torsdag 1. november 2012

First dai-ginjo outside Japan?

We are brewing our first junmai dai-ginjo sake.  The rice is Ginpu milled to 45%.
We are wondering whether this is the first dai-ginjo sake made outside Japan!

8 kommentarer:

  1. Unfortunately not. Ozeki Sake USA has been brewing junmai daiginjo in California since 1979. Still very exciting, though! Will it be available at Vinmonopolet?

    SvarSlett
    Svar
    1. We have concluded that our Junmai dai ginjo was not up to our expectations. As such it has been blended with our Junmai ginjo, and packaged as Junmai Ginjo.

      Slett
    2. Sorry to hear that, but it's reassuring to know you won't release an inferior product as daiginjo. Any idea when the junmai ginjo will be available? Can't wait to try it!

      Slett
    3. The Junmai Ginjo is likely to be available in a few weeks!

      Slett
    4. Excellent news! By the way, do you happen to know how the junmai-shu is stored by the distributor (Vectura, if I'm not mistaken)? I recently ordered my first bottle and received one bottled in November 2011 that tasted a bit off to me. Admittedly, that could just be because of my limited experience with yamahais, but if it hasn't been properly stored then 1 1/2 year old sake is likely past its prime anyway.

      Slett
    5. Our distributor, Vectura, stores all our beverages in their main external storage-facility. We asked them what the temperature of the facility was, and they replied:

      "Our warehouse is mechanically set to have a temperature between 14 and 17 degrees Celsius regardless of the season. At the moment the temerature is 15 degrees."

      This is an okay storage condition for our sake, so that this affects the taste in a bad way, is highly unlikely. As on the bottle, we still recommend that you store the sake in cool temperatures.
      Can you get more in to detail in what the "off-ness" is about?
      We are looking forward to hear from you!

      Slett
  2. Well, I'm no professional taster, so my flavor vocabulary is rather limited, but basically there's what I can only describe as a prominent musty or stale flavor, while the "expected" flavors (based on the description on your website) seem to have faded. They're still there, but very faint and muted.

    SvarSlett
    Svar
    1. I've just tried a second bottle and concluded that the problem was probably not related to storage after all. The junmai-shu in this bottle, which was bottled on the same date as the first one, was quite lively and delicious. A very pleasant surprise, in fact. Not only was there no hint of the musty flavor, but it was also much more balanced than the first bottle, which had a somewhat sharp and unpleasant acidity. I originally thought that might be a result of the "wild" yamahai starter (as I said, I have little experience with yamahais), but this makes me think it was just a flaw in the first bottle.

      There was actually a problem with the screw cap on the first bottle. Basically, I couldn't get it off without a pair of pliers (literally). I'm not sure if that could have anything to do with the off-flavor, but it's the only obvious difference between the two bottles, anyway.

      Slett