Sakaya NYC Blog

With Summer just around the corner, our tastings for June offer opportunities to sample some great sake for warm weather refreshment …

Saturday, June 5, 2010, 4 to 6pm

Kotsuzumi Sake Tasting

Kotsuzumi Tokubetsu Junmai & Kotsuzumi Junmai Daiginjo (Hyogo)

Friday, June 11, 2010, 6 to 8pm

Chokaisan  Sake Tasting

Chokaisan Junmai Daiginjo (Akita)

Friday, June 18, 2010, 6 to 8pm

World Sake Tasting

Dewazakura Omachi Ginjo (Yamagata)

Saturday, June 26, 2010, 4 to 6pm

Yuzu and Ume Sake Tasting

Ume no Yado Yuzushu  & Umeshu  (Nara)

This month will be busy for sake lovers with an abundance of  sake tasting events in NYC.  In addition to the nine tastings at SAKAYA, there is the Nishimoto Trading “The Best 100 Sake!” at EN Brasserie on Saturday, May 15, and the annual Japan Society sake lecture by sake expert extraordinaire John Gauntner and accompanying tasting on Wednesday, May 19.

Our lineup of tastings at SAKAYA kicks off with the latest of the exciting new spring seasonal namazake followed by a series of brewers visiting from Japan who will introduce you to their sake.   After all the opportunities to explore so many this month,  you’ll be sure to celebrate Memorial day with sake!

Saturday, May 8, 2010, 4-6pm

Japan Prestige Sake Association Namazake Tasting

Otokoyama Kasumi Junmai Namazake (Hokkaido), Gokyo Junmai Nama (Yamaguchi), & Urakasumi Tokubetsu Junmai Nama (Miyagi)

Thursday, May 13, 2010, 6 to 8pm

Fukumitsuya Brewery Tasting

Kagatobi Junmai Nama, Kagatobi Ai Junmai Daiginjo Nama, & Kuro Obi Doudou Yamahai Junmai (Ishikawa)

Friday, May 14, 2010, 6-8pm

Yumegokoro Brewery Sake Tasting

Naraman Junmai (Fukushima)

Tuesday, May 18, 2010 6-8pm

Imada Brewery Company Tasting

Fukucho “Moon on the Water” Junmai Ginjo (Hiroshima)

Friday, May 21, 2010, 6-8pm

Jokigen Sake Brewery Sake Tasting

Jokigen Junmai Ginjo (Yamagata)

Saturday, May 22, 2010, 4-6pm

Akita Seishu Brewery Sake Tasting

Dewatsuru Kimoto Junmai & Dewatsuru Hihaku Junmai Daiginjo (Akita)

Wednesday, May 26, 2010, 6-8pm

Shindo Brewery Sake Tasting

Gasanryu Honjozo (Yamagata)

April is sakura (cherry blossom) season.  In Japan, people enthusiastically engage in the festive ritual of ohanami,  viewing the cherry blossoms and gathering  under sakura trees to picnic.  Of course sake is an integral component of this annual celebration.  With ohanami as the theme this month, we’ve chosen sake for our tastings for their floral aromatics which evoke spring and the sakura.  We hope that you attend one of the  Sakura Matsuri in the New  York Metro Area and that you’ll find the right sake for your ohanami celebration at SAKAYA!

Friday, April 2, from 6 to 8pm

World Sake Imports Sake Tasting

Masumi Arabashiri Junmai Ginjo (Nagano)

Saturday, April 10, from 4 to 6pm

Ohanami Sake Tasting

Kamoshibito Kuheiji Junmai Ginjo (Aichi)

Saturday, April 17, from 4 to 6pm

Ohanami Sake Tasting

Jukusei Jozen Mizunogotoshi Junmai Ginjo (Niigata) & Umenishiki Junmai Ginjo (Ehime)

Friday, April 23, from 6 to 8pm

World Sake Imports Sake Tasting

Dewazakura Oka Ginjo (Yamagata)

Thursday, April 29 from 6 to 8pm

Joto Sake Tasting

Yuki no Bosha Junmai Ginjo (Akita) & Taiheikai Tokubetsu Junmai (Ibaraki)

At the end of this month, the  much-anticipated  Masumi Arabashiri Namazake from Nagano arrives at SAKAYA and at selected restaurants in NYC.  An early spring seasonal unpasteurized sake (namazake is  unpasteurized sake), it has become a favorite of many of our customers and has won fans among sake enthusiasts and neophytes alike.

What is arabashiri?  In the latter stages of the sake brewing process,  the fermented  mash of rice, water, yeast and koji, called the moromi is  pressed to separate the liquid (sake) from the solids  (sake kasu).  This pressing portion of the process has three stages and the sake from each is earmarked for  separate bottlings.  Arabashiri is the first stage which yields a sake that has a bright, zingy, fresh taste.  Arabashiri is followed by Nakadori (middle stage) and Seme (the last stage).

We’ll also be featuring two exquisite sake, Kanbara “Bride of the Fox” Junmai Ginjo and Tentaka Kuni “Hawk in the Heavens” Junmai,  from  Hiroko’s recent six kura itinerary in northeastern Japan on March 12 and a tasting of one of Saga prefecture’s finest sake, Azumaichi Junmai,  on March 20.

We hope that you can join us for one or all of these memorable sake experiences!

