Japanese restaurants and sake-Now and Then

Fifteen to twenty years ago, there weren’t too many Japanese restaurants
even in major cities in the U.S. You could find one or two Japanese
restaurants in a city if you were lucky. And sake was an afterthought in
those establishments. For the most part, Japanese food distributors, not
sake manufacturers, sold sake to Japanese restaurants as “an extra”.
There was no education about sake offered to the restaurants, since most of
the distributors didn’t have much knowledge on the subject of sake.
Because of this, nine out of ten American people tried Sake at Japanese
restaurants without any education about the product. In that same era, many
people tried hot sake (atukan), and hot sake became a novelty. In the U.S.,
hot drinks were unusual and exotic.

The next movement in sake was Nigori. Nigori became very popular because it
was very different from other alcohol. It was white and it was cheap.

Today in the United States, there are many Japanese restaurants. In some
cities, you can find Japanese restaurants on every block. As a result,
people have become savvier about Japanese food and sake.

You may think that you can only find sake at Japanese restaurants, or maybe
at some fusion restaurants, but that is not the case anymore. You can see
sake offered at many high-end western food restaurants. Why? The answer is
very simple. Every high end restaurant chef in the U.S. likes Japanese food
due to its complexity and simplicity. They love going to Sushi restaurants,
and also enjoy sake at the restaurants. I always believe that the restaurant
is the extension of the owner. And high-end chefs are always curious about
adopting new things at their restaurants. One high-end chef even said,
“Sake fits with lobster with a butter sauce better than any white wine.”

Why sake is popular?

Sake has the power to enhance the flavor of, and compliments, any food. It
has some of the popular attributes of wine.

Is sake like wine?

There is no doubt that sake has some attributes of wine. But sake is not
wine. There are 4000 wine labels in the U.S., and sake is not one of them.
sake is very unique. It should be in its own category. I often say, “Sake
is made like beer and drunk like wine.”
Also, sake is perishable. Unlike wine, it only lasts 12 to 18 months. Your
distributor may want to sell it at a discount in order to get rid of
almost-expired sake. Old sake doesn’t taste good. If your customer tries
sake for the first time and it doesn’t taste good, they may never want to
try sake again, so please be very careful in choosing the age of your sake.

Why is sake so popular now?

Everybody is used to drinking wine. Some love wine but others hate wine due
to the extreme snobbishness of wine culture. Drinking should be for
enjoyment, but some feel intimated by wine. Unlike wine, sake represents a
new field. Drinking it is like skiing in fresh power snow - you can drink
it for your own enjoyment. There are no complex rules associated with the
drinking of sake. When you go out for dinner, you pay money for
entertainment. With sake, you can enjoy your dinner.

Also, the feeling you get from sake is different from what you get from
other alcohol. It provides a different buzz from beer and wine. Sake is
cleaner. Sake has 1/3 low acidity, no sulfites, low histamines, and no
preservatives. It is almost better for you. I would call sake “clean
burning fuel.”

As far as the retail trend goes for this holiday season, I think we will be
seeing more people bringing sake instead of wine to the party. The sake
bottle is beautiful. People will open it first and more and more people
will try sake for the first time this holiday season.

How do your serve sake?

I would always suggest pouring sake in front of customers and making sure
people see the label. Sake bottles are unique and beautiful. Give people a
new experience. Also, you can pour it into a white wine glass. People have
a misconception that Nihonshu (sake) is a hard alcohol. They think that you
must drink from a shot glass, but the reality is that wine is 13 % alcohol
and sake is 14%. It is not a hard alcohol. You don’t need a shot glass
(ochoko). By drinking sake from a white wine glass, you can enjoy more
aroma and flavor. (Acidity is the mover of the flavor).