Nigori Creme de Sake
Aye, I am reviewing sake.
For the record, I am not a “professional” drinker. I don’t know whether there are professional drinkers. If there are, I ain’t one of ’em. What this means is that my grading of sake is entirely, purely, subjective.
A bit of a history lesson here. I used to drink just beer in my college years and well into my 20s. I just didn’t know any better. Beer is affordable after all.
My first encounter with sake was from a sushi bar with my friends. I was in late 20s. My first sake was served ice cold. There was an Asian fellow among my group, and he told us that this isn’t how one should drink sake. He told us that sake should always be served in warm temperature so that one could enjoy its aroma.
That was how everything began for me and sake.
In my experience, ice cold sake is just like vodka, just far weaker. (15% vs. 40%). Liquor is generally not served warm. I don’t see a single example of liquor being served warm in Europe and America. So, I can see why sake is being served ice cold over here. However, ever since that experience, I’ve purchased sake on my own and have been drinking it warm for well over a decade now.
Sake, when served warm, has an aroma. It still has it when it’s cold but far weaker. You cannot smell it. However, when you swallow it, its aroma will hit the back of your nose. When I experienced sake aroma for the first time, I realized what he meant. Drinking sake ice cold was a waste of money.
Nigori Creme de Sake
What I have here, for my first review of sake is Nigori Creme de Sake. This is unfiltered sake. Unfiltered sake is cloudy. Basically, residual rice bits haven’t been filtered out in this kind of sake. Some dislike unfiltered sake because these have a good tendency to taste sweet.
This Nigori sake is relatively cheap. It costs about 9 CAD per a 300ml bottle. It has a pretty distinctive taste and aroma. This is one of better ones in its price range.
When served warm at about 60c, it has a faint sweet aroma that hits the back of your nose. The sake itself is a bit sweet as well. The content label lists a bit of sugar even, 35g/L. Generally, unfiltered sake contains some sugar. This one has a bit more than others.
You shake the bottle before opening up. It is very cloudy but you won’t feel anything in your mouth.
Overall, I’d grade it as decent. It is cheap and has a good aroma for its price. It’s also fairly easy to drink because it doesn’t feel like a bitter drink which most alcoholic beverages due to its sugar content. This kind of sake is best be drunk alone without any side dishes since it has got its own taste.
Until next time.