Saturday, March 6, 2010, 4 to 6PM

JFC Importer Sake Tasting

Kotsuzumi Junmai & Junmai Daiginjo (Hyogo)

Friday, March 12, 2010, 6 to 8PM

Vine Connection Importer Sake Tasting

Kanbara Junmai Ginjo (Niigata) & Tentaka Junmai (Tochigi)

Saturday, March 20, 2010, 4 to 6PM

Azumaichi Junmai (Saga)

Friday, March 26, 2010, 6 to 8PM

World Sake Import Sake Tasting

Masumi Arabashiri (Nagano)

We were very happy to see the Daily News (1/24/10) include SAKAYA in their two-page spread  shopping guide to Little Tokyo in New York’s  East Village.

Who said February wasn’t an exciting month?  As a prelude to Valentine’s Day,  we have a tasting that pairs one particular sake with chocolate.  Talk about a love connection! Who knew that sake and chocolate could be a perfect match?  And speaking of love…for those who have a passion for the early spring seasonal namazake (unpasteurized sake), the wait is over.  We have a limited amount  of  these delicious hatsushibori in stock, and will be pouring them at two tastings to make sure that everyone gets a chance to try them.

Thursday, February 4, 2010, 6-8PM

Special Sake Tasting

Nakamura Brewery’s Akira Junmai (Ishikawa)

Saturday, February 6, 2010, 4-6PM

Sake with Chocolate

Dewatsuru Kimoto Junmai (Akita)

Saturday, February 13, 2010, 4-6PM

Japan Prestige Sake Association Namazake Tasting

Kamikokoro Tokagen (Okayama), Harushika Shiboribana (Nara), & Shutendoji Oh Oni (Kyoto)

Friday, February 19, 2010, 6-8PM

Japan Prestige Sake Association Namazake Tasting

Kamikokoro Tokagen (Okayama), Harushika Shiboribana (Nara), & Shutendoji Oh Oni (Kyoto)

As we begin the new decade we pause for just a moment to take one last look back at the past year to share with you the sake that our customers loved best.   Here without further ado, are the SAKAYA Top Ten best-selling sake of 2009…

10.  Jokigen Junmai Ginjo (Yamagata)

With its uniquely stylized label, Jokigen Junmai Ginjo has well balanced flavor of  rice and fruit with acidity.

9.  Ume no Yado Junmai Ginjo (Nara)

Rich and bold flavor with fruity aroma, solid and dependable Junmai Ginjo.

8.  Ume no Yado Aragoshi Umeshu (Nara)

A blend of sake and pureed plum, Aragoshi Umeshu has a mouthfilling plum flavor and a clean, refreshing finish.

7.  Yuki no Bosha Nigori (Akita)

Popular among nigori lovers,  this brew offers a delicate balance of sweetness with notes of strawberry and peach.

6.  Suigei “Drunken Whale” Tokubetsu Junmai (Kochi)

A dry sake that is perfect for drinking chilled or warmed.

5.  Narutotai Ginjo Nama Genshu (Tokushima)

Rich and powerful with slightly sweet taste,  this is a high grade unpasteurized, undiluted sake.

4.  Denemon Junmai Ginjo (Niigata)

Clean and delicate with peach and honeydew flavors, it has a good balance of fruitiness and acidity with dry finish.

3.  Dassai 50 Junmai Daiginjo (Yamaguchi)

The most reasonably priced Junmai Daiginjo on the market, Dassai 50 is slightly sweet with very clean finish.

2.  Ume no Yado Yuzu (Nara)

Who can resist the flavor of yuzu?  Ume no Yado Yuzu-shu was an instant hit when the product hit the store in early 2009.  It has very refreshing citrus taste, similar to lemonade.

1.  Kikusui Funaguchi Honjozo Nama Genshu (Niigata)

For the second year in a row, Kikusui Funaguchi  is as popular as ever.  It is a tasty rich sake in an unforgettable package.  This can goes everywhere and anywhere!

Happy New Year!  In keeping with our pledge to bring you the latest arrivals to the U.S., we begin our 2010 tastings with the very first seasonal namazake (unpasteurized sake) of the year and follow that with a brand new sake that has just become available in this country.   We wind up the month with some brews that when served warm are great for taking some of the bite out of mother nature’s frosty embrace and a couple of old favorites that pair wonderfully with hearty winter fare.

We look forward to seeing you at one of all of these SAKAYA tastings for a New Year’s  Kanpai!

Rick & Hiroko

Saturday, January 9, 2010, 4-6PM

Nanbu Bijin Tokubetsu Junmai Nama Tasting

Friday, January 15, 2010, 6-8PM

Japan Prestige Sake Association Tasting

Shirataki Jukusei Jozen Mizunogotoshi Junmai Ginjo (Niigata)

Friday, January 22, 2010, 6-8PM

World Sake Tasting

Kamoizumi Shusen “Three Dots” Junmai & Kamoizumi Summer Snow Nigori (Hiroshima)

Friday, January 29, 2010, 6-8PM

NY Mutual Trading Tasting

Take no Tsuyu Junmai (Yamagata) & Tama no Hikari Yamahai Ginjo (Kyoto)

We were delighted that our  SAKAYA Sake Club drew the attention of  Daily Candy which decided to include it in their 18 Last Minute Gifts list today.  So far, the response has been an impressive demonstration of their pulling power!

Click here to see their site.