japan. The session with the Kodamas was especially enjoyable and we have wanted to meet with them ever since. Eiko-san … Continue reading Akita and Kodama Jozo
Eating anywhere in Japan is a treat. Eating in an Izakaya is the best treat, in my opinion. Izakaya are sometimes compared to pubs in the West, but I think of them more as bars with amazing snacks. Similar to tapas bars. They are casual, fun and often rowdy. Izakaya translates to stay and drink. … Continue reading Eating in Japan- Izakaya
Three three nine times is the literal translation of sansankudo. An integral part of a Shinto wedding ceremony involving drinking sake. As you can imagine, Super Sake Boy and I were quite enamoured with the concept of building this ancient ritual into our own wedding ceremony. Trying very hard not to culturally appropriate, I have … Continue reading Sansankudo 三三九度
Hanatome Sake is unique in flavour and has been a favourite of Super Sake Boy and I for quite some time. It has a delicious acidic complexity and when the Sake Mistress announced that the ninth session of Taste with the Toji would be with Miyoshino Jozo, makers of Hanatome, we were excited. Not only … Continue reading When Sake Reflects Nature
Throughout the series of Taste with the Toji events that Super Sake Boy and I have been attending since April, it has never failed to amaze me that regardless of what kind of sake the Toji (head brewers) are brewing, or what kind of kura (breweries) they are brewing in, a hundreds of years old … Continue reading A Taste with a Twist from Takayama
The eighth session of Sake Mistress Simone's Taste with the Toji on-line sake events found us in Ishikawa at Mioya Shuzo, with Kuramoto (president) Miho Fujita, and Toji, Toshi Yokomichi. I am reasonably sure when Miho-san was explaining the story of how she became president I was the only participant in the session that completely … Continue reading Aliens, Hot Wheels and Blues loving Koji- Mioya Shuzo
Last Sunday night we had the pleasure of virtually visiting an extraordinary sake brewery in Japan that is definitely the rebellious teenager of the sake world. Miyoshikiku Shuzo is situated in Tokushima, in Shikoku, and the sake is as charismatic as the Toji, Ryoichiro Mamiya. This event was the 6th in the Taste with the … Continue reading Punks Not Dead… And Nor Is Sake
Last year, somewhere between sitting our WSET Level 3 exam and receiving our results, Super Sake Boy and I had the privilege to be asked to pour sake at the Melbourne Sake Matsuri. It was a great deal of fun. It was also an excellent learning experience and we had the opportunity to work alongside … Continue reading Gozenshu…Taste with the Toji with an ancient twist
From the moment we heard that Simone, the Sake Mistress, was hosting another Taste the Toji session, this time with Rumiko Moriki of Moriki Shuzo, we were excited. Super Sake Boy and I had met Rumiko-san and her husband, Hideki-san, at an excellent afternoon at Tamura Sake Bar in Melbourne. Hosted by Black Market Sake, … Continue reading Another exceptional sake experience…Taste with the Toji- with manga and a frog
My friend Simone, the Sake Mistress, is a clever and creative being. She was on a trajectory when COVID-19 hit and we were on our way to sip much sake and tour breweries together when international travel was pulled from current reality. She is a sake educator, but also has a hospitality background, and hosts … Continue reading Taste with the Toji- an online, lockdown, sake experience like no other…
